Chicken, beer and folk music: Daegu Chimac Festival draws 1 million visitors

More than one million people gathered in Daegu over five scorching days from last Wednesday to Sunday to attend the 2025 Daegu Chimac Festival, reveling in the city's peak summer event.

People cheer during the closing performance of the 2025 Daegu Chimac Festival held on July 6 in Duryu Park, Dalseo District, Daegu. [DAEGU CITY GOVERNMENT]

More than one million people gathered in Daegu over five scorching days from last Wednesday to Sunday to attend the 2025 Daegu Chimac Festival, reveling in the city's peak summer event.

The festival is named after the Korean term for phrase for chicken and beer, chimac. The festival takes place in Daegu due to the city’s reputation as the birthplace of many Korean fried chicken franchises, including Kyochon Chicken, Hosigi Double Chicken and Mexicana.

Despite the sweltering heat — with daytime highs averaging 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 degrees Fahrenheit) — the festival unfolded safely across Duryu Park in Daegu. The city installed cooling fog sprays, water trucks, shaded rest areas and emergency medical stations throughout the venue to help visitors beat the heat.

On the final night, Sunday, Duryu Park was packed with revelers enjoying the closing moments of the festival. A member of a couple, both of whom were in their 40s and hailed from Daegu’s Dalseo District, recalled, “We came to the first Chimac Festival in 2013, when we were dating. Over a decade later, we’re amazed by how much it has grown. There’s so much more to do, and we’re proud, as Daegu citizens, to welcome so many tourists.”

The closing performance featured the band YB, whose concert on the central stage — equipped with light-emitting diode screens on all four sides — electrified the crowd. A separate folk stage catered to middle-aged attendees, drawing about 200 people to sing along while enjoying their chimac.

People have chicken and beer at the Daegu Chimac Festival held in Duryu Park, Dalseo District, on July 2. [NEWS1]

Festivalgoers showed strong civic spirit, with little to no litter found across the park. Many helped sort waste with the assistance of staff. Foreign tourists were also a notable presence, as Daegu had marketed travel packages online, drawing about 700 international visitors through group tours.

This year’s festival featured 31 chicken brands — including local favorites like Kyochon and Ttangttang Chicken — operating more than 80 booths, and nine beer brands ran 30 booths, offering a feast of flavors. The event attracted more than one million visitors and recorded higher chicken and beer sales than it did last year, according to the Korea Chimac Industry Association.

“We will continue striving to make the Daegu Chimac Festival Korea’s representative summer festival — and eventually a global one,” said Hong Sung-joo, Daegu’s deputy mayor for economic affairs.

People have chicken and beer at the Daegu Chimac Festival held in Duryu Park, Dalseo District. [BAEK KYUNG-SEO]

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff. BY BAEK KYUNG-SEO [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]