Gangwon moves forth with style and activities for all season.
See Cherry blossom was so yesterday. These days, you will score points if you can catch the colours of canola flowers in April. The best place to view them is in Samcheok, where the festival includes local produce market, fresh strawberry picking and exhibitions on canola flowers and bees.
Do Get active all year round in Gangwon. See and play in the snow at this year’s Snow Festa, get active with whitewater rafting in Inje or zipline in Jeongseon to marvel at the gorgeous scenery.
Shop Can’t get enough of Korean noodles? It never gets any fresher than making your own to take home at the Makguksu Experience Museum. Apart from this, other Korean souvenirs to take home include ginseng and Koean tea.
Stay Make Intercontinental Alpensia Pyeongchang Resort your base to explore Alpensia Ski Resort and its surroundings. Located within a self-contained “European village”, there are restaurants, shopping and convenience stores within the premise. Plus the hotel also offers family rooms to make it easy for big groups to travel together.
The temperatures may be cold during winter in South Korea but one popular activity is heating things up with both locals and holidaymakers.
Images KOREA TOURISM ORGANIZATION
Skiers and snowboarders zip-zapping across snowy slopes at dizzying speeds. The softest snow you’ll ever come face to face with and the most amazing natural sights that serve as the perfect backdrop for your holiday snaps. A trip to Korea during the winter calls for a getaway to the country’s most beautiful ski resorts – and there are plenty to choose from. So much so that Korea prides itself as the new hotspot for skiers and snowboarders around the world, offering its visitors first-rate slopes with all the extras you’d expect from a world-class ski destination.
One popular spot? The Gangwon-do Province, home to most of Korea’s popular ski resorts thanks to its backdrop of the Baekdudaegan Mountain Range that stretches north-south along the entire province. With plenty of snowfall guaranteed each year and beautiful snow-capped mountains, Gangwon-do is the ideal winter getaway. Plus, there’s more than just skiing in this charming region so if you want to take a break from the slopes, it’s the right place to be.
POWDERY BEAUTY But first, the ski resorts. The most famous here is Alpensia, the Alps of Asia. One of the main stages for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, this resort boasts a world-class infrastructure for winter sports with its ski jumping tower, monorails and other facilities that guarantee a ski of a time. Add on a beautiful mountain landscape and you’ll never want to leave this ski resort. Its European-style accommodation, a 45-hole golf course and a water park are more reasons why you should visit.
If you are seeking for a ski resort that’s convenient to get to, consider Elysian Gangchon, the only ski resort with its own subway station (Baegyang-ri Station). Elysian Gangchon is also your best bet if this is the first time you’re skiing as the resort has more slopes for beginners compared to other ski resorts. Aside from that, it also operates a ski and snowboard school for beginners.
Boasting excellent snow quality and remarkable slope courses is High 1 Resort, Korea’s first ski resort under the sky thanks to its highest elevation in the country. The main attraction here is the 4.2 kilometre-long beginner’s slope that starts at the top of Jijangsan Mountain at 1,345 metres). It’s a much larger resort compared to other ski parks covering three mountain peaks.
Looking for a ski park that’s suitable for the whole family? Head on down to Oak Valley then, a picturesque park with snow-covered oak forests and European-style condominiums. The ski resort offers nine slopes with wide, gradually descending courses designed to ensure safety. Plus, throughout winter, the park hosts several activities like fireworks shows and concerts suitable for all ages. Add on an indoor swimming pool, an amusement park, a glamping site and other leisure facilities, and you have a place that’s ideal for a memorable family trip.
Google Korea ski resort and Vivaldi Park is most likely to be your top hit. First, it’s only an hour away from Seoul, which makes it the most convenient to visit, and second, it features Snowy Land, the first and largest winter village in Korea. Check out the 12 slopes for different expertise levels. If you want, you can also sign up for ski school that’s conducted in an exclusive zone for safety.
WHILE IN GANGWON-DO… If you want a break from skiing, Gangwon-do’s many nearby attractions will do just the trick. The most popular site is Nami Island, which boasts a romantic and somewhat enchanting atmosphere. It is also the filming site for the ever-popular Korean TV drama Winter Sonata. The most famous spot on the island is the tree-lined road, which offers a different scenic view each season.
Those looking to explore Korea’s beautiful scenic views will want to visit the Woljeongsa Temple and Daegwallyeong Samyang Ranch. The former is a 1,000-year-old temple surrounded by the most beautiful fir tree forest in the natural environment of Odaesan Mountain while at the ranch, you’ll enjoy taking a walk across the vast blanket of snow covering the large ranch with animals like cows, ostriches, sheep and rabbits roaming freely.
