- Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries designates 4 experience & recreation villages in fishing communities as candidates for its development project -

 The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced that it has selected Gungpyeong-ri Village of Hwaseong-si, Gyeoggi-do, Jangho Village of Gochang-gun, Jeollabuk-do, Seojung Village of Gangjin-gun, Jeollanam-do, and Yeonhong Village of Goheung-gun, Jeollanam-do as the sites for its 2023 Advancement Project for Experience & Recreation Villages in Fishing Communities.

 The 2023 Advancement Project for Experience & Recreation Villages in Fishing Communities is a national project that is to inject a total of KRW 400 million into each village selected by the project to build experience centers and accommodation facilities as part of initiatives fulfilling national initiative 73 to ‘create fishing villages specialized in experience and recreation activities.’

 A total of 10 villages applied for this year's project, with the four final winners were selected by the written and onsite evaluations by the Selection Committee, which included external experts.

 The Gungpyeong-ri Village of Hwaseong-si, Gyeoggi-do, is a small village located next to the Gungpyeong-ri beach, one of the main travel destinations in Hwaseong-si with nearly 1.6 million visitors last year. The village plans to install caravans as part of this year's project to attract the nascent and ever-growing camping crowd. Unlike generic visitors who come simply to enjoy the scenic view, campers come to stay for at least a single night. Thus, to target these visitors, Gungpyeong-ri Village plans to diversify its tour programs with craft experiences and beachside yoga programs in addition to existing tidal flat experience programs.

  Jangho Village of Gochang-gun, Jeollabuk-do, a village well-known for its tidal flat experience, also boasts an extensive beach and pine forest. As the village has mainly hosted tidal flat visitors due to a shortage of accommodation, they plan to build new lodging facilities with the support of the advancement project. Through the project, the village plans to fully roll out beach healing programs, offering yoga and beachside nordic walks at the wide beachfronts, and forest healing programs in the pine forest.

 Seojung Village of Gangjin-gun, Jeollanam-do, is a village located at the entrance of Gangjin Bay, popular among fishers. Seojung Village plans to improve the quality of its lodging facilities, to match that of city hotels, and build restaurants and specialty stores to attract family visitors in addition to the fishing population. As popular travel destinations in Gangjin-gun, such as Kkamakseom Island and Maryang Port, are located nearby, it is expected that the village will become a major travel hub following this year's project.

  Yeonhong Village of Goheung-gun, Jeollanam-do is a village on Yeonhong Island, which is about 5 minutes distance from the Shinyang Pier of Goheung-gun. Yeonhong village is the size of a small town, suitable for walking. Through the project, the walking trails will be renovated to transform the island into a “destination island for walking.” Moreover, tourist facilities in the village will be equipped with solar panels to take the very first step in transforming Yeonhong Island into a “carbon neutral island.”