Busan is good

Fun in the sun at sand festival in Busan

Contents

Busan's Haeundae Beach, about 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul, is one of Korea's most popular beaches and a favorite summer holiday destination for its scenic beautiful coastline, white sand and hot springs.

Considered one of the eight scenic wonders in Korea, Haeundae Beach is the only place in Korea where you can enjoy both sea bathing and hot springs.

Internationally recognized, this beach sees about eight million tourists every summer.

The beach stretches for 1.55 km in a gently curved horseshoe shape and is surrounded by hotels along the coastal road and a variety of amusement facilities.

Every June, a sand festival is held on the beach. Started in 2005, it is the only festival of its kind in Korea. It used to run just three days, but this year it is bigger than ever, running for four days from June 5 to 8, on the white sands of Haeundae.

The Haeundae Sand Festival has been one of the most popular summertime festivals with tourists. Busan residents and tourists come together to enjoy a variety of different programs and games on the beautiful foreshore.

There will be 41 programs designed for families and friends to enjoy together. The games include a race against the clock to fill a basket with small sandbags, and erecting a tower as high as possible by filling up sacks of sand. Soccer matches will be played on the sand, amongst other fun in the sun.

Children will especially love a sand drawing contest, in which they can draw pictures by sticking colored sand drawing paper with paste, a sand handcraft making program, in which a piece of art is made out of sand clay, as well as a treasure hunt in the sand.

There will also be a marathon held on the white sandy beaches and a golf driving shot tournament, in which participants compete to see how far they can hit a golf ball in a special cage installed on the beach. Entry fees are required for both these events.

In addition, famous artists and visitors will create sand sculptures that are always a necessary part of any sand or beach festival. Some of the ambitious and creative works that come out of this will be a delight to behold.

Concerts and a fireworks show will keep the mood on the beach going at 7 p.m. on June 7, and performances such as belly dancing, jazz and salsa are planned for June 8.

To attract more visitors to the festival and Busan as well, hotels and other amusement facilities near Haeundae are to offer special discount rates for the whole month of June. Prices will be down by 10-50 percent.

For more info, visit http://sandfestival.haeundae.go.kr/english/main.html

   

 

The source of news : Korea.net  June 01,2008