While in Korea in September 2023, we decided to head to Gyeongju-si for a few days. We took the train from Seoul and spent three days exploring the city and surrounding area. It’s an interesting mix of history and what seems to be a newer wave of investment and growth. You’ll find some incredibly hipster spots and some very traditional hanok villages too – a real range! It clearly has benefited from tourism and certain areas feel very much like they’re made to serve visitors. I have to say we didn’t love those areas but we found plenty to explore and had a great time.
How to get there
From Seoul, you’ll take the train from central to Singyeongju Station and catch a bus to Gyeongju from there. You can use your T Money card for the bus.
When buying train tickets, you can use a counter or head to the desk. We did the latter. Be sure to ask for a window seat as you do get some good views (although sadly barriers block some of them out). We purchased both sets of our tickets on the day of the train but I believe you can purchase in advance.
What to do
Gyeongju Palace (at sunset)
We went in around an hour before sunset and that might have been a little much but you do want to be there in advance so you can explore the gardens in the daytime, before watching the sunset and the lights come on.
Explore the parks & tombs in the city
Across the city you’ll find mounds of grassy hills that are tombs of Kings & Queens. It’s a serene setting. The way the tombs are created is very specific and complex, with one of the tombs opened up with information about the process.
Outside of the central parks there are more beautiful areas to explore. I was struck by the flowers more than anything, meadows of beautiful colours, some groomed and others totally natural. It’s worth an afternoon of exploring to take it all in.
Wherever you go, be sure to follow local protocols and respect the land – absolutely do not climb on the tombs/ mounds and check before walking on the grass.
Woljeong Bridge
Woljeong Bridge is about a 20 minute walk to the centre of Gyeonju and is a beautiful old bridge which you can walk across. You can go up the towers on either side and there’s a little museum, however the shutters were all closed when we were there so you sadly don’t get a view. You can walk across the stepping stones further down the river if you want a view of the bridge from the middle but only do this if it’s a nice day and you feel confident as it would be easy to fall in.
Hike up Namsan
Our hostel suggested this walk to us when we said we wanted to go and explore Namsan Park (Namsan Gyeongju, not Namsan Seoul to be clear!). Be sure to take lots of water as it’s pretty remote and you won’t find any shops/ water bubblers.
The walk gives you beautiful views and lets you see much more of the land around Gyeongju. You’ll pass some temples on the way too which are beautiful – not ornate but impressive rock structures that have clearly been there for hundreds of years, probably more.
Where to eat/ drink
- Heuheuheu (Beer Makes Me High) → edgy craft beer spot on the edge of one of the tomb parks. It’s worth a drink to sit outside and take in Gyeongju.
- Night market (Jungang Market) – you can get a bento box from any of the stalls with a sign and can then try four smaller dishes selected from different stalls. This is a great way to try lots of different things, and everything we had was delicious. There’s a bustling atmosphere and lots of people enjoying the space. It opens at 6pm and we were there until at least 10pm on the Wednesday night.
- Little Squid – this is not for the easily embarrassed if you don’t speak Korean. We were very late having lunch (maybe 3pm?) and found this spot – it’s probably the best meal we had in Korea but we were clueless about what we were supposed ot do. Thankfully two Aunties – who spoke no English – came over to help. They were clearly regulars but not part of the staff and gestured us through what to do, and kept popping back to sort us out. The food was next level so it’s worth looking like a total philistine. That said, I’ll write up what we learnt so you hopefully have a smoother learning curve..
- Sol Cafe – this is a lovely stop for an afternoon drink, snack or ice cream. It’s a tranquil space with cute little huts. Try the milk ice cream or a Jeju iced green tea (or both..)
We were in Gyeongju on a Monday evening and we did find it very quite/ lots of places were shut so do plan ahead if you happen to arrive at the start of the week.
Where to stay
We stayed at Han Jin Hostel and while it’s a little dated the host more than makes up for it. You’ll have everything you need and he’s genuinely a lovely human, so keen to see you have a good time while staying. Location wise it’s ideal too.
If you’re looking for more inspiration, check out the following: