Seoul to expand Han River overnight camping program citywide after 11,000 join in first month

More than 11,000 people took part in "Han River Bam-ping" — the Seoul Metropolitan Government's first initiative under its nighttime economy drive — over the course of a month, marking what the city called a successful launch. The program demonstrated not only strong public demand for late-night leisure but also that extended evening stays translate into real consumer spending. Seoul will now expand the program, stretching shade-shelter hours across all 11 Han River parks starting in September.

Han River Bam-ping is a temporary overnight camping program that runs from 5 p.m. on the day of arrival until 9 a.m. the following morning. The city said Wednesday that 3,503 groups and 11,476 people participated in the program at Yeouido and Ttukseom Hangang Park from Aug. 1 to Aug. 30.

Weekly advance reservations sold out on the day they opened or the day after, and Friday and Saturday slots closed within five minutes of bookings going live.

A satisfaction survey of 1,106 participants found that 94.7 percent hoped the program would continue next year. Another 90.1 percent said it helped revitalize nighttime leisure culture in the city center and benefited the local economy.

Overnight stays drove measurable consumer spending. An analysis of card payment data from four card companies — Shinhan, BC, Kookmin and Samsung — covering 168 commercial districts, 31 business categories and about 57,000 stores across the Yeouido, Ttukseom and Mangwon zones from Aug. 1 to Aug. 21 showed sales rising from 329.8 billion won ($241 million) the previous year to 349.2 billion won this year, an increase of 19.4 billion won, or 5.9 percent. Foreign card spending was particularly strong, rising from 36.9 billion won to 51.8 billion won — a gain of 14.9 billion won, or 40.3 percent.

Average nightly foot traffic across the three zones surged from 56,000 to 93,000 people, an increase of 37,000, or 66 percent. The water park at Ttukseom Hangang Park saw foot traffic rise 1,847 percent — roughly 19 times — while the delivery zone at Yeouido recorded a 448 percent increase and the temporary delivery zone at Ttukseom rose 263 percent.

The city said the program demonstrated the potential for a virtuous cycle in the nighttime economy, in which evening content extends how long people stay and longer stays lead to more spending.

Building on the demand for nighttime activity and spending that the program revealed, Seoul will expand shade-shelter access to all 11 Han River parks in September. The closing time for shade shelters has been extended by three hours, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. The number of permitted shade-shelter zones will also grow from 16 to 20, with one additional zone each added at Gwangnaru, Jamsil, Ttukseom and Yanghwa Hangang Park.

Food delivery zones will expand from six locations across three parks — Yeouido, Ttukseom and Mangwon — to 17 locations across all 11 Han River parks, making delivery services more convenient for evening visitors. Safety measures will be reinforced alongside the extended hours, with 14 additional lights and 12 more closed-circuit television cameras at 10 locations to be installed.

Through its nighttime economy initiative, the city aims within five years to generate an additional 5 trillion won in annual nighttime consumer spending, attract 30 million foreign tourists and raise the share of nighttime sales for small businesses to more than 50 percent.

"We will continue to expand nighttime content and amenities that residents can feel in their daily lives, so that the Han River at night becomes the heart of the nighttime economy — a place where rest and enjoyment flow into spending and vitality for the local economy," said Park Jin-young, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Future Han River Bureau.