Busan fireworks festival returns Saturday for 21st edition

Fireworks will light up the Busan night sky on the first Saturday of November. The city of Busan announced Monday that the 21st Busan Fireworks Festival will be held Saturday from 7 p.m. for one hour across Gwangalli Beach, Igidae and Dongbaekseom.

The program opens with an international fireworks show by China's Sunny Co., followed by a multi-fireworks display by Hanwha and a curtain-call segment dedicated to citizens and on-site workers. The Hanwha segment, themed "Dreams of Busan," is divided into three acts — "Excitement," "Boldness" and "Joy" — and will feature 25-inch oversized shells alongside Niagara and wave-style fireworks, combined with a multimedia lighting display on Gwangandaegyo Bridge.

Daytime pre-festival events will include an air show by the Air Force Black Eagles aerobatic team, a beachside "book-nic" reading event, chalk art and scratch-book workshops, and busking performances by local indie bands.

Starting at 6 p.m. that day, a "Fireworks Prologue" segment will feature residents' personal stories and song requests, three preview fireworks bursts, and citizen messages displayed on Gwangandaegyo Bridge to build the festival atmosphere. Special guests — including the captain who led a trial voyage along the Northern Sea Route, an Asian Games sailing gold medalist, and the first foreign ticket-buyer — will then kick off the show with a touch-button ceremony and countdown.

The city has set aside about 17,000 paid seats, with 3,000 more than last year reserved for foreign tourists. Paid seats for residents (R and S tiers) will receive a 10 percent discount, and the number of youth culture pass seats will double from last year. Some 1,300 complimentary seats will be allocated for culturally underserved groups and community contributors. In partnership with the Naval Operations Command, families with multiple children will also have the opportunity to watch the fireworks from the sea aboard a Navy vessel (LS-II class).

To ensure spectator safety, the city will restrict traffic on sections of Gwangandaegyo Bridge and progressively expand road closures around the venue throughout the day. For installation and removal of fireworks structures and lighting, some upper-deck lanes on the bridge will be closed from 8 p.m. Monday, with partial lower-deck restrictions beginning Wednesday. On the day of the festival, the upper deck will be fully closed from 3:30 p.m. and the lower deck from 6:30 p.m. until midnight.

Roads around Gwangalli Beach will be restricted in stages beginning at 10 a.m., starting with the section of Gwanganhaebyeon-ro between Eonyang Intersection and Mannam Square. From 4 p.m., closures will extend to Haebyeon-ro and the Marine City area, and from 5 p.m. to Gwangnam-ro and Minlak Subyeon-ro.