Seoul is kicking off the year with initiatives aimed at enhancing its engagement with international visitors through the improvement of its foreign language news portal and the development of gardens for the upcoming 2025 Seoul International Garden Fair, reflecting the city's commitment to promote its cultural offerings and competitiveness abroad.
On March 16, 2025, the Seoul metropolitan government announced plans to strengthen its foreign language news portal content. This portal serves as a promotional tool providing foreigners with information about Seoul.
Last year alone, the portal recorded approximately 18.94 million visitors, averaging about 50,000 visitors daily, with an impressive satisfaction rate of 97%. According to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), the portal ranked 9th globally among electronic government evaluations, demonstrating its effectiveness and popularity.
Over the past five years, visitor numbers to the portal have surged by 86%, prompting city officials to strategize on increasing engagement by aligning content with data derived from overseas search engines. This year, they plan to prioritize enhancing the visitor experience by tweaking the portal’s initial screen to include real-time weather and time information for Seoul, calculated to improve search exposure and visitor convenience.
Min Soo-hong, Seoul's public relations officer, remarked, "Seoul is actively producing planned content to activate website usage, assisting foreigners with the information they need quickly and accurately." The data also showed increasing interest from international users seeking up-to-date information such as current weather and time, indicative of their eagerness to learn more about the city. The inclusion of Korean Wave (Hallyu) content is also being explored, as research indicates it ranks highly across all language searches related to Seoul.
On another front, Chuncheon City, located in Gangwon Province, announced its collaboration with Seoul City to design and implement gardens at Boramae Park, which will serve as the venue for the 2025 Seoul International Garden Fair. On March 14, officials from both cities gathered to formalize agreements aimed at ensuring the fair's success and establishing stronger cooperation.
The agreement signing ceremony took place at Chuncheon City Hall and included notable attendees such as Deputy Mayor Hyun Jun-tae and the Director of Seoul City's Garden and Urban Landscape Bureau, Lee Soo-yeon, among others. Under the terms of the agreement, Chuncheon City will lead the design and construction efforts for the gardens within Boramae Park, alongside unique cultural programs related to Chuncheon during the fair.
Realizing the garden project will involve significant resource allocation, with Chuncheon committing to invest 15.4 billion won to transform 16.8 hectares of land. The gardens will showcase Chuncheon's unique garden culture, which Mayor Yook Dong-han emphasized as being instrumental for both cities, providing a platform to share cultural exchange and local pride.
Yook stated, "This agreement will be a great opportunity to inform visitors about Chuncheon’s garden culture, and I expect it will serve as substantial momentum for fostering higher-value city branding through sustained exchanges and cooperation between our cities." After the garden fair concludes, Seoul has also committed to maintaining these gardens, ensuring their legacy and attraction for future visitors.
Scheduled from May 22 to October 20, 2025, the Seoul International Garden Fair is anticipated to be a highlight on the city's cultural calendar, featuring various experiences from creator and citizen gardens to exhibitions centered on garden industry innovations and cultural experiences.
With these dual initiatives, both Seoul and Chuncheon are showcasing their commitment to not only enhancing their appeal to international visitors but also cultivating cultural identities rooted in their respective urban landscapes. The strategic decisions being made now could potentially impact the cities' attractiveness for years to come, inviting both tourists and citizens to engage deeply with their beautifully curated environments.