Gimje Horizon Festival

The Gimje Horizon Festival is Korea’s only Honorary Cultural Tourism Festival dedicated to traditional farming culture, as designated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Centered around Byeokgolje Reservoir, Korea’s oldest and largest irrigation facility, the festival celebrates the nation's rich farming heritage. Set against the region's expansive horizon, the festival features the Presidential Cup National Nongak Competition, along with hands-on agricultural experiences such as cooking rice over a traditional wood-fired stove, catching grasshoppers, and harvesting rice. Visitors can also take part in traditional events, including the Byeokgolje Twin Dragon Play, inspired by a local legend, and the Ipseok Tug-of-War for a bountiful harvest.

Program

1. Main program
- Presidential Cup Horizon National Nongak Competition: The only presidential cup competition among national festival contests, where teams representing regional nongak (farmers' music) from across the country take part, letting you experience the essence of traditional Korean nongak
- Byeokgolje Legend Twin Dragon Play: a signature traditional cultural performance in which residents of Buryang-myeon, Gimje, stage a situational play based on the twin dragon legend of Byeokgolje, the main stage of the Gimje Horizon Festival
- Ipseok Tug-of-War for a Good Harvest: a traditional folk game held at the first full moon of the lunar year to pray for an abundant harvest, run by residents of Gyowol-dong, Gimje, as a signature traditional cultural performance
2. Hands-on Programs
- Land Art Zipline Experience: A unique leisure sport experience crossing a large-scale land art installation (rice paddy activity field) created at Byeokgolje
- Cooking Rice on a Hearth: An experience where families cook and eat rice in a cauldron on a small hearth
- Horizon Kite Flying: Korea's largest kite flying project, where a variety of kites are flown at the same time
3. Side programs
- LED land art: a land art piece depicting Ssarikongi in hanbok welcoming visitors with the abundance and warmth of the horizon, lit in keeping with the festival theme to create a night landscape
- Ssarikongi Bale Art Exhibition: a bale art show that conveys the festival's spirit, displaying a variety of pictures from the Ssarikongi character to other popular characters
- Horizon Final Fantasy Show: A final media show combining lasers, lighting, fireworks, and multimedia for a dazzling festival night and large-scale nighttime spectacle
4. Other (food, etc.)
- Local specialty food booths: sale of signature dishes from each town and neighborhood, plus dishes from leading local restaurants selected through the 'Matbojago Competition', a Gimje project to choose top restaurants and eliminate poor festival food
- Horizon Majunggeori: snack booths that young people can enjoy
- Farm specialty direct sales market: sale of raw and processed agricultural, livestock, and fishery products, specialties, and more produced in Gimje