Fascinated by the plum blossom festival with its pure white spring color

Gwangyang is located in South Jeolla Province in the southwest of Korea, an open economic zone focusing on the industries of port transportation, steel production, shipbuilding... The city has diverse natural features, possessing mountainous terrain with many high mountains, an average temperature of 13.7°C, providing a mild and pleasant climate. Moreover, this place is famous for its large apricot farms, the capital of the best pure apricot juice in the kimchi country.

The village has a large number of plum trees, more than 100,000 (the largest in Korea). According to many sources, about 50 years ago, a woman named Hong Ssang Ri planted apricot trees in an area now known as Maehwa Village along the Seomjin River. She was nicknamed “the mother of apricot blossoms” for her efforts. The apricot trees not only bring economic value but also become a unique cultural symbol of the area.

Every year from February, the apricot fields in Gwangyang bloom with a series of pure white plum blossoms covering the mountains and riverbanks. The Gwangyang Maehwa Plum Blossom Festival is also held for people to enjoy their beauty, to give thanks to nature and to pray for a good new year.

Gradually, the activity was held annually and became a major cultural event of the whole country. It is not surprising that around this time, the number of tourists coming here increased by tens of thousands of people.

Joining Gwangyang Maehwa, besides admiring the magical, sparkling beauty of the white plum blossom forests, enjoying the fresh air of a peaceful, quiet countryside, is an opportunity to enjoy many delicious plum dishes and experience many unique local cultural activities.

Here, you can taste the purest premium apricot juice in Korea, or specialties made from apricots such as: apricot blossom tea, apricot blossom cake, apricot ice cream or apricot ginseng… with flavors that cannot be found anywhere else. Another dish that food lovers cannot miss is cham gelang, a traditional spicy stew with crab as the main ingredient, enjoying the wonderful feeling of the hotness and delicious flavor of this attractive dish.