○ An attempt of a new kind of high-quality travel program in preparation of the post-COVID-19 era
○ Organized mainly in outdoor historical and ecological attractions in Gyeonggi Province to bring joy to individuals and small groups

o – Augmented reality mission tour: “Secrets of Suwon Hwaseong Fortress”; Make your own travel itinerary with contents of Gyeonggi Province: “Gyeonggi Modu Ollae” (Let’s all go to Gyeonggi Province); and a one-day tour with small groups of ten: “The Best Travel”

“No more group tours in large buses! Gyeonggi Province proposes a new type of safe and fun travel.”

Gyeonggi Province and the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization (GTO) have developed and began to offer travel programs associated with augmented reality (AR) and itinerary for small groups to realize a new kind of travel experience in this COVID-19 era.

The programs were designed after considering outdoor historical and ecological attractions rather than indoor venues which have higher risk of disease transmission. Comprised of high-quality contents, the programs are expected to give people an opportunity to appreciate the fall season in Gyeonggi Province.

Gyeonggi Province, in collaboration with Suwon city, launched an app called the “Secrets of Suwon Hwaseong Fortress,” which is an AR mission tour that takes place in the Suwon Hwaseong Fortress. This new-concept app is an outdoor escape room game added with AR technology to guide users to the key spots of the Fortress from their smartphones.

This is how the app is played: a user, after downloading the “Secrets of Suwon Hwaseong Fortress” app, receives a sheet written with a list of missions from the Janganmun Gate. The user then travels around the Hwaseong district to solve the mystery of the stolen book written by Jeong Yagyong—the one who contributed to the construction of the Fortress. The app encourages users to experience Hwaseong through a fun AR game. The sheet of accomplished missions becomes a souvenir that will help recall the fun memories in Suwon Hwaseong.

The app is currently available for free during the trial period. However, after making some improvements, it will be converted to a paid app of KRW 7,500 starting on the 7th day of next month. Just like any other escape room games, the mission is most enjoyable with a group of four or less. The mission takes about 2-3 hours.

“Secrets of Suwon Hwaseong Fortress” is downloadable from Google Play (Android), while it will soon also be available on App Store (iOS).

The second program called “Gyeonggi Modu Ollae” is a program to support travelers in Gyeonggi Province, where participants make their own travel itineraries that include the history, culture, and ecological resources of the Province.

This program can be participated by groups of four or less. Those who wish to participate can submit a themed itinerary included with travel contents available in Gyeonggi Province. Once they are selected, a professional travel writer will give assistance on how to make travel stories and design travel routes. After developing more travel ideas and adding personal tastes to the itinerary, their travel then begins, helping them build more memories by posting photos or stories on social media and so forth. A total of six teams will be selected, based on the type of the submitted proposals (one or two-day tour) and the quality of the itinerary. All costs incurred for the travel will be shouldered by Gyeonggi Province. Applications are accepted at the official website of GTO (ggtour.or.kr) until the 25th day of this month.

Lastly, Gyeonggi Province is also planning to operate “The Best Travel,” a one-day tour program for a maximum of ten participants, from the 3rd to the 14th day of next month. Travel destinations with a small number of visitors and that comply with the COVID-19 preventive measures were selected for a total of ten programs which will be operated on weekdays.

The programs include unique experiences, such as making character goods at Korea Manhwa Museum in Bucheon city, drawing folk paintings at Suwon Haenggung Workshop Street, and drawing at the Water Garden in Namyangju city. In addition, the participants can keep the memories by writing their one and only photo essay using the pictures taken during the day. With the participation fee of KRW 15,500, participants can make their booking from the app or at the websites of Hana Tour (www.hanatour.com) or iamschool (https://school.iamservice.net/).

Tourism Director Choi Yong-hun of Gyeonggi Province said, “These programs are an experimental attempt of applying smart tourism to small groups in this COVID-19 era, breaking away from the conventional package tours,” and added, “We plan to lead the change of the new tourism paradigm.”

Meanwhile, some programs will be operated only when the quarantine measures are maintained at level 1. Should the measures be strengthened, there will be limitations on certain travel programs.