A crab party under the sunset: Taean Gonam-myeon Food Festa

There is a new way to get closest to autumn blue crab on Korea's west coast. Taean County holds the '2026 Gonam-myeon Sunset Gourmet Festa' on September 11-12 around Gagyeongju Port in Gonam-myeon (Maeil Ilbo). From 10 am to 9 pm, a boat-side market sells the day's catch - blue crab, whelk and clams - directly from fishing boats, and from 6 pm the 'Gagyeongju Sunset Night Market' takes over against the sunset and the night sea. Autumn is known as the season when blue crabs fatten up - and buying straight from a fisherman in front of the boat that caught them, rather than from a market stall, is the real product of this festival.

Trip-planning tips: Gagyeongju Port sits in Gonam-myeon at the southern end of Anmyeondo Island, where public transport is sparse, so driving is the realistic option. The sunset night market is the festival's climax, so an efficient plan is to arrive late afternoon, browse the boat market, and meet the sunset at the night market. A port facing the west-coast sunset head-on, it is a two-day-only chance for photographers and seafood travelers alike. And note: it lasts just two days - September 11 and 12. Get the date wrong and you will find an empty harbor.