Gangwon has 7 festivals in January: Daegwallyeong Snow Festival (30 Jan – 9 Feb 2027), Jeongdongjin New Year Sunrise Festival (expected Dec/Jan 2026–27), Hongcheon River Kkongkkong Festival (expected Jan 2027), Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival (expected Jan/Feb 2027), Pyeongchang Trout Festival (expected Dec/Jan/Feb 2026–27), Taebaeksan Snow Festival (expected Jan/Feb 2027), and Inje Icefish Festival (2026 edition cancelled). The Daegwallyeong Snow Festival (대관령눈꽃축제) is a ten-day snow-sculpture and sledding festival run by local residents beside the Songcheon stream in Hoenggye, Daegwallyeong-myeon, Pyeongchang, about 2 h 10 min by direct bus from Dong Seoul.
Typical January weather (average high/low): Pyeongchang −2/−12 °C (29/10 °F); Gangneung 5/−3 °C (42/27 °F); Hwacheon 2/−9 °C (35/15 °F). Source: KMA normals.
| Festival | Dates | Admission | Nearest station | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daegwallyeong Snow Festival대관령눈꽃축제 | 30 Jan – 9 Feb 2027 | From ₩10,000 | Jinbu (Odaesan) Station | Upcoming |
| Jeongdongjin New Year Sunrise Festival정동진 해맞이축제 | Expected Dec/Jan 2026–27 | Free entry | Jeongdongjin Station | Expected |
| Hongcheon River Kkongkkong Festival홍천강 꽁꽁축제 | Expected Jan 2027 | Paid admission | See festival page | Expected |
| Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival얼음나라화천 산천어축제 | Expected Jan/Feb 2027 | Paid admission | Chuncheon Station (ITX-Cheongchun), then bus | Expected |
| Pyeongchang Trout Festival평창송어축제 | Expected Dec/Jan/Feb 2026–27 | Paid admission | Jinbu (Odaesan) Station | Expected |
| Taebaeksan Snow Festival태백산눈축제 | Expected Jan/Feb 2027 | Free entry | Taebaek Station | Expected |
| Inje Icefish Festival인제빙어축제 | 2026 edition cancelled | Free + paid activities | See festival page | Cancelled |
Dates marked “expected” follow the organizer's usual pattern and are replaced when the official announcement comes. Each festival page lists the sources.
| Festival town | Average high | Average low | Rain | Measured at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pyeongchang | −2 °C 29 °F | −12 °C 10 °F | 53 mm | Daegwallyeong (Pyeongchang)about 15 km away |
| Gangneung | 5 °C 42 °F | −3 °C 27 °F | 48 mm | Gangneungabout 15 km away |
| Hwacheon | 2 °C 35 °F | −9 °C 15 °F | 19 mm | Chuncheonabout 25 km away |
Monthly averages, not a forecast. Source: Korea Meteorological Administration climate normals, 1991–2020, via the KMA-sourced climate tables for Daegwallyeong (Pyeongchang), Gangneung, Chuncheon. Where a festival town has no station with published normals, the nearest one is used and its distance shown.
The Daegwallyeong Snow Festival (대관령눈꽃축제) is a ten-day snow-sculpture and sledding festival run by local residents beside the Songcheon stream in Hoenggye, Daegwallyeong-myeon, Pyeongchang, about 2 h 10 min by direct bus from Dong Seoul. Held since 1993, it last ran 13–22 February 2026, and the 35th edition is planned for 30 January–9 February 2027, 09:30–17:30.
The Jeongdongjin New Year Sunrise Festival is Gangneung City's free New Year's Eve and first-sunrise event at Sandglass Park beside Jeongdongjin Station on Korea's east coast, where an 8 m hourglass is turned over at midnight. In 2025–26 it ran 20:00–00:30 on 31 December and 06:00–08:00 on 1 January, with sunrise at 07:39; the 2026–27 edition is expected on the night of 31 December 2026 but had not been announced by 19 October 2026.
The Hongcheon River Kkongkkong Festival (홍천강 꽁꽁축제) is a January ice-fishing festival on the frozen Hongcheon River in Hongcheon-eup, Gangwon, where visitors fish for trout raised on feed mixed with six-year-old ginseng; Hongcheon is about 1 h 07 m by intercity bus from Dong Seoul Terminal. The 14th edition ran 9–25 January 2026; 2027 dates have not been announced, and the festival usually opens on a Friday or Saturday between 5 and 18 January.
The Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival (얼음나라화천 산천어축제) is Korea's largest winter festival: three weeks of ice fishing for mountain trout through holes in the frozen Hwacheon stream in Hwacheon, Gangwon, about 3 h 30 m by direct bus from Seoul. The 2026 edition ran 10 January–1 February; 2027 is expected 9–31 January.
