| Dates | 13–22 Mar 2026 |
|---|---|
| Hours | Not confirmed officially; a visitor blog reported the ticket office open 07:00–17:30 on weekdays and 06:00–17:30 at weekends |
| Weather | March average 14/1 °C (58/33 °F), 78 mm of rainMonthly averages, not a forecast: Korea Meteorological Administration climate normals, 1991–2020, Jinju station, about 30 km away. |
| Venue | Gwangyang Maehwa Village (Seomjin Village) and Hong Ssang-ri Cheongmaesil Farm전라남도 광양시 다압면 지막1길 55 |
| Admission | Adult admission: ₩6,000 · Teenager admission: ₩5,000 |
| Previous edition | 2025: 7–16 Mar 2025 |
| Next edition | 2027: Early-to-mid March 2027 (26th edition), ten days around peak bloom, following 7–16 Mar 2025 and 13–22 Mar 2026. The committee met on 4 February 2026 and the city announced the 2026 dates on 5 February, so expect a February 2027 announcement. |
Program
- Maehwa Culture Center exhibition by Gwangyang-born minhwa painter Eom Jae-kwon (Hyocheon) with eight media artists including Lee Lee-nam
- Korea Creative Arts High School performance; memorial for independence activist Yulsan Kim O-cheon
- Golden Maehwa and plum GET event, stamp tour, Maehwa life photo studio, plum-blossom archery, plum highball experience
- Fun Run from Dunchi parking lot; two-night camping programme at Geumcheon Valley campground (advance booking)
- Food street with 12 Seomjin Village vendors; season 2 of 'Maesil-dam Gwangyang dosirak'
- Free festival entry for visitors to Baegunsan Natural Recreation Forest, Seomjin Star Skyline zip line and partner campgrounds
Prices
| Item | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Adult admission | ₩6,000 | Refunded in full as Gwangyang local gift vouchers usable at festival stalls, Daap-myeon shops, Jungma Market and the seafood distribution centre |
| Teenager admission | ₩5,000 | Refunded in full as vouchers |
| Free entry (per visitor blog, unverified) | Free | Children 6 and under, seniors 65+, Gwangyang residents under 19, registered disabled, persons of national merit |
| Downtown weekend shuttle, return (per visitor blog, unverified) | ₩5,000 | Gwangyang Terminal–tourist information centre–Maehwa Village; booked in the MY광양 app |
| Dunchi and Sodunchi parking lots (per visitor blog, unverified) | Free | Small Seomjingang lot next to the grounds is paid |
Notes on the 2026 edition
About 710,000 visitors over the ten days and more than 130,000 on Saturday 21 March — the highest since paid entry began in 2024; about 840,000 in March overall. Prices were ₩1,000 higher than in 2025.
About the festival
The Gwangyang Maehwa Festival is one of Korea's first spring blossom festivals each year: ten days in mid-March in Maehwa Village, a hillside plum orchard above the Seomjin River in Gwangyang, Jeollanam-do. The 25th edition ran 13–22 March 2026; the 26th is expected in early-to-mid March 2027. Entry is paid (about ₩5,000–6,000 for adults in recent editions) and refunded in full as local vouchers. Go for 198,000 m² of white blossom and the thousands of onggi jars at Cheongmaesil Farm.
Transport, booking, crowd and accessibility details are on the main Gwangyang Maehwa Festival page, which covers every edition.
Source
Facts checked
21 October 2026, against the sources listed below.