[Rediscovery of the local] Declining shopping street turned into a tourist attraction... Namwon Wolgwang Pocha Street

In the past, when travel was not common, the place you would stop by at a famous tourist destination was a store selling souvenirs or local specialties.

It was a 'romantic era' when people bought one or two souvenirs or specialty products to preserve memories of their travels and share them with those around them.

Gwanghalluwon's Gwanghalluwon, a representative tourist attraction in Namwon, Jeollabuk-do, also enjoyed its time thanks to this travel culture.

It was also a gateway that one had to pass through to get to Chueotang Street, so it was a popular shopping street with a constant flow of tourists for a long time.

However, as the popularity of Gwanghalluwon, which was said to be the place where Seong Chun-hyang and Lee Mong-ryong first met and was a symbol of love and fate, waned, the number of tourists decreased and tourism consumption patterns changed, and the Gyeongwe Shopping Center area had to go down the road of decline.

◇ Path to decline due to inability to adapt to changes in tourism consumption patterns

About 20 stores began to be abandoned one by one, losing their owners, and those that were open were virtually closed.

The downfall of Gyeongwi Shopping Center led, like dominoes, to a downturn in the surrounding old downtown commercial districts.

After much consideration, ‘Night Pocha Street’ emerged as an alternative.

The idea was to transform it into a pocha street in line with the changing travel culture centered on food, play, and experiences for family tourists.

Pocha Street had already been recognized for its effectiveness, especially in the Yeosu night sea.

Although there is no night sea, there is still a competitive tourist attraction called Gwanghalluwon, and there is a large-scale Hanok Village and Chueotang Street nearby, so it was judged that it had a chance.

By creating a night-time Pocha Street that the whole family can enjoy together, it was possible to achieve the effect of creating a tourist destination for staycations.

It debuted in May 2024 under the name Wolgwang Pocha Street.

Wolgwang is a word taken from the image of Gwanghalluwon and Chunhyang, and contains the meaning of enjoying food and performances under the moonlight.

The target was chosen as families in their 40s who often travel with their families with children in elementary and middle school.

We entrusted the management of about 20 empty stores at low rent to famous local restaurants and young people.

Instead, the types and prices of food were strictly tailored to the '40-year-old family.'

We have a wide range of dishes, including chicken skewers, hot dogs, burgers, and milkshakes that children enjoy, chrysanthemum bread, meat pancakes, and banquet noodles that evoke memories of mom and dad, and chicken barbecue, soup, and loach stew that are perfect as a side dish or meal.

The price of each item was set to not exceed 10,000 won so that you could enjoy it without burden.

◇ Baek Jong-won joins The Born Korea… Family menu development

In particular, culinary expert Baek Jong-won's The Born Korea participated in menu development to add flavor and story.

Although its name is Wolgwang Pocha Street, it opens early at 11 a.m. for Gwanghalluwon tourists.

Tourists who could not find a menu that the whole family could enjoy comfortably began to flock around lunch time. As word spread, nearby students and citizens also started eating lunch out of curiosity.

At dusk, the space near Gyeongwe Shopping Mall was transformed into a festival site.

First, large and small street performance teams were placed throughout the alleys to create excitement.

These teams were recognized nationally for their skills, so they did a great job of livening up the atmosphere.

When the excitement reached its peak, it continued with the main performance, featuring popular singers from the 1990s and 2000s, the college days of heads of families in their 40s, on stage.

Min Kyung-hoon of the popular band Byrds, Kim Jong-seo, who led Korean rock music, and Park Nam-jung, who dominated the stage with her outstanding dancing skills, dominated the stage.

Lim Chang-jung, Coyote, Lee Sang-woo, Kim Jang-hoon, and Glass Box were also major invited singers.

In addition, programs such as 'Lucky Karaoke' and DJ parties that children can enjoy are also prepared.

◇ Despite the scorching heat, 5,000 people came every day, ‘a premonition of success’.

The response was beyond expectations.

Even in the sweltering heat, 3,000 to 5,000 people visited the place every day, so there was no time to move.

Through word of mouth, it was normal for the number to exceed 10,000 people per day in the fall.

It was intended to operate only until October of that year, but due to unexpected success, Namwon City expanded the business further starting in 2025.

It was expanded from being held only on Saturdays to Fridays and Sundays, and was also linked to major festivals such as Chunhyang Festival, Heungbu Festival, and Water Festival.

Starting this year, venues such as ‘Moonlight Pocha Moonlight Concert in Unbong’ and ‘Dotong-dong Friday Rock’ will be moved to other major commercial districts in other towns and villages.

Performances are also expanded from guest singers to include local artists, further enriching the content.

Wolgwang Pocha Street has now firmly established itself as Namwon’s representative tourism program.

In 2025, over 127,000 people visited during the 22 operations, and this year, it was a huge hit with as many as 267,000 visitors during the 15 openings until recently.

The success of Wolgwang Pocha Street is directly linked to the revitalization of the local commercial district.

The stores opening on Wolgwang Pocha Street are currently generating average daily sales of around 2 million won.

Lodging establishments, including Yechon, a nearby hanok village, used to be almost empty, but now it is not easy to find a room on weekends.

Namwon Mayor Yang Chung-mo said, “It appears that it was effective to clearly determine the target of Pocha Street, thoroughly prepare a program tailored to it, and continue to seek new changes. It is evaluated as the most successful night tourism program nationwide, attracting hundreds of thousands of tourists annually without spending a large budget.”

◇ Expansion into a ‘gourmet tourism road’ that connects to Chueo Street.

Namwon City is now planning to expand Wolgwang Pocha Street into a ‘gourmet tourist road’ to spread the warmth to nearby alley commercial areas.

This project, which was selected through a public contest by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and will cost 3.2 billion won, is to turn the 1km section of Gwanghalluwon - Wolgwang Pocha Street - Chueo Street into a gastronomic tourism road.

The 'Bite Gourmet Market', where you can try representative menu items from 20 major local restaurants, and the 'Heungmi Sanghoe', a pop-up restaurant for young people, will be operated, and street performances and street plays will be held here and there.

Mayor Yang expressed satisfaction, saying, “We are trying to connect tourism to consumption by expanding the flow of tourists visiting Gwanghalluwon and Wolgwang Pocha Street, which are representative tourist attractions in our region, to Chueo Street and the original downtown area. I never thought it would be this successful, but Wolgwang Pocha Street is playing a pivotal role in dramatically increasing our tourism competitiveness.”