Make your way to the Wonju Sogeumsan Suspension Bridge, which prides itself for being the most impressive pedestrian suspension bridge in South Korea. The panoramic view here will take your breath away while walking across the bridge will test your courage. It will be worthwhile though as you are treated to the most amazing mountain top views.
On the streets of Seoul, everyone dresses nice. Seriously. This was the end of Spring. The ladies are fashionable in their trench and the men stylish with their layered looks. It’s quite impossible to spot anyone dressing shabbily. Then again, this is Seoul, the capital of culture and the city of cool. Everything and everyone is drop dead gorgeous. Just like Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Seoul’s new cultural landmark and the hub of every first moving trend. With its sexy alluring curves and futuristic organic design – and you want a selfie with this one – it’s Korea in a nutshell.
Everything about Korea is cool and right now. And the rest of the world just can’t get enough of it.
“It” is the Korean wave, Hallyu or K-wave, for short. It encompasses everything Made in Korea: from food to fashion, design and culture, beauty, TV and everything else in between. Everybody today wants a Korean culture export. Why? Because the K-brand is the brand of the moment. And there is plenty in Seoul to search for it.
On the pedestrian-bursting street of Myeongdong, known as a paradise for hunters of the latest in K-beauty, tourists and locals dodge elbows and cart- vendors making their way to Olive Young, one of Korea’s most popular beauty and health shops. Inside, racks of products ranging from snail secretions to pearl powders and starfish extracts are on display. Thanks to social media, positive feedback from customers, and a Korean government that continues to churn money investing in the latest beauty technologies, Korean-made skincare and beauty products are gaining traction with a crowd looking to have their skin glowing. No churning of stomachs here.
In Gangnam, the neighbourhood that personifies Seoul’s metropolitan feel, shops on the leafy Garosu-gil boulevard is an eclectic mix of design, style and fashion. Many storefronts look as though they’re prime candidates for their own coffee table tomes. Too Cool For School’s sleek wooden interior is a chic Monocle-esque playground. The Skin Food concept store is a cheery shed of sunshine yellow, with plenty of hanging plants, trellises and garden-style displays. The products’ appealing packaging doesn’t hurt, either.
More cool hunting grounds can be found in Garosu-gil in its plethora of trendy cafes and restaurants. Coffeesmith pulls in the well-heeled crowd with its synthesis of concrete and steel that give the café a rustic, industrial vibe. You’ll find locals and the occasional celeb sipping on iced Americano as they watch the crowd pass by. Café Able is another drool-worthy place, with its eco-inspired menu and communal-centric theme. “Koreans are not really coffee drinkers,” explains Tina Park, “but hanging out at a café is considered trendy. Just like snagging a Starbucks coffee cup – it’s akin to having a Prada bag across your shoulder.”
A city like Seoul is always on the move. It’s not surprising then that Seoul continues to reinvent its cool. Neighbourhoods such as Samcheong-dong and Yeonnam-dong become hot spots for locals and tourists to linger their time away, visiting chic art galleries hidden amidst traditional hanboks, indie boutiques that house quirky curious and Made in Korea fashion, and alleyways that lead up to stylish cafes and more. Just strolling down the street in these neighbourhoods, soaking up the atmosphere, allows you to sample a slice of Seoul that is shrewd in its marketing and makeover.
South Korea really prospered a good decade after the end of Korean War. Decades of diligent planning and investment steered it out from being the world’s poorest to the most successful among all Asian countries today. It continues to reinvent itself; its cultural content exports impacting the lives of a global audience. In 2016, the Hallyu economic asset had mushroomed into more than US$5 million despite an economic slowdown.
Just consider its K-dramas. South Korea’s marriage of creativity and commerce has fuelled a tourism boom in drama locations. Nami Island, the main filming location of the massive hit drama “Winter Sonata”, annually receives 1 million visitors a year. In downtown Seoul, Kyobo Bookstore stands proud near Cheonggyecheon Stream, one of the city’s most recognisable (and successful) urban redevelopment projects.
Its cavernous halls and curved columns was also the location for the drama, “Alone In Love”. Once inside, it’s hard to tell apart who’s the bibliophile and who’s the hardcore Hallyu drama fan. The popularity of hit drama locations is not lost on tourism operators, who designs tour packages to fulfil the demand of famous drama locations.
There is no end to how much South Korean products have affected the world. The cool draws people in. And for that reason, there’s no better time than now to visit the country.
