East Coast City Plans 'No Koreans' Beach

A beach for foreigners only will open for the first time in Gangneung in 2004.

Gangneung City is "contemplating managing the Yeongok beach for foreigners only," a city official said Monday.

The city decided to designate one of the ten or so beaches in Gangneung for foreigners, it said, because it found from a survey of
tourists that foreign visitors do not like using beaches amidst Koreans. A city official explained that Koreans make bathing a family affair with food, noise and fun, while the seemingly uptight
foreign visitors the city surveyed wanted a quiet place for sunbathing. The city official said he hopes the foreign-only
beach will attract more tourists to the city, and added in response to a question that he expected no adverse reaction from city residents to being banned from one of their own beaches.

Gangneung will try to raise 7.3 billion won ($5.7 million) in private investment and permanently establish and manage a condominium and a camping site.

by Hong Chang-eop