South Korea celebrates with vibrant winter festivals.

The main activities and festivals take place in Gangwon-do and Gyeonggi-do provinces. Some typical festivals include:

Yangpyeong Salmon Fishing Festival – Gyeonggi-do: Visitors to the festival can experience many attractive programs including ice fishing for salmon, playing folk games, snowmobiling, etc. After catching salmon, it can be prepared right at a nearby restaurant. The festival runs until February 26, 2016.

The Alpensia Ice and Snow Festival in Gangwondo, considered one of the world's leading winter festivals, is held at the Alpensia Resort – one of the venues for the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics. Visitors can enjoy stunning ice and snow sculptures on a large scale, such as the Colosseum, Tiananmen Square, Taj Mahal, etc., until February 28, 2016.

Jeju Fire Festival: Held from March 3rd to 6th, 2016, this annual festival is organized at the beginning of the year to pray for good health and a bountiful harvest. It's one of the festivals with many unique side events, allowing visitors to participate in traditional games or enjoy the stunning natural scenery of Jeju Island.

In late March and early April, during the warm spring season, when South Korea is covered in the pink hues of cherry blossoms, visitors can admire the stunning scenery of cherry blossom trees in full bloom lining the streets. Some notable festivals include the cherry blossom festival in Yeouido (Seoul), the cherry blossom festival in Jinhae (near Busan), etc. Especially, if you visit the Gyeongju cherry blossom festival, you can participate in the "Cherry Blossom Marathon" held on April 9th, 2016. TST Tourist is now offering this unique product, giving visitors the chance to participate in a famous and exciting annual sporting event and receive attractive prizes from the organizers.

For incentive travel groups, starting January 1, 2016, KTO implemented a new support policy: groups of 10-49 people received gifts; groups of 50-499 people received gifts and could choose one of three additional options: a welcoming activity upon arrival at the airport in Korea, tickets to an art performance, or tickets to a tourist attraction, with a total gift value equivalent to 15,000 won per person. For groups of 500 or more, in addition to the aforementioned 15,000 won per person, other support options could be offered after negotiation. Korea is consistently rated as one of the best incentive travel destinations, and KTO strives to maintain and promote this type of tourism.

According to information from the Korea Tourism Organization in Vietnam, starting February 1, 2016, KTO will have a change in senior personnel. Mr. Jung Chang Wook has officially assumed the position of Chief Representative of KTO in Vietnam, continuing his role as a bridge between Vietnam and Korea, promoting and developing Korean tourism in the Vietnamese market. Prior to taking on this role in Vietnam, Mr. Jung Chang Wook worked at KTO's representative offices in Hong Kong (1999-2002) and London (2009-2012), and served as Director of the Convention Department at the Korea Tourism Organization. With this change, KTO in Vietnam will have many attractive promotional activities to support travel companies and tourists with new experiences in Korea.

The Thanh