Tradition meets modern techniques: Behind Korea's largest hanok hotel

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Tradition meets modern techniques: Behind Korea's largest hanok hotel

Published: 12 Dec. 2024, 14:02 Updated: 12 Dec. 2024, 14:13

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Cho Chung-il, the CEO of Kona I, poses at the largest hanok (traditional Korean house) hotel, The Hanok Heritage House, in Yeongwol County, Gangwon. [KIM JONG-HO]

YEONGWOL COUNTY, Gangwon — If you type "Hanok Heritage House" into Google Maps, the application shows you a place in the middle of nowhere, situated in the remote, mountainous area of Yeongwol County, Gangwon — in the vicinity of the Seondol Cliff and Seogang River.

The plot of land that stretches about 339,000 square meters (84 acres) was rarely visited until construction began in 2021 to build the luxurious hanok (traditional Korean house) hotel. The hotel is partially completed with three private hanok, each between 327 and 461 square meters in size, but the high-end hanok lodging facility has already gone viral, attracting celebrities like Lee Young-ae and Ko So-young. Being amazed by the scale of the beautifully well-built hanok accommodation, visitors wanted to know whose idea it was to build such a facility.

Not only celebrities but daemokjang, master carpenters in charge of the entire process of building traditional houses, were impressed by the hanok hotel project because it is a dream project where up-to-date materials compensate for some of the hanok's weaknesses.

“We believe this Yeongwol project is the last chance given to hanok,” said Park Eui-jun, a 55-year-old daemokjang who has been working with Cho Chung-il, the CEO of Kona I.

It was Cho’s idea to build a hotel that overlooks the scenic view of Yeongwol.

A physics graduate from Sungkyunkwan University, Cho is often dubbed a pioneer in the venture industry. He developed a transportation card system when a strip of paper was used as a ticket for commuters. Now, the IC chips his company produces are widely used for credit cards and electronic passports. “I would say that every single Korean uses my company's IC chips,” said Cho. As of last year, Kona I was the world’s fourth-largest IC chip manufacturer.

His life was initially a far cry from traditional houses, and his dream of building hanok, which he first came up with 13 years ago, wasn’t taken seriously.

The exterior, top, and interior, above, of Yeongwol Jongtaek, which is a private hanok hotel. [JOONGANG ILBO]

When asked what made him initiate this hanok project, Cho said, “I believe in analog. Digital is nothing but fake.”
The Hanok Heritage House is the biggest hanok accommodation in terms of scale across the country, with 100 billion won ($69.8 million) spent on construction so far. An additional 200 billion won will be shelled out by 2028 since another project is underway on the site.

The following are excerpts from an interview with Cho, edited for length and clarity.

What made you embark on this project of building a hanok hotel?

I initially wanted to build my hanok, and the personal project became this big. I travel a lot for business because my company develops IC chips and does business with over 80 countries. Whenever I saw the traditional buildings of other countries being preserved well, I was amazed. They made me dream of building hanok. I visited more than 100 hanok around the country and found many problems that hanok possess. They're too cold, inconvenient and you keep having problems while you reside. I asked for tips from famous carpenters on how to improve these issues, but they said it was impossible to fix those. So, I began studying hanok on my own.

What problems did you find with the existing methods of hanok construction?

Most carpenters rely on their senses. When they are asked about problems, they say, “That’s what makes hanok, and that’s a natural phenomenon.” So, I even looked up all the overseas theses on lumber. I realized the biggest problem lies in the procedure of drying the wood. Hanok is built with large slabs of wood but when the inner part of the wood is not dried and used for hanok, it keeps contracting and expanding and ends up having troubles. I told carpenters about the characteristics of wood, such as the cellulose fiber, so we needed a special varnish to dry the wood properly, but they laughed at me.

Wood used in building The Hanok Heritage House in Yeongwol County, Gangwon [THE HANOK HERITAGE HOUSE]

So, how did you fix the problems?

I invested first. I began studying drying procedures after I rented a wood-drying factory in the East Sea. Thoroughly dried wood is as hard as stone, thus it is impossible to cut manually. So, I began operating two wood processing plants in Danyang County and Jecheon in North Chungcheong. I hired a master carpenter and made him research hanok for seven years. We built two hanok and demolished them throughout the research. While I was doing all this, I thought I’d come too far to build a single hanok, so I decided to do something on a bigger scale and create a space where people can feel the genuine atmosphere of hanok.

Why did you choose hanok out of Korea's traditional things?

I’ve been making money by doing digital business all my life, but digital is nothing but a fake analog. I believe the more society gets high-tech, the more people feel nostalgic about analog. So, I thought about creating a cultural space. I also realized that cultural and historical spaces can impress people above all things while I traveled all around the world. Traditional Korean architecture is second to none. The wooden structure itself is beautiful, so it overshadows its other small details. It’s like a person who is pretty without makeup. But, you have to make it right. Otherwise, it becomes a nuisance. So, whenever I meet CEOs, I persuade them to build hanok. We need more investment if we want to see further progression in hanok.

Was there any moment when you felt like giving up?

I’m always delighted to be here. You have source codes left when you invest 100 billion won in software, but you have these beautiful buildings with the same amount of investment. I work on weekdays in Yeouido and then come to Yeongwol on weekends. I stopped playing golf ever since I began this hanok project. You need to know when to stay focused and when not to. It’s pretty much the same as a marathon. You can’t finish the race if you run at your full speed from the beginning until the end.

Interior of The Hanok Heritage House in Yeongwol County, Gangwon [THE HANOK HERITAGE HOUSE]

How did you persuade carpenters who used to rely on their senses when building hanok?

We spent the first year fighting over the new method of building hanok. They were suspicious of me at first because they had never seen a person like me who was so into hanok. But they gradually came to know what I wanted to achieve. Now I work with 18 master carpenters. Once a hanok building is complete, I invite them over for a party. These days, they are eager to try new ideas. We’ve created and developed many things, such as doors, windows, furniture and even lighting, and they are used in our creations.

What is your philosophy in life?

I want to experience as much as I can. That’s my motto in life. I don’t want to regret something and say, “I should have done it,” when I get older.