Busan Mackerel Festival
Oct 30 – Nov 1, 2026 · Busan
Overview
The Busan Mackerel Festival has been held every October since 2008 at Songdo Beach — Korea's first public beach, boasting diverse tourist attractions such as the Songdo Yonggung Cloud Bridge, Songdo Cloud Trail, and Songdo Marine Cable Car, and now celebrated as one of Korea's hot spots. The festival was planned to create synergy between local economic revitalization and tourism industry development by turning the festival into a tourism product linked with food, culture and arts, and tourism resources, leveraging the region's unique characteristics as home to the Large Purse Seine Fisheries Cooperative, which catches about 90% of the mackerel produced in coastal waters, and the Busan Cooperative Fish Market, where 80% of the nation's mackerel supply is traded. With mackerel, Korea's beloved national fish, as its theme, the festival is jointly planned, participated in, and promoted by fisheries industry stakeholders and local residents, and its reputation is growing as not merely a food festival but a cultural and arts festival with things to see and enjoy, as well as Korea's leading fisheries culture festival that fosters and develops the fisheries-related industry. The festival offers domestic and international visitors a unique festival experience by running distinctive and novel experience, tour, exhibition, competition, and performance programs, including its signature programs such as an on-site tour of the Busan Cooperative Fish Market, bare-handed mackerel catching, a surprise mackerel auction, mackerel hunting by kayak, a mackerel paper boat race, a direct seafood marketplace, and a mackerel food market.
Why go
The Busan Mackerel Festival is one of Korea's leading fisheries culture festivals, held every October since 2008 on Songdo Beach, Korea's first public beach. It centers on mackerel, Korea's beloved national fish, with hands-on programs like bare-handed mackerel catching, a surprise mackerel auction, kayak mackerel hunting, and a tour of the Busan Cooperative Fish Market alongside food stalls and performances. The beachfront setting also places visitors near the Songdo Yonggung Cloud Bridge, Songdo Cloud Trail, and Songdo Marine Cable Car.
Getting there from Seoul
Take the KTX from Seoul Station to Busan Station, then continue by taxi or local bus to Songdo Beach in Seo-gu (Amnam-dong). An express or intercity bus from Seoul's bus terminals to Busan is also an option, followed by a taxi or bus connection to Songdo Beach.
Tips
- Late October/early November sea winds can be cool, so bring a jacket for the beachfront event.
- Pair the festival with the nearby Songdo Cloud Trail or Songdo Marine Cable Car for a full day out.
- Arrive early for hands-on programs like the bare-handed mackerel catching or the mackerel auction, as these draw crowds.
Best for: seafood lovers, families, photographers, cultural experiences.
Photos
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization
Other festivals in Busan
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Busan Seo-gu Medical Tourism Festival
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The 5th Busan Seo-gu Medical Tourism Festival will be held for two days on October 16 and 17 around Songdo Ocean Park, co-organized by Seo-gu District and Pusan National University Hospital, Dong-A University Hospital, Kosin University Gospel Hospital, and Sahmyook Busan Hospital. This festival aims to promote Seo-gu, the first 'Medical Tourism Special Zone' in the Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam region, as well as to lay the groundwork for attracting more foreign patients through 'business consultations and buyer familiarization tours,' and to provide residents and tourists with accurate health information and various medical experience opportunities. This year, health-related consultations, exhibitions, promotions, and experience events will be held at around 60 booths. Various medical-related institutions, including the co-organizing hospitals, public health centers, and the National Health Insurance Service, will participate to provide visitors with a range of health services and information, including physical examinations, stress diagnostics, Korean medicine pharmacopuncture treatment, and proper medication consultations. In addition, together with Busan Techno Park, a 'Medical and Healthcare Industry Promotion Hall' will be operated to showcase Seo-gu's key projects as a medical special zone, including the Medical R&D Knowledge Industry Center, incubators, regional affiliated industries, and medical demonstration projects, as well as a variety of medical and healthcare devices from innovative companies participating in these projects. On-site, the festival offers a wealth of attractions and activities, including wellness experience programs that people of all ages can enjoy together under a health and wellness concept, such as 'Slow Jogging,' 'Silent Meditation Yoga,' 'CrossFit,' and 'Jumping Fitness,' as well as a children's health playground and family-friendly experience booths, including the 'Kids Doctor Experience Hall' and 'Air Sports.' Accompanying events include a 'Health Talk Concert' with a plastic surgery specialist from Kosin University Gospel Hospital, as well as a 'Children's Magic and Balloon Show,' large board games, and various other events. The festival's opening ceremony will take place at 3:00 PM on the 16th, with a lively celebratory stage featuring performers including 'Ahn Seong-hoon,' 'Jin' of 'Mr. Trot 2,' the gugak b-boy group 'Last Street Crew,' and pop flutist 'Seo Ga-bi.'
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The Busan Jagalchi Festival is Busan's premier marine and fisheries culture festival, held every October at Jagalchi Market, Korea's leading seafood market. It begins with Yongsinje, a traditional ritual ceremony praying for a bountiful catch, and this year visitors can also enjoy a pungmulpae (traditional folk percussion troupe) performance during the gilnori street parade. The festival's opening ceremony features a spectacular fireworks show lighting up Namhang (South Port), followed by celebratory performances from popular singers, including Miss Trot winner Song Ga-in. There is also a 'festival within a festival' — the Jagalchi Dried Seafood Food Zone — offering a space for the MZ generation (millennials and Gen Z) and family visitors. A variety of hands-on events for visitors are also prepared, including the Eel Relay Race and Catch the Golden Fish, and the festival's signature event, Making the World's Largest Raw Fish Bibimbap, will be shared for free with the many citizens and visitors at the venue.
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Dates and programs can change. Check the official site before you go. Official site