Changwon Special City will operate a special city tour route connecting the festival site with major tourist attractions in the Masan area for the 26th Masan Gagopa Chrysanthemum Festival.
This tour is designed not just to facilitate transportation to the festival but to allow visitors to explore Masan's coastal scenery and local landmarks.
The special route will run once daily from October 31 to November 8 for a total of nine days. It will depart from Masan Station, visiting the Masan Fish Market, the 3.15 Marine Nuri Park's first festival site, the Masan Marine Drama Set, and the bridge over the Jodo Kwai River before returning to Masan Station, covering approximately six hours.
A city official stated, "Since the tour departs from Masan Station to visit the chrysanthemum festival, it aids in transportation convenience, but given that it operates once a day, we are focusing more on it as a tourism product rather than a traffic solution."
This special route differs from the regular city tour in its operation. The regular route operates six times a day at 11 stops in a circular manner, while the special route combines major tourist sites in the Masan area into a single travel itinerary with designated stop durations.
Tourists will have about two hours to view chrysanthemum exhibits at the 3.15 Marine Nuri Park festival site. At the Masan Fish Market, approximately one hour is allocated for dining and exploring the market. The remaining tourist sites, including the Masan Marine Drama Set and the Jodo Kwai River bridge, will have varying stop durations based on their characteristics.
This year's Masan Gagopa Chrysanthemum Festival will take place at three locations: 3.15 Marine Nuri Park, Happo Riverside Park, and Masan Marine New City. The special route will stop at the 3.15 Marine Nuri Park.
Changwon City explained that during the two hours allocated at the festival site, tourists can visit other festival areas if they wish. However, the bus will not operate separately to the other two festival sites.
Robot Land has been included in the route for promotional purposes, but there will be no scheduled stop there.
An official stated, "We initially considered allowing a stop at Robot Land, but completing the entire course would result in an afternoon arrival, making it difficult to fully enjoy the attractions. Therefore, we decided to include it as a pass-through this time."
The vehicle for the special route will be a single-decker bus with a capacity of 45 passengers, but to ensure smooth operations, daily reservations will be limited to 40 people (a maximum of 360 over nine days). The fare is 5,000 won for adults and 3,000 won for teenagers, while children under 48 months can ride for free. Reservations can be made in advance through the official Changwon City Tour website, and tickets will be issued upon boarding.
The operation of the special route will depend on the number of reservations made, and if the number is low, that trip may be canceled. Decisions regarding operation due to adverse weather will also be made based on the day's conditions and reservation status.
Additionally, an event will provide all passengers with chrysanthemum flowers. The city plans to confirm the number of passengers a day in advance and purchase flowers prepared by the festival committee for distribution at the festival site.
The operation of the route will be flexible based on the number of reservations. If the number is low, that trip may be canceled, and adverse weather conditions will also be considered when determining whether to operate.
Meanwhile, Changwon City is working on revising the regular city tour routes to address issues with empty runs. After pilot operations of region-specific and theme-based routes, a formal revision is expected to be introduced around March to April next year. Special routes for major local festivals, such as the Jinhae Gunhangje Festival and the Chrysanthemum Festival, will continue to operate separately from the regular routes.
Kim Young-cheol, Director of the Culture, Tourism, and Sports Bureau of Changwon City, stated, "We hope this special route allows festival visitors to enjoy both Masan's coastal scenery and the chrysanthemum festival. We will continue to present tailored tourism content to enhance visitor convenience and stimulate the local economy."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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