Overcharging at rural festivals sparks concerns for tourism industry

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

National

Sun, December 3, 2023 | 19:20

Society

Overcharging at rural festivals sparks concerns for tourism industry

Posted : 2023-06-12 08:21

Updated : 2023-06-12 16:42

Peruvian foods are sold during the 9th Latin America Festival at a fountain square in Seongbuk District, Seoul, Sept. 17, 2022. Yonhap

Local governments try to control overpricing practices

By Ko Dong-hwan

Overcharging visitors to local festivals in rural townships has become an increasing headache for municipal authorities, raising concerns that it might worsen the country's regional tourism industry.

The concern comes after the country began approving offline events nationwide for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic last year as social distancing measures were being lifted.

The problem became a national issue recently as an increasing number of online commenters claimed they visited seasonal countryside festivals and witnessed local foods being sold at vendors' booths for excessively high prices.

Complaints included Korean traditional green onion pancakes being sold for 15,000 won ($11.60), plates of spicy squid salad for 20,000 won and barbecue meat platters for 40,000 won. All of them cost more than their usual prices around cities and local townships.

A scene from a TV entertainment show on KBS brought extra attention to the issue earlier this month. In the weekly show where a group of celebrities travels to a different local township in each episode, they visited a local mountain-grown wild edible plants festival in Yeongyang County, North Gyeongsang Province, and tried to buy some local snacks.

There, the stars were dumb-founded when a vendor tried to sell them a bag of local traditional sweets for 70,000 won. After a negotiation, they bartered for three bags for 140,000 won.

The episode instantly sparked a backlash from viewers who condemned the vendor's overpricing. Public anger grew to the point that the county government posted an apology to its website two days after the program aired.

"We failed to manage the vendors' bartering practices during the festival hosted by us," the municipal government said in the apology. "We should have arranged the festivals so that we meet their expectations and they can enjoy the festivals without feeling ripped off."

A tourist to Hwacheon County in Gangwon Province catches a mountain trout during an ice fishing festival, Jan. 8. Courtesy of Hwacheon County Government

The county government said the vendor was a professional street vendor who travels across the country to participate at local festivals.

A Japanese tourist who visited a butterfly festival in Hampyeong County, South Jeolla Province, recently posted a video on YouTube complaining about a bowl of fish cakes sold there for 10,000 won. Tourists visiting Jeju Island, one of the country's biggest tourism meccas, have complained about cutlassfish course meals with side dishes costing a whopping 140,000 won per table.

The high prices can be attributed partly to pricey booth fees the vendors must pay the local government to participate in the festivals. The fees range from 200,000 won to as much as 2 million won and the vendors need to reach certain sales to make a profit ― which they are likely to do by overpricing their products.

Many such festivals also feature popular singers or other celebrities to promote the events, and the extra costs can be made up by increasing the booth fees.

But with the increasing backlash, municipal governments have begun publicizing measures to deal with the problem immediately.

The city government of Boryeong in South Chungcheong Province, now busy preparing for its annual mud festival in July and August, began talking to local commerce players not to hike prices. The city also launched a public platform for reporting overpricing-related grievances.

Daegu Metropolitan City, during the Power Daegu Festival in May, banned vendors from selling street food near the festival venue and instead encouraged visitors to to go local restaurants. The Hwacheon County government in Gangwon Province, where the popular Hwacheon Sancheoneo (mountain trout) Ice Festival has been held every January since 2003, said it introduced strong regulations against overpricing by street vendors long ago.

aoshima11@koreatimes.co.kr