The Pyeongchang Trout Festival is a month-long ice-fishing event on the frozen Odaecheon stream at Jinbu, Pyeongchang, Gangwon, about 1 h 40 min from Seoul by KTX. The 17th edition ran 9 January–9 February 2026, 09:00–17:00; ice fishing cost ₩25,000, tent fishing ₩39,000 and bare-hand catching ₩20,000.
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The Taebaeksan Snow Festival (태백산눈축제) is a free winter festival of large snow sculptures, sledding and a snow-flower hike, held since 1994 around Dangol Plaza in Taebaeksan National Park, Taebaek, Gangwon, about 2 h 50 m by bus from Dong Seoul. The 33rd edition ran 31 January–8 February 2026, 10:00–17:00, with the sculptures lit until 22:00.
The Inje Icefish Festival (인제빙어축제) is a free ice-fishing festival for bingeo, a small icefish, on Bingeoho, a dammed arm of upper Soyang Lake at Bupyeong-ri, Nam-myeon, Inje, Gangwon, about 1 h 45 min by bus from Dong Seoul. Held since 1998, it last ran 20–29 January 2023 and was cancelled in 2024, 2025 and 2026 because Soyang Dam's water was too high for safe ice.
January is ice season. It opens with sunrise festivals on the east coast, at Jeongdongjin in Gangneung and Homigot in Pohang, where crowds stay up on New Year's Eve for the year's first sunrise. Then the rivers freeze: Hwacheon cuts thousands of holes in its frozen stream for the mountain-trout festival, Hongcheon holds an ice-fishing festival on the frozen Hongcheon River, and Pyeongchang runs a trout festival beside the KTX line to Gangneung. Up in the Daegwallyeong highlands of the same county, the snow festival of sculptures and sled runs is planned to open on 30 January in 2027, and Taebaek builds snow sculptures in Taebaeksan National Park in late January or early February. In Cheongyang, the Chilgapsan Ice Fountain Festival runs through the month. Seoul's lanterns along Cheonggyecheon usually stay lit into mid-January, Busan's Haeundae Light Festival and Gwangbok-ro light trees into January or February, and the Garden of Morning Calm in Gapyeong until March; the ASSITEJ children's theatre festival in Daehak-ro runs into the first weekend.
Tip. Daytime temperatures in Hwacheon sit around −5 °C; ice-fishing slots sell out on weekends, so book the weekday session.
Gangwon has 7 festivals in January: Daegwallyeong Snow Festival (30 Jan – 9 Feb 2027), Jeongdongjin New Year Sunrise Festival (expected Dec/Jan 2026–27), Hongcheon River Kkongkkong Festival (expected Jan 2027), Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival (expected Jan/Feb 2027), Pyeongchang Trout Festival (expected Dec/Jan/Feb 2026–27), Taebaeksan Snow Festival (expected Jan/Feb 2027), and Inje Icefish Festival (2026 edition cancelled). The Daegwallyeong Snow Festival (대관령눈꽃축제) is a ten-day snow-sculpture and sledding festival run by local residents beside the Songcheon stream in Hoenggye, Daegwallyeong-myeon, Pyeongchang, about 2 h 10 min by direct bus from Dong Seoul.
30 Jan – 9 Feb 2027. Upcoming. From ₩10,000. Nearest station: Jinbu (Odaesan) Station. Dates are taken from the organizer's own notice.
Expected Dec/Jan 2026–27. Expected. Free entry. Nearest station: Jeongdongjin Station. The organizer has not yet confirmed the dates; this page updates when they do.
Expected Jan 2027. Expected. Paid admission. Nearest station: See festival page. The organizer has not yet confirmed the dates; this page updates when they do.
Pyeongchang: Average high −2 °C (29 °F), low −12 °C (10 °F), 53 mm of rain (Daegwallyeong (Pyeongchang) station, about 15 km away, KMA 1991–2020 normals). Well below freezing at night: a down coat, hat, gloves and thermal layers. Gangneung: Average high 5 °C (42 °F), low −3 °C (27 °F), 48 mm of rain (Gangneung station, about 15 km away, KMA 1991–2020 normals). Near or below freezing after dark: a warm coat and layers. Hwacheon: Average high 2 °C (35 °F), low −9 °C (15 °F), 19 mm of rain (Chuncheon station, about 25 km away, KMA 1991–2020 normals). Well below freezing at night: a down coat, hat, gloves and thermal layers.
KTX from Seoul Station to Gangneung in about 2 hours; Hwacheon by intercity bus from Dong Seoul Terminal.
17 festivals across Korea fall in January, including ASSITEJ Korea Winter Festival, Chilgapsan Ice Fountain Festival, Lighting Festival at the Garden of Morning Calm. Daytime temperatures in Hwacheon sit around −5 °C; ice-fishing slots sell out on weekends, so book the weekday session.