In this blog post, we’ll examine whether Global Gathering Korea can improve audience convenience issues to match its global reputation and explore solutions for the festival’s development.
Long ago, I attended an electronic music festival called Global Gathering Korea (GGK). Global Gathering, which aims to be “the best festival on Earth and in the universe,” is a mega global dance music festival that began in the UK in 2001. Ranked among the world’s top festivals alongside Glastonbury, it currently takes place in the UK, Australia, Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Turkey, Belarus, and more, drawing over 700,000 attendees globally. Featuring over 150 of the world’s top artists, including Daft Punk, Tiësto, Underworld, Armin van Buuren, and Digitalism, its spectacular stages earned it the title of ‘Best Festival’ by DJ Magazine. When the Global Gathering lineup was announced, the inclusion of Justice and Armin van Buuren generated immense anticipation for the event.
The festival was held at Nanji Park along the Han River. This meant getting off at World Cup Stadium Station and transferring to other transportation. However, upon exiting the station, there were absolutely no signs directing people to the venue. It must have been quite disorienting for first-time visitors.
Fortunately, having visited several times since last year, I could find my way relatively easily. Still, I couldn’t help feeling a bit bitter about the lack of preparation.
Yet, the lack of even basic signage right at the entrance to the festival was frustrating. While the location itself might be an issue, getting into the Nanjido Park Campground required either a shuttle bus or a taxi. However, insufficient information about where to catch the free shuttle buses meant foreigners and first-time visitors had no choice but to take taxis. This led to a problem where taxi drivers demanded high fares, forcing visitors to take taxis. Information about the festival should be placed in more visible locations, and options for convenient transportation should be provided. For example, partnering with taxi companies to offer reasonable fares for groups of four passengers could be one solution.
Because the first impression was poor, several inconveniences were noticeable even upon entering the venue. From the ticket purchasing system to the baggage inspection procedure, it was quite cumbersome. Since my friend who came with me was a foreigner, we had to find a separate counter for foreigners, and we didn’t receive the timetable that should have been provided. Additionally, bringing a bag meant undergoing baggage inspection. I accepted this as expected, having seen the notice prohibiting bringing in food other than water, but it reinforced the impression that the system prioritized administrative convenience over user experience. While the ban on food was likely due to difficult waste disposal, the number of shops was woefully inadequate for handling over 20,000 spectators, and the selection was extremely limited. Despite having held the event last year, I felt deeply disappointed that no improvements were evident. If they truly considered the waste disposal issue, efforts like distributing trash bags or installing trash bins throughout the venue would have been necessary. With just a little more thought, there are many ways they could have made a positive impression.
The biggest headaches when preparing and running the festival are undoubtedly the restroom situation and the lack of storage lockers. Having experienced multiple festivals, this remains an unsolved problem. This time too, we saw long lines stretching out in front of the restrooms and bags and clothing piled up or strewn on the floor due to insufficient lockers. After the festival ends, lost and found notices inevitably flood the bulletin boards. Despite recognizing the problem, no solutions are sought; instead, past flawed practices are repeated. The luggage issue could be partially resolved by preparing and distributing plastic bags for storage or by utilizing the camping grounds at Nanjigongwon Park, allowing attendees to store their belongings while camping.
Furthermore, while enjoying the festival, one naturally wanders past the small booths lined up beside the main stage. However, these booths felt disconnected from the festival, almost like a separate event. This seems to be the result of emphasizing diversity while overlooking the overall harmony of the festival. Additionally, the booths only sold specific types of alcohol and food, offering little choice to the audience. The aforementioned ban on bringing in outside alcohol seemed designed to benefit specific companies. This stems from a convenient mindset that disregards personal preferences. While sponsorship agreements may lead to exclusive deals for certain drinks or products, improvements are needed to ensure the festival’s diversity and harmony coexist.
Music festival culture has been established in Korea for about 10 years. Ten years should be enough time for a festival to establish itself and for its quality to improve. Yet the reality remains that only the audience, thirsty for music and seeking the festival, must endure the inconvenience. As festivals accumulate years, ticket prices only rise, inevitably raising audience expectations. Those who purchase expensive tickets to see performances have the right to enjoy convenient facilities and the right to experience the festival in diverse ways.
Solving all these problems at once will be difficult. No festival can improve its quality with the complacent mindset that it’s just a one-time event held once a year, so getting through this year alone is enough. Rather than holding a festival that relies solely on makeshift facilities without establishing basic infrastructure, systematic preparation is needed to devise countermeasures. A good example can be found nearby: the Jarasum International Jazz Festival. It is a prime example of building a jazz festival into a cultural phenomenon and developing it into a world-class event, based on solid festival infrastructure. By benchmarking this and developing Global Gathering, this festival too could become established as a cultural phenomenon.
We’ve previously outlined several issues with Global Gathering and proposed solutions. By implementing and refining these, the festival can truly establish itself as the premier electronic music festival. Moving forward, Global Gathering Korea will open a new chapter in festival culture, shifting focus from rock music, and become the ultimate destination for audiences craving outdoor dance music festivals.
