Jeju

Understand

15 million people visit each year an island of 700,000 residents, and Seoul-Jeju is the most-used flight route in the world. The island offers visitors a wide range of activities including hiking on Halla-san (South Korea's highest peak), catching sunrises and sunsets over the ocean, horseback riding, visiting the sets of Korean television dramas or just lying around on the sandy beaches. It lies southwest of Jeollanam-do Province of which it was a part before it became a separate province in 1946. In 2006, it was granted self-government as South Korea's only Special Autonomous Province. South Korean nationals were not allowed to travel internationally without government permission until the late 1980s and, therefore, Jeju Island was heavily developed as a domestic vacation destination. It has also been traditional for Koreans to spend their honeymoon there (look out for couples wearing the same clothes). The island also happens to be South Korea's main location for unusual theme parks and niche commercial attractions with eccentric museums for sex, glass, and teddy bears. The name Jeju means “a huge village across the sea”, reflecting its distance from the Korean mainland, notably Mokpo, Kyushu of Japan and southern China. Its original and beloved nickname is Tamna (탐라) meaning “island nation”, which supposedly lasted till its complete seizure in the 12th century. Consisting of 8 inhabited islands and 82 uninhabited islands (as of 2010), Jeju has a sub-tropical to temperate climate. Inarguably the top tourist destination in South Korea, it attracts more than 8 million tourists worldwide every year. And thanks to an increasing number of low-cost airlines, more tourists can come.

History Prehistoric relics from Tamna (in Hangul: 탐라국, in Hanja: 耽羅國), when Jeju was an independent entity, date from early as 38 BC. The island enjoyed sea-route trades with Baekje, Silla and far-northern Goguryeo of Three Kingdoms of Korea. When Baekje collapsed after the alliance of Tang-Silla, Tamna maintained independent trade routes, connecting Chinese Tang, Korean kingdoms and Japanese people and also diplomacy as a tributary state with Imperial China. In the early 12th century of Sukjong of Goryeo (1105), Tamna lost its independent status, and was brought under mainland control under the name Jeju later. During the invasion of Yuan Mongolia, Jeju functioned as the last outpost for anti-Yuan protests. However, the Yuan thwarted further resistance, controlling the mountainous island with a view to breeding horses for its planned invasion of Japan. (At this time, the huge

Getting there

Entry requirements Jeju has implemented the Korean Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA) requirement for travelers from visa-waiver nations. Eligible travelers must apply for a K-ETA within 72 hours of departure, even if flying directly to Jeju without stopping on the South Korea mainland. The electronic travel authorization costs ₩10,000 and is valid for two years. If you enter Jeju without requiring a K-ETA and subsequently leave for the mainland, you will need to have a valid visa for the rest of South Korea. If admission is approved, one may stay in Jeju for a maximum of 30 days.

By plane

Jeju International Airport (제주 국제공항) is the main gateway to the island. The vast majority of flights to Jeju are from Gimpo (Seoul's domestic airport) and Busan's Gimhae International Airport. Most Korean domestic airports have scheduled flights to Jeju. There are international flights from Japan including Tokyo Narita and Osaka Kansai. From China there are flights from Beijing, Shanghai Pudong, Hong Kong, Shenyang and Dalian.

By boat Ferry access from the mainland is also available, although the increasingly low price of flying means that fewer people are using this. Services are comparatively infrequent and slow but are reasonable value after factoring in accommodation savings made on overnight ferries. There are daily services from a number of ports:

Nokdong New Port Coastal Ferry Terminal: this terminal in Goheung has ferries to Jeju Island as well as Jeollanam-do islands including Heuksando, Hongdo and Gageodo. Ferries leave every day at 9:00 for a journey time to Jeju of 3.5 hours. Ferries do not run on the first and third Sundays of each month. Wando: 3 hours The car ferry from Yeosu to Jeju. The journey takes 5 hours and runs daily except Mondays. Note that ferries from Busan, Incheon and Mokpo no longer run as of 2024.

Getting around

On foot Nothing in downtown Jeju is more than approximately 2 km from anywhere else so whilst not convenient, walking is quite feasible, and sometimes even faster than the bus. This includes the areas of Yongdam, Tapdong, Jungangno and the inter-city bus terminal. If you want to go on a longer walk, you can try the Jeju Olle Trail course.

Jeju Olle Trail course – There are 27 Jeju Olle Trail courses, which are 437 kilometers long. The Olle Trail completion course has 23 courses in Jeju Island, and if the Udo Island, Gapado, and Chujado courses are included, there will be a total of 27 courses. This is the Dulle-gil of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province managed by the Jeju Olle Corporation. For the purpose of "walking travel," it is really good for walking as it consists of various roads such as village roads, coastal roads, and forest trails.

