Eyeing N.E. Asia as Ski Resort Hub

Gov. Kim of Gangwon Province unveils long-term vision to be regional tourism hub and attract 100 mln tourists

Gov. Kim Jin-sun of Gangwon Province said he would like to expand the tourism horizon of the province to all of Northeast Asia so that it will be a regional tourism hub in the 21st century to the extent that tourism is the highest value-added industry that can help the province's economy. The governor said he would like to increase the number of tourists to the province to 100 million including 3 million foreign tourists by 2010 from 40 million in 2007.
He said he envisages the tourism strategies to include the provincial government's support in building a number of tourism complexes in the province, such as the Pyeongchang-Yongpyeong Tourism Complex, the Heongseong-Doowon Tourism Complex and the Alpensia Tourism Complex. This will make the province a year-round tourism spot, as it already has Kangchon Resort, Hi One Resort and Ottuki Resort. They will soon be joined by the DMZ Museum in Goseong and the Meeting Plaza for veterans of the Vietnam War.
Kim said the province has been trying to internationalize its tourism through various programs and events with traditional local characteristics such as the 1999 Gangwon International Tourism Expo, in which 2,300 local government officials from 60 countries participated; the 2004 Visit Gangwon Year, which attracted some 70 million tourists, putting the era of 100 million tourists per year within reach; and the establishment and operation of EATOF with 10 local branches in the province.
The government has also been helping the tourism industry develop high quality and value-added tourism products unique to the traditional cultural heritage of the province. They include the Wonju Ttattu, Dong River Photo Festival, Gangneung Dano Festival, Jeongson Arirang Festival, Daegwallryeong International Music Festival and the International University Student Peace Film Festival and more, all of which display local traditions and are part of traditional tourism courses and products, Kim said. The province has also been trying to improve the comfort of foreign tourists by telling the tourism-related business owners to focus on the hospitable treatment of tourists visiting their facilities. The province selected four features to improve the reception of tourists: kindness, cleanliness, order and trust, the governor said. He said the province helped to set up and operate the Gangwon Tourism Academy, the Tourism Guide Service Stations and Tourism Guide Service Mind, among others. The number of tourists to the province doubled in 10 years, with foreign tourists increasing five times. The number of tourists passing through the province rose to 83,607,000 in 2007 from 41,189,000 in 1997, while the number of foreign tourists rose to 1,192,000 in 2007 from 233,000 in 1997.
The governor boasted that the province has the top tourism infrastructure in the country; the number of tourism complexes increased to five by 2007 from just one in 1997, accounting for 30 percent of the 17 top tourism complexes in the country. The number of tourist sites rose to 40 in the province from 31 in 1997, accounting for 17.5 percent of total tourism sites in the country. And finally, rooms in condos increased to 15,464 units in 2007, accounting for 48.9 percent of the country, from 10,999 in 1997. The provincial government also plans to improve accessibility to those facilities so that any of them can be reached within two hours from anywhere in the country either by car or rail. The Seoul-Gangneung Expressway will take only two-and-a-half hours to travel and the Daegu-Wonju Highway will require only two hours to drive from end to end.
The tourism facilities in the province have been voted the top tourist destinations in a recent nationwide poll. The province's resorts came out on top in a poll of places to visit only for tourism purposes and came out on top again in a poll of the country's most memorable domestic travel and lodging locations.
The governor intends to maintain the tourism industry as a primary engine for the growth of the local economy by continuously upgrading various aspects of the province's tourism facilities. He wants to ensure that the tourism industry continuously maintains its competitive edge over its rivals by being better prepared to take care of tourists by providing diversified tourism resources including products and strong marketing programs. The ads for tourism to the province will be designed in such a way that it will help increase the income of the residents by emphasizing such types of tourism as "environmentally friendly," "tangible" and "well-being" with an accent on spurring green tourism. The province will also relax regulations governing tourism with a one-stop service for licenses and approvals related to tourism run by a special unit to be set up in the near future. Efforts will also be directed to upgrading the quality of tourism in the province through the creation of top-quality tourism products based on "low carbon, green growth."The province sees the DMZ as a tourism resource, loaded with wild animals and plants since it has been off-limits to humans under the truce agreement that ended the Korean War (1950-53). A peace and cultural plaza will be built in Cheorwon near the DMZ; a farm village will be preserved in Samchok to showcase life in mining regions; a scenic place will be carved out in an area close to the North Han River in an effort to turn the area into an environmentally friendly tourism resource; and a plan will be drawn up to create a tourism belt along the east coast of the province. The Mt. Seorak area will be refurbished as a tourism location, especially the five-color ropeway on the famous scenic mountain in an effort to turn the area into an environmentally friendly one. The province is also eyeing the creation of a number of international tourism events built around the ecology and cultural tradition of the region such as the Daegwallryeong International Music Festival, which will be incorporated in 2009 to give full independence to the management of the event. A 2009 mime workshop festival is being planned to take place in conjunction with the Chuncheon Mime Festival, along with the Donggang Photo Festival, which will have a new section for overseas photos. Plans are also underway to develop tourist programs taking into account various tourism paradigm and demand changes. They include the development of tourism products connected with the incomes of the residents and Neo-tourism with traditional food culture and healthy nightlife, including tours of open-air markets that stay open at night.
Sports will also be developed as a diverse source of tourism products. The province will encourage the construction of an X-game arena and marina facilities in the run up to the 2010 World Leisure Conference and Race and Winter leisure, sports event to be held in January and February in four competitive events and the Leisure Sports Race with 20 competitive events to be held in 2009.
In order to lure an increased number of foreign tourists to the province, public relations marketing will have sales pitches to make it stronger. The number of EATOF branches will be expanded to 13 from 10 with the formation of a world cruise and chartered planes association. Overseas marketing will focus on middle-class Chinese with tourism products specially developed for them under the catchphrase "Go, Go, Gangwon Province." The province will also look at bringing corporate incentive tours to its facilities and resorts with programs designed for their tastes.
Gangwon Province also plans to improve tourist services by naming model tourist facilities for foreign visitors, especially at roadside rest stops, with displays designed to spur an improvement in service. nw

Gov. Kim Jin-sun of Gangwon Province shakes hands with one of the officials of the provincial administration during the ceremony to start the new year on Jan. 2.