Visitors browse ginseng products at the festival. [Yeongju City]
Visitors browse ginseng products at the festival. [Yeongju City]

The 2026 Yeongju Punggi Ginseng Festival drew more than 510,000 visitors over nine days, closing out a successful run.

Yeongju City said Monday the festival, which opened Oct. 3 along Namwoncheon stream and at Punggi Ginseng Park in Punggi-eup, concluded Sunday with a closing ceremony.

Total attendance reached about 511,000, up 14,000 from last year.

This year's festival placed a stronger emphasis on hands-on experiences, going beyond ginseng sales to let visitors taste, handle and engage with the product directly.

Programs including a ginseng-peeling competition, ginseng injeolmi rice-cake pounding, a ginseng foot bath and ginseng nutritional dumpling making drew participants across age groups, from families to teenagers.

A traditional Korean medicine clinic and herbal pharmacy set up at the festival offered pulse readings and body-constitution consultations, allowing visitors to explore ginseng through the lens of health and lifestyle.

Food stalls featuring local specialties — ginseng braised pork, ginseng bibimbap, ginseng knife-cut noodles and ginseng fritters — also proved popular.

On Saturday, chef Oh Se-deuk took part in a cooking program called "Punggi Giunhan-ip," presenting inventive dishes made with ginseng.

Traditional culture and live performances added to the festival's energy.

A reenactment of the procession of Ju Se-bung. [Yeongju City]
A reenactment of the procession of Ju Se-bung. [Yeongju City]

Events kicked off with a traditional ritual at the Punggi Gaesam-teo site, followed by a reenactment of a procession by historical figure Ju Se-bung and a folk-music performance by the National Youth Performing Arts Troupe. Invited singers and local artists also took the stage, drawing steady crowds.

A youth arts festival, a traditional performance titled "Dendong Eomi Hwajeon Nori," a ssireum wrestling competition and the Punggi Ginseng Song Contest rounded out the program's diverse offerings.

Transportation access was also improved. KTX-Eum trains made temporary stops at Punggi Station on select days, and shuttle buses connecting Yeongju Station, the intercity bus terminal and the festival grounds ran throughout the event, along with a circulating bus serving the ginseng market.

The festival also generated notable online buzz. A parody music video of "Storm II," featuring some 60 senior Yeongju City civil servants, surpassed 5 million cumulative views on YouTube and Instagram, helping spread awareness of both the festival and Yeongju.

"We are grateful to the residents and tourists who came to enjoy the taste and aroma of Punggi ginseng and the beauty of Yeongju in autumn," Yeongju Mayor Hwang Byeong-jik said. "We will carefully take note of the interest and feedback shown through the festival, and work to develop it into an event that better showcases the value of Punggi ginseng and the appeal of our region."


kbj7653@heraldcorp.com