Gyeongbuk province to host five forest and culture events in October
Version 2: A third outlet, Hankook Ilbo, added venue details in Pohang and a fuller version of the provincial official's remarks; the schedule of events is unchanged.
In short
Gyeongbuk province said it will hold five forest and culture events in Bonghwa, Pohang and Yeongju during October, starting with a native-plant festival at the National Baekdudaegan Arboretum in Bonghwa through October 11 and trekking on the East-West Trail on October 9-11. A provincial forest expo in Pohang on October 16-18 and a forest therapy expo in Yeongju on October 23-24 close the month. The province said the events are meant to promote local native plants and forest resources and give visitors hands-on experiences.
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Gyeongbuk province said it will hold five forest and culture events in Bonghwa, Pohang and Yeongju during October, according to Kyunghyang Shinmun, Yonhap and Hankook Ilbo, all reporting on October 4. The province said the events are intended to promote local native plants and forest resources and to give visitors a range of hands-on experiences, Kyunghyang Shinmun reported. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
At the National Baekdudaegan Arboretum in Bonghwa, the 2026 Baekdudaegan Bongja Festival runs until October 11, with the arboretum closed on October 6. The outlets reported that about 550,000 native plants grown by local farms will decorate the grounds, alongside autumn flowers including spikenard, Korean chrysanthemum and aster. Kyunghyang Shinmun reported that “Bongja” is short for Bonghwa native plants and that the festival theme refers to the scent, touch and taste of plants. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The Gyeongbuk Provincial Arboretum in Pohang will hold an autumn festival on October 9-10 marking its 25th anniversary, with forest play, forest ecology crafts, woodworking, a tree-name OX quiz and other family programmes, plus celebration performances. Hankook Ilbo placed the arboretum in Jukjang-myeon, Buk-gu. From October 9 to 11, the Kolon Trail Camp in the East-West Trail will be held in Bonghwa's Doshim 3-ri area, with courses of 30km from Chunyang to Bonghwa, 60km from Danyang through Yeongju to Bonghwa and 120km from Uljin to Bonghwa; Kyunghyang Shinmun reported that trekking instruction, equipment experience, local food sales, performances and mountain film screenings are also planned. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
The 2026 Gyeongbuk Forest Expo will run October 16-18 at Manindang and its lawn plaza in Pohang, which Hankook Ilbo described as being in Nam-gu, with 22 cities and counties in the province and forest companies and institutions operating about 100 booths for exhibitions, experiences and promotion. A “Forest Bread Festa” using walnuts, chestnuts and pine nuts will be held alongside. On October 23-24, the 2026 Baekdudaegan regional coexistence forest therapy expo will take place at the National Forest Therapy Center in Yeongju, offering forest therapy experiences, programmes on the future therapy industry and sales of local forest and agricultural products, which Yonhap described as a flea market. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Choi Sun-go, head of the province's forest resources bureau, said, “I hope residents and tourists will take part in the forest events, fully enjoy the autumn atmosphere and feel both Gyeongbuk's rich forest resources and the appeal of the region.” Hankook Ilbo also quoted him saying that October is the season when Gyeongbuk's mountains and forests turn their most beautiful colours. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Why it matters
The programme is a provincial rural-tourism push that ties arboretums, trekking routes, forest-industry booths and local produce sales into one October schedule across three cities. For readers outside South Korea the events are local tourism news with little wider consequence; the documents give no visitor targets, budget or expected economic effect.
Key facts
- Gyeongbuk province said it will hold five forest and culture events in October in Bonghwa, Pohang and Yeongju. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The 2026 Baekdudaegan Bongja Festival runs at the National Baekdudaegan Arboretum in Bonghwa until October 11, featuring about 550,000 native plants grown by local farms and autumn flowers including spikenard, Korean chrysanthemum and aster. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The Bongja Festival arboretum is closed on October 6. [ 1 , 3 ]
- The Gyeongbuk Provincial Arboretum in Pohang will hold a 25th-anniversary autumn festival on October 9-10 with forest play, woodworking, a tree-name OX quiz and other family programmes, plus celebration performances. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The Kolon Trail Camp in the East-West Trail runs October 9-11 in Bonghwa's Doshim 3-ri area, with courses of 30km, 60km and 120km. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The 2026 Gyeongbuk Forest Expo takes place October 16-18 at Manindang and its lawn plaza in Pohang, with about 100 booths run by 22 cities and counties and forest companies and institutions, alongside a Forest Bread Festa using walnuts, chestnuts and pine nuts. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The 2026 Baekdudaegan regional coexistence forest therapy expo is set for October 23-24 at the National Forest Therapy Center in Yeongju. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Choi Sun-go, head of the province's forest resources bureau, said he hopes residents and tourists take part in the events, enjoy the autumn atmosphere and feel Gyeongbuk's forest resources and the region's appeal. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Gyeongbuk province is holding five forest and culture events during October in Bonghwa, Pohang and Yeongju. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The National Baekdudaegan Arboretum in Bonghwa hosts the 2026 Bongja Festival until October 11, with about 550,000 native plants from local farms and autumn flowers such as spikenard, Korean chrysanthemum and aster. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The Gyeongbuk Provincial Arboretum's 25th-anniversary autumn festival in Pohang runs October 9-10 with experience programmes and celebration performances. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The Kolon Trail Camp in the East-West Trail runs October 9-11 in Bonghwa's Doshim 3-ri area with 30km, 60km and 120km courses. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The 2026 Gyeongbuk Forest Expo runs October 16-18 at Manindang and the lawn plaza in Pohang with roughly 100 booths from 22 cities and counties and forest companies and institutions. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The forest therapy expo runs October 23-24 at the National Forest Therapy Center in Yeongju. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Choi Sun-go of the Gyeongbuk provincial forest resources bureau said he hopes residents and tourists enjoy the autumn atmosphere and the province's forest resources. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- Whether the Kolon Trail Camp is organised by the clothing company Kolon or is only named after it. The event name is the only reference to Kolon in the documents; none of the three outlets names an organiser or sponsor.
- Whether the events require advance registration or charge admission. None of the documents reports ticket or registration details.
- When the Bongja Festival began, and how many visitors any of the events are expected to draw. The documents give end dates and schedules but no start date for the Bongja Festival and no attendance targets or budgets.
- The location of the Gyeongbuk Provincial Arboretum in Jukjang-myeon, Buk-gu, Pohang and of Manindang in Nam-gu, Pohang. Only Hankook Ilbo gives the district and township locations; Kyunghyang Shinmun and Yonhap name Pohang without them.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Kyunghyang Shinmun publishes the provincial programme of five forest and culture events across Gyeongbuk in October, citing the province. [ 1 ]
- Yonhap reports the same five-event schedule, attributing it to Gyeongbuk province. [ 2 ]
- Hankook Ilbo reports the schedule with additional venue details and a longer quote from the provincial forest resources bureau chief. [ 3 ]