춘향제

Chunhyangje is the country's oldest local festival, running annually in Namwon since 1931 to celebrate Chunhyang and Mongryong, the central characters of Korea's most famous classical love story. The festival fills Gwanghalluwon Garden — the actual setting of the tale — with court music, pansori (Korean narrative singing) performances, traditional weddings, and the Miss Chunhyang pageant. Pansori in particular runs at competition level, attracting top performers, which makes Chunhyangje one of the strongest stages in the country to actually hear this UNESCO-recognised vocal tradition. For travelers interested in Korean classical narrative arts, Namwon during Chunhyangje is unusually rich.