Coal Mining Culture Festival

Now in its 1st year, the '2026 Coal Mining Culture Festival' is a multidisciplinary cultural festival held throughout Sabuk-eup, Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon State, to celebrate the opening of the M650 Museum. The festival presents the lives of the miners who once led South Korea's industrialization, along with the history of coal mining, through contemporary cultural and artistic programs. The main components of the event are a large-scale thematic performance based on the miners' stories and a joint program involving 7 cities and counties in the coal industry transition region. In addition, audience-participation experience programs that introduce the history of coal mining will be operated alongside these. The festival grounds are centered around the newly opening M650 Museum, Ppuri Hall, and the area around 650-gil, with a variety of performances and cultural events tailored to the character of each zone. The event presents visitors with the historical background of the Sabuk area reshaped into cultural content.

This inaugural festival (October 7-10, 2026) marks the opening of the M650 Museum in Sabuk-eup and tells the story of the miners who powered South Korea's industrialization through performances and interactive exhibits. A large-scale thematic stage show based on miners' real stories anchors the event, alongside a joint program bringing together seven coal-region cities and counties. It's a rare chance to see Korea's industrial heritage reframed as contemporary art rather than a static museum display.

Sabuk-eup sits in Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon State, in Korea's old coal-mining belt near Taebaek. From Seoul, take a Mugunghwa or ITX train from Cheongnyangni Station on the Taebaek (Yeongdong) Line toward Taebaek/Sabuk, a journey of roughly four hours. Intercity buses to Jeongseon or Taebaek from Dong Seoul Bus Terminal are an alternative, with a short local transfer needed to reach Sabuk-eup itself.