During the day, visitors can walk through a safari and interact with giraffes, while at night, they can complete escape missions to evade zombies. Everland, operated by Samsung C&T's resort division, has transformed into a vibrant natural documentary setting and a thrilling zombie movie set as autumn arrives.
Everland has developed an enhanced autumn festival program that allows visitors of all ages to escape their daily routines and enjoy both healing and unique experiences. The key to the charm of day and night lies in the 'immersive' content led by the audience. Instead of simply sitting and watching, visitors are encouraged to walk and complete missions, focusing on providing an experience where they become the protagonists in the narrative.
1km of Lively Interaction: 'Wild Savannah Expedition'
During the sunny autumn days, Everland serves as a safari stage. The 'Wild Savannah Expedition,' which opened on September 12, is at the heart of this experience. This program allows visitors to walk through the ecological safari Lost Valley, which is usually explored by vehicle. It features the ability to freely explore the savannah area without waiting for a vehicle.
Additionally, Everland has opened the previously paid 'River Trail' section for free. Visitors can observe 15 species of wildlife, including giraffes, elephants, and rhinos, up close along the approximately 1km route.
The greatest advantage of the Wild Savannah Expedition is that visitors can set their own pace. While vehicle tours have fixed routes and times, walking tours allow guests to choose where to stop. They can linger while watching a camel chew its food or return to see an elephant again without concern for a set path. The wide exploration route ensures that visitors do not disturb each other.
Upon receiving an explorer badge at the entrance and starting their walk, visitors are greeted by a bald stork and a dromedary camel. They then witness the spectacle of 'Koshik,' the talking elephant, munching on hay.
Crossing a bridge over a 140m waterway between Safari World and Lost Valley, visitors encounter lions and hyenas without any glass barrier. The waterway separates the animals from the guests, alleviating concerns about animals crossing over. An Everland representative stated, "We designed the route with safety as the top priority to prevent animals from coming onto the exploration path."
In the newly created Giraffe Plaza, seven giraffes reside. When the giraffes approach the fence, their long necks lower to the height of visitors' eyes, making it easy to capture them in photos without zooming in. There is also a space where visitors can measure the height of a giraffe.
Families pushing strollers are also noticeable in the Wild Savannah Expedition, thanks to Everland's gentle slopes that facilitate stroller movement.
Jung Dong-hee, the director of Everland Zoo, mentioned, "We have placed exhibits and elephant dung throughout the route to raise awareness about animal welfare and the conservation of endangered species, providing parents with an opportunity to explain ecology to their children."
Completing the entire route and stamping the badge at the end results in a completion certificate for explorers. The Wild Savannah Expedition will operate until the end of November, and any visitor to Everland can participate for free by waiting in line on-site.
Breaking Down the Boundaries of Stage and Audience: 10th Year of 'Blood City Zero'
As the sun sets and darkness falls, the Alpine area of Everland transforms into a massive horror movie set. Celebrating its 10th year since its debut in 2017, the autumn horror festival 'Blood City' has surpassed 10 million cumulative visitors and has evolved under the title 'Blood City Zero: The Gates of Hell.'
This year's horror content focuses on 'cinematic direction' and 'immersive performances.' Everland has partnered with director Lee Seok-hoon, known for films like 'Pirates' and 'Confidential Assignment 2,' to blur the lines between film and theme park. Moving away from the traditional format of watching shows on a fixed stage, the entire Alpine area is utilized as a massive stage.
The highlight of this festival is the 'Blood City Immersive Performance,' the first large-scale outdoor horror live performance in South Korea, where actors and audience members interact closely, providing a sense of fear and immediacy as if they have fallen into a movie. This performance runs daily from 4 PM to 9 PM for free.
The storyline has also become more robust. Audience members are given the identity of survivors fighting against a zombie army led by Dark X, known as 'White Z' members. They watch a pre-show video directed by Lee that introduces survival rules and immerses them in the narrative. They then navigate through five themed zones: 'Gates of Hell,' 'Uncontrollable Laboratory,' 'Circus of Madness,' 'Crimson Correction,' and 'Platform of Destruction,' freely completing missions.
During this process, dozens of actors, including towering zombies over 2 meters tall and student supervisor zombies, frequently approach to engage visitors and guide them through games. Large flash mob performances by scattered actors also occur throughout the show.
The director explained, "In film, everything is predetermined when it meets the audience, but in a theme park, we can directly observe audience reactions and continuously evolve based on those responses."
A 5-meter tall sculpture representing the station master zombie guarding the Platform of Destruction stands in the plaza. Visitors who complete all missions and stamp their badges receive priority boarding benefits for 'Monimo Rush.'
In the Blood City plaza and Monimo Rush, Panasonic's 30,000 ANSI 4K projector enhances the chilling visual effects. Additionally, there are 38 new horror merchandise items, including skull cloaks, a zombie costume shop, and unique food offerings like Dark Energy Black Chicken Curry Rice at the Alps Kueche restaurant.
Blood City Zero will run for 72 days until November 22.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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