I can’t believe how many people visit Seoul without considering a Seoraksan National Park hiking trip.
If you like being in the mountains, visiting Seoraksan National Park is a must – it’s doable as a day trip, although the more time you can spare, the better.
South Korea is famous for many things (kimchi, K-pop, royal palaces, and so on…). However, it’s not common knowledge that mountains cover 70% of the country.
In total, South Korea has 7,846 named mountains – and 63 of those are in Seoraksan National Park.
Located two hours and 30 minutes’ drive east of Seoul, the Seoraksan mountains are one of the easiest national parks to reach from Seoul, whether on a tour or by bus.
In the following post, I’ll explain how to get there, where to stay and the best Seoraksan National Park hiking trails.
I’ll also discuss whether it’s worth it as a day trip, a few days, or even at all.
Not a keen hiker? Skip to the final section, where I discuss the best things to do in Seoraksan National Park for sightseers.
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QUICK INFORMATION
Best time to visit: April to June; September to November
How to get there: Day tour; bus to Sokcho + local bus
Must-haves: T Money and SIM cards
Best tours
1. Seoraksan day tour – with Nami Island and/or Naksansa Temple 🌳
2. Seoraksan hiking tour – includes a waterfall or cave trail! 🥾
Where is Seoraksan National Park?
Seoraksan National Park is on the northeast side of South Korea.
It is just over 180 kilometres from Seoul – a distance that surprisingly only takes two hours and 30 minutes to cover by car (without traffic).
The national park is an easy day trip from Seoul, whether you hire a car or take the popular Seoraksan hiking tour.
Should You Visit Seoraksan National Park?
I spent one full month in South Korea. Seoraksan National Park was my second favourite out of the six destinations I visited, placing just after Seoul.
The national park has 30 peaks in total. The most striking of those is Ulsanbawi (also called Ulsan Rock), which has a summit of round granite boulders.
I’ve climbed many mountains around the world, and I haven’t come across anything that looks remotely similar yet.
Ulsanbawi is only 873 metres high, which makes it significantly shorter than the national park’s highest mountain Daecheongbong (1,708 metres high).
I adored my Ulsanawi hike the most, but I also loved hiking to Biryong Falls, seeing the temples in the national park and trying popular local dishes like wild mushroom bibimbap, gamjajeon (a fried potato pancake) and hwangtae roast (dried pollack).
So, should you visit Seoraksan National Park? If you like hiking, absolutely: there are handfuls of stunning mountain and waterfall hikes.
If you don’t like hiking, also yes.
You won’t get to see the Ulsanbawi rock formation. However, you can take the Seoraksan cable car to Gwongeumseong Fortress on Mount Seorak, which is 700 metres above sea level.
There are also a few temples that you can visit without walking far.
Seoraksan National Park hiking trails often have seasonal closures. The mountain trails are usually closed from March to mid-May (due to fire hazards) and from mid-November to mid-December (poor weather conditions). Other extreme weather events will result in trail closures – so check ahead!
My Experience Visiting Seoraksan National Park
I arrived at Seoraksan National the day after flying into Seoul.
I wasn’t feeling too pretty; I’d caught a cold in Kuala Lumpur and started coming down with a stuffy nose and headache on the bus over to Sokcho.
It was sunny weather when I left Seoul, but as if sensing my poor health, the heavens opened up the next morning and it rained for the entirety of my first day in Seoraksan.
Not one to be deterred, my boyfriend and I still set off for the national park after a good night’s sleep at Smile Resort.
After grabbing a coffee in the national park, we decided to do a rainy hike to Biyreong Falls.
The next day, the weather cleared up. The day before, we hadn’t seen anything from the bus stop near our hotel. That day, though, we could see the mountains.
It’s incredible how much of a difference the weather can make. Suddenly, the moody, misty street seemed to transform into a colourful little shopping district backed by bright green mountains.
We decided that it was time to do the famous Ulsanbawi hike.
Although we had a misty start to the hike, the cloud cover broke just before we reached the summit and we had incredible views.
