Busan is turning a 1,000-year-old Buddhist tradition into a modern wellness escape: the port city will host the "Gaeulen Jeollo Festa," a two-day temple festival blending temple food, meditation and live music at Hongbeop Temple on October 30 and 31.
What is the Gaeulen Jeollo Festa?
Organized by the Busan Metropolitan Government and the Busan Tourism Organization, the festival runs from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on both days at Hongbeop Temple in Geumjeong District, home to Korea's largest statue of Amitabha Buddha. The title is a Korean pun: "jeollo" means both "to the temple" and "naturally." Shuttle buses will run between Nopo Station on Subway Line 1 and the temple from 2 p.m.
The goal, the city says, is to turn the temple from a sightseeing stop into a place where visitors eat, watch performances and meditate. Twelve programs are planned, most of them free. "This event turns temples into spaces for staying and experiencing, offering interactive content that allows anyone to enjoy the charm of K-temples," said Na Yoon-bin, head of the city's Tourism Contents Industry Bureau.
108 temple dishes and a master of temple cuisine
The centerpiece is "Jeollo Charim," an exhibition of 108 temple dishes presented by the Buddhist nun Daean, a recognized master of temple cuisine known from the television program "Chefs of the Temple Kitchen." She will also deliver a lecture titled "Temple Food and Natural Healing." A boxed lunch prepared by the master is included in the paid "Jeollo Package," bookable on the travel platform NOL on a first-come, first-served basis.
Temple food — meat-free cooking built around seasonal ingredients — is having a moment, riding the global wave of interest in Korean culture and the rise of K-vegan fine dining. For wellness-minded travelers, it is healthy eating with a thousand years of practice behind it.
Lanterns, concerts and meditation under the autumn sky
After sunset, the temple grounds become an open-air stage lit by lotus lanterns. A lantern-lighting ceremony opens both evenings, followed by concerts featuring singer-songwriter Kwak Jin-eon on October 30 and the acoustic duo Sanmanhan Siseon on October 31. Daytime programs include meditation with singing bowls, bowing practice, a walk with the temple's head monk, tea tasting and natural dyeing.
The festival taps into a bigger shift: temple stays and meditation programs now sit squarely inside the global wellness-travel trend, and young Koreans have been embracing Buddhist-themed merchandise, fashion and meditation in growing numbers. Busan is betting that a temple can be a concert hall, a restaurant and a retreat at once — and that travelers will come for all three.
Watch: how Busan blends temple food, meditation and music to draw visitors to its Buddhist culture.
Music in this post's reel: Kevin MacLeod - Life of Riley (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 3.0