South Korea to Spend $10 Million to Promote ‘Slow Hiking’

The South Korean government is spending US$10 million to encourage hikers to slow down and relax.

Leisure in South Korea has become competitive.


According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, the South Korean government is spending US$10 million to encourage hikers to slow down and relax.

In an overworked economy where the average Korean works 20% longer than their American counterpart, it is proving difficult for people to unwind during their leisure time.

This is especially true for the popular past-time of hiking the Korean peninsula’s mountainous terrain, where a leisurely sojourn into nature frequently becomes a competitive race to the mountain’s summit.

Tourpreneurs intent on capitalizing upon the South Korean penchant for hiking may want to piggy-back on the South Korean government’s campaign by promoting the calm and meditative trails in their region.

Or, maybe they wish to fly in the face of the ‘Slow Hiking’ campaign and taunt South Korean hikers with images of mountain summits captioned with:

당신이 얼마나 빨리 하이킹을 할 수 있습니까?

(How Fast Can You Hike This?)

Considering that the South Korean government’s campaign is designed to alleviate some of the country’s societal ills brought on by a fast-paced culture by encouraging more relaxation, the ethics of enticing South Korean tourists to continue rushing through their vacation might be questionable.

However, considering that they probably won’t be sharing your regional hiking trail with a couple million of their countrymen, they may just slow down on their own volition.


Comments

3 responses to “South Korea to Spend $10 Million to Promote ‘Slow Hiking’”

  1. Interesting, in Hong Kong hiking is hugely popular with all the small mountains and hills on its many islands and in the New Terrotories. A perfect way to slowly enjoy the outdoors (and the locals do take their time, enjoying the day), in S.Korea it sounds like hiking is more akin to stressful work days with wanting to reach the top so quickly 🙂

    1. Hello Randall! My apologies for the late reply. We’ve been getting settled into Malta to begin a year-long course in entrepreneurship at the university. Lots of hurdles to clear! 🙂

      Hong Kong sounds like a fascinating place. I saw an article in the news today claiming the city has the best infrastructure in the world. It often seems to be competing with Singapore for 1st place on a number of different top 10 lists.

      Tricia and I will have to get to Hong Kong and South Korea to explore the regional hiking opportunities. However, rest-assured, we will stopping to smell the indigenous flowers along the way. 🙂

      1. Wow, what a great adventure ~ Malta, not a bad location at all. HK is amazing, and we do not discuss Singapore 🙂 Nothing quite like being busy, sure it feels like we get pushed & pulled in every direction, but that is the fun of it. Cheers to a great autumn and good luck!

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