Actor Park Bo-gum turns palace sounds into new Korean travel experience

Actor Park Bo-gum led roughly 100 international visitors on a soundscape walking tour at Changgyeong Palace earlier this month. Organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization, the Korea Sound Journey promoted sensory travel through guided sound walks and an interactive workshop. The event expanded the 2026 Begin to Hear Korea campaign and reflected a shift toward immersive tourism experiences.

Applicants from 20 countries, including the United States, China, Japan and Thailand, competed for places in the event from a pool of more than 2,300 people.

Participants used directional field audio recorders to capture sounds including gravel underfoot and leaves rustling against palace rooflines.

Ten global influencers filmed and streamed content intended to introduce audio-first travel to international audiences.

The afternoon workshop at Hwigyeomjae included playback of field recordings, sound trivia challenges and discussions with Park about filming the national tourism campaign.

Published Oct 6, 2026 11:19 am KST

Park Bo-gum / Yonhap

Actor Park Bo-gum led a group of roughly 100 international visitors on a soundscape walking tour at Changgyeong Palace earlier this month, spearheading a campaign by cultural authorities to shift tourism promotion toward sensory travel.

Organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism alongside the Korea Tourism Organization, the "Korea Sound Journey" event brought together travelers and content creators selected from more than 2,300 applicants across 20 countries, including the United States, China, Japan and Thailand.

The initiative directly expands on the country's 2026 global advertising campaign, "Begin to Hear Korea," which launched in July. Starring Park — serving his second consecutive year as Korea's honorary tourism ambassador — the promotional series features the actor alongside a Danish musician traveling across the peninsula to record intimate, everyday soundscapes.

During the first half of the day, guided sound specialists led attendees through the palace grounds in small groups for a structured "sound walking" session. Equipped with directional field audio recorders, participants captured subtle acoustic details that often go unnoticed in fast-paced travel itineraries, from the crunch of gravel underfoot to the quiet rustle of leaves against ancient rooflines. Ten global influencers joined the session to film and stream social media content introducing audio-first travel to international audiences.

The afternoon transitioned to Hwigyeomjae, a historic hanok (traditional Korean home) located near the palace grounds. There, visitors gathered for an interactive workshop alongside Park to replay their field recordings, test their ears in sound trivia challenges and hear behind-the-scenes accounts of filming the national promotional campaign.

The event reflects a broader strategic shift in how national destinations market themselves to modern travelers, moving away from conventional photo opportunities and toward deep sensory immersion.

"We designed this initiative so foreign visitors could personally experience the daily warmth and emotions highlighted in our global campaign," said Park Sung-hyeuck, president of the Korea Tourism Organization. "Moving beyond conventional sightseeing, we will continue offering fresh travel experiences that allow visitors to feel, hear and remember the authentic rhythm of everyday life in Korea."

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.

本月初，演员朴宝剑带领约100名国际游客在昌庆宫体验了一场声音景观漫步之旅。此次名为“韩国声音之旅”的活动由韩国文化体育观光部和韩国旅游发展局联合举办，旨在通过导览式声音漫步和互动工作坊，推广感官旅游。该活动是“2026聆听韩国”活动的延伸，也体现了韩国旅游体验向沉浸式旅游的转变。

来自包括美国、中国、日本和泰国在内的 20 个国家的申请者，从 2300 多人中角逐参赛名额。

参与者使用定向现场录音机捕捉声音，包括脚下碎石的声音和树叶拍打宫殿屋顶的声音。

十位全球知名人士拍摄并直播了旨在向国际观众介绍音频优先旅行的内容。

下午在Hwigyeomjae举办的研讨会包括播放现场录音、声音知识挑战以及与朴先生讨论拍摄国家旅游宣传片。

发布于2026年10月6日上午11:19（韩国标准时间）

朴宝剑 / 韩联社

本月初，演员朴宝剑带领约 100 名国际游客在昌庆宫进行了一次声景漫步之旅，率先响应文化部门的号召，将旅游推广转向感官旅游。

由韩国文化体育观光部与韩国旅游发展局联合举办的“韩国声音之旅”活动，汇聚了从包括美国、中国、日本和泰国在内的20个国家的2300多名申请者中选拔出来的旅行者和内容创作者。

这项计划直接拓展了韩国于7月启动的2026年全球广告宣传活动“聆听韩国”。该宣传活动由朴赞郁主演——他已连续第二年担任韩国荣誉旅游大使——宣传片中，他与一位丹麦音乐家一同走遍朝鲜半岛，录制贴近生活、充满人情味的日常音景。

当天上午，专业的音频专家带领参与者分组漫步于宫殿庭院，进行一场精心设计的“声音漫步”体验。参与者们携带定向现场录音机，捕捉那些在快节奏的旅行中往往被忽略的细微声响，例如脚下碎石的嘎吱声，以及树叶轻拂古老屋顶的沙沙声。十位来自世界各地的意见领袖也参与了此次活动，拍摄视频并发布到社交媒体，向国际受众介绍以音频为主导的旅行方式。

下午的行程转移到了位于皇宫附近的古老韩屋——辉濠斋。在那里，游客们与朴槿惠一起参加了一个互动工作坊，重现了他们之前录制的现场录音，参与了声音知识问答挑战，并聆听了国家宣传片拍摄的幕后故事。

该事件反映了各国旅游目的地在向现代旅行者推销自己方面更广泛的战略转变，即从传统的拍照机会转向深度感官沉浸。

韩国旅游发展局局长朴成赫表示：“我们设计这项活动，是为了让外国游客能够亲身感受我们全球宣传活动中着重展现的韩国日常生活中的温暖和情感。我们将超越传统的观光旅游，继续提供全新的旅行体验，让游客能够感受、聆听并铭记韩国真实的生活节奏。”

本文由生成式人工智能协助发布，并由《韩国时报》编辑。