Global Economic Times

The 29th Boryeong Mud Festival: Achieving Success in Content, Nighttime Attractions, and Regional Co-prosperity Despite the Heatwave: HONG MOON HWA Senior Reporter / Updated : 2026-08-14 05:59:32

Despite the difficult conditions caused by the heatwave, the 29th Boryeong Mud Festival proved its competitiveness once again as Korea’s representative summer festival by achieving meaningful results in expanding experiential content, vitalizing nighttime tourism, implementing thorough safety measures, promoting regional economic synergy, and operating in an eco-friendly manner.

▲ 1.62 Million Visitors... Significant Increase in Paid Admission and Revenue for Experience Zones The total number of visitors to this year’s festival was 1,626,486, a 3.7% decrease from last year’s 1,690,359. This is analyzed to be a result of the extreme heat and a decline in the number of beachgoers. However, the number of visitors to the experience zones, which are paid experiential contents, actually increased from 45,061 last year to 45,321 this year. In particular, by installing large-scale tents in the experience zones this year, an environment was created where tourists could enjoy the mud more comfortably and safely even amidst the heatwave. Revenue from the slight increase in admission fees also rose by approximately 30%, from 450 million KRW last year to 590 million KRW, indicating that the marketability and profitability of the experiential content have improved, not just the simple number of visitors.

▲ Success of New Day and Night Content... Signature 'Big Mud Show' Attracts 10,000 People This year, the festival broke away from the traditional framework of the Mud Festival to introduce new content covering both day and night, expanding stay duration and attractions around the beach. A new Mud Cask Zone was created at Mud Square, and the General Zone was opened at night for two days, allowing visitors to enjoy the Mud Festival even after dark. In addition, the Mud Night Parade held on the "car-free street" and a total of 60 busking performances provided various nighttime attractions for tourists. Notably, the "Big Mud Show," planned as the festival's new representative participatory content, saw approximately 10,000 participants, receiving an enthusiastic response. It confirmed its potential to develop into a signature program representing the Mud Festival as a participatory event enjoyed by large crowds of tourists.

▲ Safe Festival Operation Through Thorough Heatwave Countermeasures To address the heatwave, the biggest challenge of this year’s festival, thorough countermeasures were established in advance and field operations were strengthened. Large tents were installed in the experience zones, a total of 320m of shade screens were set up along major routes, and 20 misting devices were operated along the central route to help tourists avoid the heat. Furthermore, proactive measures were taken to lower the perceived temperature on-site, such as providing 30,000 bottles of ice water to tourists and festival workers, and operating two water sprinkler trucks on a regular basis. Cooling shelters were provided in the Mud Hall and Convention Hall, and cabana-style shelters were operated in the experience zones, serving a total of 40,000 people. In addition, for the safety of tourists waiting for long periods to watch large-scale performances, a separate shaded waiting area was created for the first time this year, putting effort into preventing safety accidents related to the heatwave.

▲ Regional Economic Synergy... Booth Sales Surge by 84.7% Programs for synergy between the festival and the local economy were further strengthened. 11 local food booths participated in the Refresh Zone, recording a total of 277 million KRW in sales over 16 days. This is a significant increase from last year’s 150 million KRW, which is highly meaningful in that the spending of festival visitors led to tangible economic effects for local small business owners. Additionally, the Picnic Zone was operated as a Delivery Zone so that tourists could conveniently use food and services from businesses near the festival venue, and 45,321 vouchers of 5,000 KRW Boryeong Love Gift Certificates were distributed to experience zone visitors to promote local consumption. Together with the distribution of Boryeong Mud discount coupons, in which 36 companies voluntarily participated to encourage tourists to use local commercial districts, the foundation for co-prosperity where the festival and the local economy grow together was expanded.

▲ Leading the Status as a Carbon-Neutral City Through Eco-Friendly Festival Operation Efforts were also poured into festival operations that consider the environment. In the Refresh Zone, the use of reusable containers was made mandatory to reduce the use of disposable items and encourage tourists and participating businesses to join in practicing ESG. Furthermore, a drone light show was operated twice instead of the traditional fireworks display, reducing the use of gunpowder and disposable fireworks while showcasing a new form of nighttime attraction. Through this, the Boryeong Mud Festival has provided an opportunity to leap forward as an eco-friendly and carbon-neutral festival that considers not only entertainment but also the environment and sustainability.

Boryeong Mayor Um Seung-yong stated, "Despite difficult conditions such as the heatwave and a decrease in the number of beachgoers, we have achieved results in various fields, including qualitative improvement of content, safety management, regional economic revitalization, and eco-friendly operation." He added, "We will continue to develop it into a sustainable festival where tourists stay longer and grow together with the local community."