We only had time for two of the hikes in the national park, but we also saw a couple of temples and explored Sokcho, the nearby city known for its raw fish and other seafood.
Where to Stay in Seoraksan National Park
There are a few main places to stay in and around Seoraksan National Park.
The first, best and most expensive option is to stay at the popular Kensington Hotel Seorak. It’s the only hotel located at the gates of the national park. The views are also hard to beat.
If you can’t afford the Kensington Hotel, the second-best option is to stay in the small Seorak-dong C Shopping District.
It’s a five- to 10-minute direct bus from the Kensington Hotel bus stop. It also has a small selection of restaurants (note that in September, they often closed before 4pm) and a basic shop selling food.
The alternative to these two is to stay in Sokcho, the nearest city. It is 30 to 40 minutes from the national park entrance by bus.
The benefit of staying in Sokcho is that there’s much more happening. The restaurants stay open late. There are also tourist attractions around the city such as local seafood markets.
I stayed at Smile Resort in Seorak-dong C Shopping District and took the bus to and from the national park and Sokcho as needed. It was perfect.
Kensington Hotel Seorak (£££)
Smile Resort (£££)
I stayed here!
The Red House (£££)
How to Get To Sokcho and Seoraksan
There are three ways to reach Seoraksan National Park: car, day tour or bus.
1. The Bus from Seoul to Seoraksan National Park
I travelled by bus from Seoul to Seoraksan National Park.
If you want to stay at the national park for several days, this is the best way to get there. I don’t recommend using this bus for a day trip, because the complete journey takes several hours each way.
The first step is to take the bus from Seoul Express Bus Terminal to Sokcho Express Bus Terminal for $15.39 (USD).
The bus is very popular, especially during high season.
I booked my Seoul to Sokcho bus online (via Klook) two weeks in advance, and suggest you do the same.
The bus takes 2 hours and 30 minutes to reach Sokcho.
The second step is to take a local bus from Sokcho to the national park (or your accommodation).
2. How to Take the Bus from Sokcho to Seoraksan National Park
To take the bus from Sokcho to Seoraksan National Park, you need to take a local bus: line 7 or 7-1.
From Sokcho Express Bus Terminal, you can use Naver Maps to navigate to the nearest bus stop.
In short, you need to exit the station onto the main road and turn right. Continue down the road until you reach the shops pictured below.
The bus stop is directly opposite, on the other side of the road.
If you’re going directly to the national park entrance, you will need to get off the bus at the final stop, for the Kensington Hotel.
If you’re staying at Smile Resort or another hotel at the Seorak-dong C Shopping District, you need to get off at the Seorak-dong C Shopping District bus stop.
3. How to do a Day Trip to Seoraksan National Park
If you only want to spend one day at Seoraksan National Park, you can either hire a car or take a guided tour.
A) Hire a car
To hire a car as a foreigner, you will need the correct International Driving Permit (IDP) and your passport.
Usually, it’s best to reserve your car hire several weeks in advance. You can use Discover Cars or Klook car rentals to check the availability in Seoul.
B) Take a tour to Seoraksan National Park
There are two main styles of day tours to Seoraksan: sightseeing or hiking tours.
The Seoraksan and Nami Island tour (₩133,100 or £71) does not include a hike. However, it visits the cable car and Shinheungsa Temple.
It then continues on to Nami Island (not in Seoraksan), a beautiful river village that features in many Korean TV shows, and the Garden of Morning Calm, a large arboretum.
The Seoraksan hiking tour (₩103,500 or £55) includes one hike (usually to Biryong Falls, but dependent on the weather conditions).
It then features a shorter visit to Nami Island and the Garden of Morning Calm.
Seoraksan National Park Hiking Trails
Seoraksan National Park has 35 hiking trails, so let’s break down the most popular hikes and whether I think they are worth it…
1. Ulsanbawi Rock
Hike stats: 4.4 miles (7.1 kilometres); 566 metres elevation gain
How long do you need? 2 – 2.5 hours (or 30 minutes – 1 hour from Biryong Falls)
If you only have time for one hike in Seoraksan, I would make it Ulsanbawi Rock.
