A cafe can be the destination rather than a break between attractions. Gangneung makes that idea visible along Anmok's seaside Coffee Street and through a recurring festival. Korea Tourism Organization describes a local ecosystem that includes coffee artisans, roasting and coffee-related cultural facilities. This is a longer-running identity, not a new opening. The 18th Gangneung Coffee Festival runs October 21-25, 2026 around Gangneung Coffee Street and venues across the city. Current visitor information lists daily festival hours of 10:00-20:00 and named programs including 100 Baristas 100 Flavors, A Starry Night, Anmok Coffee Radio, Coffee Busking, A Variety of Gangneung Coffee and Coffee Picnic. Some fees apply. The useful story is not that one festival created Gangneung's coffee identity. The festival sits on top of an everyday ecosystem of cafes, roasters, coastal streets and local cultural facilities. That matters because visitors can experience the city's coffee culture even if they do not attend every scheduled program. Our interpretation is that coffee can connect a coastal landscape to the people and skills behind a drink. For an international visitor, this offers a regional alternative to treating Korean cafe culture as a sequence of Seoul interiors. Choose a place for what you want to taste or learn, rather than assuming a sea view guarantees good coffee. The practical information is more useful than before, but it is still not uniform across the city. Participating cafe hours vary, some activities cost money, workshop capacity can be limited and foreign-language support is not guaranteed at every venue. Gangneung works best when the festival is treated as an invitation into a year-round local coffee culture rather than as proof that every cafe or every cup is equally good.