Plans are underway for the construction of a new international convention centre in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, the first in the South Korean province.
According to preliminary plans, the new convention centre is expected to have a site area of 54,200m2, a total building area of 16,200m2, and a total floor area of 36,900m2. The total project cost is anticipated to be 149 billion won (US$133 million).
The convention centre will be built in Hajungdo Island, an island in Chuncheon, also home to the new Lego Land Theme Park, currently under construction with a tentative opening date set for 2022.
Demand for an international convention centre in the province has been growing steadily, thanks to its successful hosting of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. Aside from showcasing its capability to host large-scale international events, the hosting of the games also brought about the extension of a KTX (high-speed bullet train) line connecting major cities within the province to Seoul in under two hours.
In 2018, Gangwon was also the fourth region in South Korea based on the most number of annual MICE events hosted. Currently, the top three regions are Seoul, Gyeonggi and Busan, all of which already have their own large-scale convention centres – COEX (Seoul), KINTEX (Gyeonggi), and BEXCO (Busan).
Stakeholders are hopeful that the plans for the new convention centre will soon get greenlit. If approved, the convention centre is said to provide the boost Gangwon needs to break into the top three rankings.
Comprising the north-east region of the Korean peninsula, Gangwon Province comprises major cities Gangneung, Chuncheon, and Pyeongchang.