This out-and-back trail is seven kilometres long and packs in 566 metres of elevation gain, so it isn’t easy. However, the views are entirely worth it.
The summit has six granite peaks with large, round boulders. They look a little bit like ginger roots.
On the final climb to the summit, you have to ascend a sequence of steel staircases. These are quite formidable, as they’re suspended over a death drop and fairly see-through.
I’m not usually scared of heights, but they made my knees quake a little.
As well as getting to experience the incredible views from the summit, you also get to see Sinheungsa Temple, a small temple located part way up the trail.
It takes most people three or four hours to reach the summit of Ulsanbawi.
Therefore, it’s very handy that there is one bathroom around halfway into the trail.
You can use the Ulsanbawi Trail map on AllTrails to help you navigate the route, but it’s very well signposted.
There’s also a steady trickle of foot traffic on this trail, as it’s one of the most popular routes in the national park.
2. Biryong Falls
Hike stats: 2.9 miles (4.7 kilometres); 163 metres elevation gain
How long do you need? 1.5 – 2 hours
Biryong Falls features on the popular Seoraksan hiking tour. However, I did this trail of my own accord on one gloomy, rainy afternoon – and I adored it.
The 4.7-kilometre trail is much shorter and easier than the Ulsanbawi Rock hike.
With only 163 metres of elevation, it should take you around an hour and a half to hike to and from the 16-metre waterfall.
The hike begins along the riverside, crossing over a stone bridge below Mount Seorak and the national park cable car.
It then continues along the right-hand side of the river before moving into a thick bamboo forest.
In the woodland, there are mushrooms everywhere, including a bright yellow shroom – the cutest I’ve ever seen.
It’s very easy to navigate the Biryong Falls trail (although you can use the AllTrails map as an aid when needed).
After you pass the final toilet block, you come to the beginning of a rocky river canyon.
A well-maintained wooden boardwalk provides a route up through the canyon, where there are several small waterfalls and river rapids.
This is where the incline comes in – there are quite a few stairs.
Eventually, you will reach Biyrong Falls, where there is a spacious viewing platform over the waterfall.
You can then retrace your steps back to the national park entrance or continue onto the Towangseong Falls Observatory hike, as I did…
3. Towangseong Falls Observatory
Hike stats: 3.4 miles (5.5 kilometres); 296 metres elevation gain
How long do you need? 2 – 2.5 hours (or 30 minutes – 1 hour from Biryong Falls)
The Towangseong Falls Observatory hike is a challenging add-on to the Biryong Falls trail.
After climbing to an elevation of 410 metres (an additional 133 metres from Biryong Falls), you will reach the observatory, a lookout over the rocky Seorak Mountain landscape.
I didn’t get a clear view due to the clouds. However, the misty bamboo forest was so colourful; the mist really seemed to sharpen the colour of the trees.
Hiking up to the observatory will require a lot of energy. As I mentioned, it’s only an additional 133 metres of elevation gain.
However, with only 0.8 miles and 133 metres to climb, as you can imagine, all you’re doing is climbing.
From Biryong Falls, it’s one steep, winding staircase all the way to the observatory.
4. Daecheongbong Peak
Hike stats: 9.3 miles (15 kilometres); 1,575 metres elevation gain
How long do you need? 1 – 2 days (six hours point-to-point; 12 hours out-and-back)
At 1,708 metres, Daecheongbong Peak is the highest peak in Seoraksan National Park.
It was closed due to bad weather when I visited, but if you get the chance, this is a must-do trail on your Seoraksan National Park hiking trip.
With 1,575 metres in elevation gain and 15 kilometres, the hike is very demanding and takes most people six hours or more to complete.
It’s also a point-to-point trail, so instead of ending the hike in the same place you started, you need to catch the bus back to Sokcho at the end of the trail.
Hiking back down is not a good idea because it’ll require 12 hours of hiking in one day (and you don’t want to get stuck in the mountains when the light is fading).
Alternatively, you can book a night in a shelter (bookable in advance online) to spend two days on the trail.You can ask your hotel/guesthouse to help you do this several days in advance.
