Swiss lake where Hyun Bin plays the piano in “Crash Landing on You” charges entrance fees due to flock of tourists
As the Swiss lake where “Crash Landing on You” was filmed began to be crowded with tourists, residents decided to charge entrance fees.
According to AFP on June 9th (local time), residents started to charge entrance fees as tourists kept flocking to Iseltwald, a small lake town with only around 400 people, which was used as the filming location for the Korean drama “Crash Landing on You”.
“Crash Landing on You”, which aired within 2019~2020, depicts the romance of a second-generation conglomerate South Korean woman and a North Korean military captain. Released on Netflix, the drama created a sensation not only in Korea but also in Japan and all over Asia.
Iseltwald was selected as the background for the scene where North Korean captain Ri Jung Hyuk (Hyun Bin) plays the piano and thinks of his brother while studying in Switzerland, and where female lead Yoon Se Ri (Son Ye Jin) accidentally listens to this piano performance.
As the travel restrictions due to COVID-19 have begun to be lifted since last year, the number of tourists visiting this filming location has increased significantly. In particular, the dock by the lakeside, where Ri Jung Hyuk’s piano was placed has become a must-visit spot for tourists.
Titia Bailand, who is working at a local tourism office, shared, “The number of tourists has exploded”, adding “It is estimated that you would only find 1 resident among every 1000 visitors”.
They confessed, “Everyone in Iseltwald is happy to see more tourists coming, but it is also difficult for us to handle”. As the number of tourist buses entering the village increases, traffic jams often occur and the entrance to the village gets blocked sometimes. Some residents complained that fans of “Crash Landing on You” took pictures at the dock and left the surrounding area messy but hardly spent any money.
As a result, the local government released an announcement last month that a reservation system would be implemented, and parking lots will only allow buses with prior reservations to enter. They also installed a checkpoint at the lakeside dock and require tourists to pay 5 Swiss francs (about 7,200 won) to enter the dock.
Bailand also mentioned the need to charge fees to maintain the dock as there have been more people coming to the dock to take pictures. They said, “Iseltwald is like a paradise on earth, and we want to maintain it that way”.
Meanwhile, Florita Liechtenstaiger (64 years old), a Filipino living in Switzerland, only let relatives who accompanied her to the lake pay the fee and did not enter alone. Regarding the entrance fees, they reacted “5 Swiss francs?!”, expressing disappointment.
Source: Nate
