CHANGWON — South Gyeongsang Province said on the 7th that it ran a promotional booth at the K-Culture and Travel Festival 2026, held from the 4th to the 5th of this month, introducing regional tourist destinations and cultural content. The aim is to channel the growing popularity of Korean culture in Germany into travel demand for the province.
The event was hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and organized by the Korea Tourism Organization. It was designed to use the Korean cultural wave to raise interest in visiting Korea. A total of 28 institutions and companies took part, including the Korea Tourism Organization, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), the Korea Creative Content Agency and the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation. Alongside exhibitions and promotions, side events included K-pop dance and traditional culture performances and K-beauty experiences.
The province's Paris office secured a promotional pavilion after being selected through a competitive bid run by the Korea Tourism Organization. It focused on converting local interest in Korea, sparked by K-pop and Korean dramas, into visits to South Gyeongsang Province.
The province presented five themes: tours of K-content filming locations, regional cuisine, night tours, UNESCO World Heritage sites and wellness destinations. On site, visitors also took part in an event in which they wrote their own names in Hangul on postcards featuring scenery from the province and posted them on social media.
One local visitor who finished a consultation said, "I came to know Korea through K-dramas and plan to visit someday," adding, "I want to experience firsthand the natural and cultural resources of Gyeongnam that were introduced to me today."
The province's Paris office plans to broaden its network with the local tourism industry following the event and to continue marketing through overseas travel fairs and promotional events.
Lee Chae-in, head of the province's Paris office, said, "At a time when the number of European travelers is surging, this was a good opportunity to promote Gyeongnam as an attractive option," adding, "We will continue to make full use of international stages in major European cities to showcase the diverse appeal of Gyeongnam combined with Korean culture."