You can check out the Daecheongbong Peak route on AllTrails.
Other Things to Do in Seoraksan National Park
Aside from hiking, there are plenty of other things to do in Seoraksan National Park – free or paid.
1. Take the cable car to Gwongeumseong Fortress
The Seoraksan Cable Car cable car is the most famous attraction in the national park. For those who don’t like hiking, it’s an effort-free way to see the mountains from above.
The cable car is clearly signposted from the national park entrance and only around 500 metres into the park.
Within 10 minutes of boarding the cable, you will reach Gwongeumseong Fortress, a medieval fortress located 700 meters above sea level.
On the way up, there are views of the Ulsanbawi and Manmulsang Rocks. From the fortress, the views are down and over Seoraksan Mountain, known for its rocky granite rock formations.
The round-trip tickets (the only type available) cost 15,000 won (adults) and 11,000 won (children).
2. Grab coffee and rice cakes at Dahyang Cafe
Dahyang Cafe became my go-to coffee spot in Seoraksan National Park.
I discovered it on my first day when it was pouring with rain, and it felt like a little safehaven where I could sip on a steaming cup of coffee.
The wooden chalet-style interior is incredibly warm and friendly.
The baristas weren’t serving any full meals when I visited in mid September, but they did have hot rice cakes (cooked in a toastie maker) with a sweet dip.
These were exactly what I needed to warm up and replenish my energy from hiking to Biryong Falls and the Towangseong Falls Observatory – they were so warm and gooey!
The café typically opens at 10am and closes at 9pm, so it’s not open early enough for a coffee before an early-morning hike.
However, if you’re a late riser, it should be ideal.
3. Explore Sinheungsa Temple and Gyejoam Temple
There are a couple of temples that you can easily visit in the national park.
The first is Sinheungsa Temple, a Buddhist temple founded by a monk from the Shilla dynasty around 652 AD.
This temple runs a Templestay programme, where you can apply to stay in the temple with the monks.
Gyejoam Temple is the small temple partway up the Ulsanbawi Rock hike. This smaller temple has beautiful views of the mountains and an altar with a Buddha statue.
There is also a large bronze Buddha statue near the entrance to the national park, where I saw many local tourists paying their respects.
4. Try the local cuisine
I really liked the cuisine in Seoraksan and Sokcho, which centres around seafood, potato pancakes, broths, bibimbap and staples like rice and kimchi.
One of my favourite dishes is the potato pancake (gamjajeon), a really popular dish in the area. This pancake-shaped pan-fried potato dish can be eaten on its own or paired with some of the local pollack.
전주식당 was my favourite restaurant at the Seorak-dong C Shopping District. This is where I first tried the potato pancake, along with wild vegetable bibimbap and Hwangtae roast.
Hwangtae roast (hwangtaegui) is a dried pollack dish popular in the Sokcho area. The fish is grilled in typical Korean gochujang sauce, a sweet but spicy concoction made from soybeans and spices.
The hwangtae came out sizzling on a saucepan which was exactly what I needed in the cold, rainy weather.
In the national park itself, we visited Daraejeong restaurant. The prices were slightly higher, but not by much.
I preferred the potato pancake at the original restaurant, where it was less oily.
However, I really enjoyed their salty dried pollack soup (bugeoguk).
5. Visit Sokcho for seafood and sea views
Twice, we took the bus from Smile Resort to Sokcho (bus line 7 or 7-1) to check out the scenery and seafood restaurants.
We dined out at Daiho-ko harbour, a circular harbour with endless seafood restaurants.
The harbour is best known for its raw fish, fried shrimp and crab dishes. However, with a bit of searching, you can also find fish.
If you have time free in the day, you can also do some of the typical Sokcho tourist activities like visiting Jungang Market, open since 1980, where locals buy and sell fresh fish and snow crab.
The market is a popular place to get dakgangjeong, crispy Korean fried chicken.
I hope you found my Seoraksan National Park hiking guide useful! Have a great trip, and let me know your favourite things to do in Seoraksan National Park too.