Hwaseong is located on the southwest coast of Gyeonggi Province, the Midwest region of the Korean Peninsula. It borders with 7 cities on land while it borders by sea with the Port of Pyungtaek on the West Sea. It occupies with the 844 square kilometer, which account for the 8.3% of the total territory of Gyeonggi province. It is promoted to urban - rural composite city status in March, 2003 with 3 towns, 10 subcounties and 8 dongs. The population is 343,382 with 131,676 households as of August, 2007.

Hwaseong is in a transitional area from warm southern areas to continental northern areas and displays a characteristic of weather where the temperatures in winter are low along the coast since it is located in the lower plains and close to the inland West Sea where the water level is shallow. Therefore, it falls under a type known as the mid-west coast type in the Korean local climate since it is located in a transitional area where the climate changes from mild and humid to cold. The yearly mean temperature is 12.8℃, the average in January is －2.2℃, and the average in August is 26.1℃. The average amount of precipitation over the year is 1,217mm.

Hwaseong is also located in the center of the metropolitan area with the best industrial location and convenient accesses to the city from every direction with 2 expressway routes, 1 subway lines, and the No.1 highway. The region is ideally located to become a base for the development of the west coast. The natural condition, well developed basic facilities, easy access by express highways, ports, national roads and ideal coastal location near the metropolitan region should see it become the heartland of economic development.

As of Dec., 2005, the number of companies registered in Hwaseong was 22,427 with 180,836 employees. In terms of industry type, manufacturing has dominated the most. Especially, globally recognized enterprises like Kia Motors and BASF Korea are the main contributors of Hwaseong economic growth. In 2006 alone, Hwaseong’s trade volume recorded US$11.72 Billion with US$8.67 Billion in export and US$3.05 Billion in import.

Hwaseong has the royal tombs of king Sado and Jeonjo and many treasures from Joseon Dynasty. Hwasung hot springs attract many tourists. Also, Jeam-Ri memorial hall is another cultural heritage to commemorating the massacre of during the 3.1 Independence Movement.