As cruise tourism at Sokcho port in Gangwon Province gains strong momentum this year, three cruise ships are scheduled to call at the port on Saturday, Monday and Oct. 25, bringing more than 5,000 passengers and crew members to the region.
The two vessels making the calls are the Westerdam and the Seabourn Encore. The Westerdam is set to arrive Saturday, while the Seabourn Encore will call at Sokcho twice — on Monday and Oct. 25. Monday's visit will mark the Seabourn Encore's first-ever call at Sokcho port.
Gangwon Province said Friday it plans to offer a range of welcome events and convenience services for passengers and crew, including Korean cultural experiences, tourism information and shuttle bus operations. Special tourism services will include a K-culture welcome performance, hanbok try-on sessions, hangul calligraphy fan-making and a souvenir pop-up store.
In addition, the province expects cruise tourists to boost local commerce through sightseeing in the Yeongdong region, dining and shopping.
"We will strengthen tourism convenience and hospitality services so that cruise tourists can experience Gangwon Province's diverse attractions and local culture, and we will work to ensure that cruise tourism translates into broader regional economic growth," Gangwon Province Governor Woo Sang-ho said.
Both vessels operate on the East Sea circular route.
The US-flagged Westerdam departs from Hakata and travels to Kanazawa via Sokcho. It will arrive at Sokcho port at 10 a.m. Saturday and depart at 8 p.m. The ship has a passenger capacity of 2,370 and a crew capacity of 812.
The US-flagged Seabourn Encore's first cruise follows a Tokyo–Kanazawa–Sokcho–Kochi–Osaka itinerary. It will arrive at Sokcho at 8 a.m. Monday and depart at 6 p.m. the same day, marking the ship's maiden call at the port. The second cruise runs the same route in reverse, with the vessel arriving at Sokcho port at 8 a.m. on Oct. 25 and departing at 9 p.m. The ship has a passenger capacity of 638 and a crew capacity of 330.
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