Busan

By Ruan Smit

South Korea’s southern ‘capital’ is definitely more relaxed than the rest of Korea, or maybe its just how I feel whenever we come here for a weekend. The summers here are hot and humid so the beaches are usually packed with groups of same colored umbrellas. There is a distinct Korean flavor to everything summer related in Busan. In winter you can expect snow two or three times but it’s not near as cold as the northern portion of the peninsula.

The city itself is beautiful. It was built for long summer weekends, cocktails  and fun filled afternoons on the beach. But there is definitely more to this city than its beaches. It has something for everyone. Two of Korea’s most beautiful temples can be found here and there is no shortage of museums, art galleries and shopping alleys.

You can’t go wrong with a weekend in Busan .

 

What You Need To Know:

Motels will easily overcharge you, don’t pay more than W50 000 for a motel or W30 000 for a love motel.

If you’re taking a taxi make sure you have smaller notes, they’re not great with working out how much change they owe you.

Grab a tourist map from the train or subway stations, it’ll just make everything easier.



What To See And Do:

Beomeosa Temple (Subway line 1, Station 133)

 

Yonggunsa Temple (Take Busan Subway Line 1 and get off at Dongnae station. Take city bus No. 100 or 100-1 or city express bus No. 239 or 302-1 and get off at Songjeong Beach. Take a taxi or city bus No. 181)

 

Busan Aquarium – Haeundae Beach – Take the subway to Haeundae Station Line 2, Station 203. Head down towards the beach and follow the signs.

Gwangali Beach (Subway line 2, Station 209)

Haeundae Beach (Subway line 2, Station 203)

Shinsegae – ‘The World’s biggest department store (Subway line 2, Station 206)

Shopping in Busan University area (Subway line 1, Station 128)

Getting Around:

The Subway is your best bet. It’s direct, cheap and will take you anywhere you need to be.

Taxis are cheap and will get you home after the public transport closes, it will also get you to those places not covered by the subway.

The bus system is great but if you can’t read Korean or you don’t know the bus number it might be tricky to navigate.

Busan is also a transport hub with buses running from Nopo-dong (Subway line 1, station 134) to many destinations in Korea.

Gimhae Airport has international flights to various destinations.

The high speed KTX train from Busan Station connects Seoul with Busan in 3 hours. (Subway line 1, station 113)

Busan international ferry terminal (Subway line 1, station 111) also has ferries to International and local destinations such as Japan, Jeju and Geoje