By bus With Jeju's excellent bus system, it is feasible to travel cheaply to practically anywhere on the island, but you will have to pay close attention to timetables outside of the main cities. Google Maps integrates up-to-date bus route information and timetables, as do the ubiquitous Naver and Kakao Map apps. Jeju Bus Information System's website offers information about the available lines in Jeju Island. You can use your T-money card just like anywhere else in Korea. Cash may not be accepted. Also buses in Jeju now have free Wi-Fi available for passengers. Look for the network starting with 'Public WiFi'. Bus maps are not available from tourism centers, but some basic information is outlined here:

There are four major bus networks on the island:

A good network of inner-city (shi-nae) buses run around Jeju City for a flat fee. Similarly, a second network of inner-city buses run in Seogwipo, spanning out to some of the surrounding tourist locations on the southern end of the island, such as Jungmun Tourist Resort Complex. Furthermore, an extensive series of inter-city (shi-wei) buses run between the inter-city bus terminals of Jeju City and Seogwipo by one of a number of different routes. All buses servicing western Jeju pass by Halla Medical Center in Jeju City and most by Jungmun Tourist Resort Complex in Seogwipo making these alternate departure points. Prices for the bus vary by distance between ₩1000 for a short trip and ₩3,000 to go between the two end points. The ones cutting the center of the island (primarily feeding the start points of the Hallasan hiking trails) tend to cease operation around sundown, but the coastal routes run until late. As such it is easy to jump on and off, although the

See

Famous attractions Lava tubes and other volcanic sights. Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes is a UNESCO World Heritage site in the "nature" category. Mount Halla (Hallasan) dominating the island is a dormant volcano and there are underground caves with lava tubes to explore on Geomeunoreum. Seongsan Ilchulbong is a tuff cone crater in Seogwipo. All three are very popular attractions and accessible. Jeju Old Government Offices. A comparably nice set of Joseon-era historical buildings in central downtown Jeju City. What's unusual is the existence of a nicely landscaped square pond in the complex, and its tumultuous history of getting built in lieu of a well, destroyed due to an irrational hatred of noisy frogs and then rebuilt.

Natural landscapes Manjanggul Cave, in Jeju City, is a UNESCO-listed world natural heritage site. The interior, which looks like an underground palace, has a magnificent and profound atmosphere, especially stone turtles like elaborate sculptures. As such, the inside of the cave is accompanied by lava stalactites on the ceiling and lava wings on the wall, creating the mystery of the underground world. The 7.6-meter-high lava stone pillar at the end of the open section is the largest in the world.

Suwolbong Peak is a view peak in the western part of Jeju City, 77 m above sea level, and the scenery from the top cools the chest. In particular, the coastal cliff of Suwolbong Peak, which seems to be carved, extends up to 2 km to the east. Under Suwolbong Peak, there is a geological trail along the coastline. At the top of Suwolbong Peak, there is Suwoljeong Pavilion. The sunset falling to Chagwido Island while sitting on Suwoljeong Pavilion is one of the most beautiful sunset in Jeju Island.

Landmarks Kimnyeong Miro Park in Jeju City is Korea's first maze park built in 1987. The mazes symbolise the history and geography of Jeju Island, surrounded by green Ralandi trees and Jeju pine trees. About 50 cats live here too, and are part of the attraction.}} Jeju Stone Culture Park in Jeju City is a museum and ecological park that shows the whole body and systematic stone culture of Jeju Island, the hometown of stones. It is so large that all the stone statues of Jeju Island are displayed, and the entire park is built under the theme of Seolmundae Halmang and 500 General, the birth myth of Jeju Island.

Do

Hiking

There are many hiking trails in the Hallasan National Park.

Iho Tewoo Beach in Jeju City is close to Jeju Airport, and it is enough distance to ride a bicycle. There are white and red pony lighthouses, the slope of the beach is gentle, and there is a pine forest nearby, so it is a good place to enjoy the scenery and take a walk.}} Songaksan Mountain in Seogwipo is a good path to walk while looking at the scenery as the mountains and the sea are harmonized. You can see "Brothers Island, Gapado Island, and Marado Island" the closest, and it is a great place to walk along the promenade while enjoying rape flowers in spring and reeds in autumn. The slope of the road is gentle, and there is also an artificial cave, which can lead to interesting steps.

Climbing Seongsan Ilchulbong in Seogwipo is one of the most famous tourist attractions in Jeju Island and is a good place to climb. It also gives a similar feeling to Hallasan Baeknokdam. It lies at the end of Seongsan Peninsula, at the eastern tip of Jeju. Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak is a water-based volcano created by magma erupting from the water, unlike other oreum on Jeju Island. As the hot magma emitted during volcanic activity met with cold seawater, volcanic ash contained a lot of moisture and became sticky, and Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak was piled up in layers.

Temple stay

In Jeju, there are mainly three temples operating temple stay program for foreigners. Buddhism culture has also unique features in Jeju, mainly owing to its geographical isolation and mixture with other strands of religious and shamanistic characteristics. Temple stay program normally involves meditation, Korean tea ceremony and lantern designs. Visit here.

Festivals Throughout the regions, there are variety of festivals. In Jeju City:

The Jeongwol Daeboreum Fire Festival originates from the traditional harvesting of the grasses found in the local domestic farm animal pastures, which were annually set in fire each winter by the villagers as a way to exterminate harmful insects. It has been held annually since 1997. It is held during the holiday of Daeboreum (which is the 15th day of the first lunar month of the year, typically February). In Seogwipo:

Seogwipo Winter Sea International Penguin Swimming Competition on January 1: Every January, half-naked swimmers dive into local beaches. Jeju Canola Festival in the middle of April every year: When spring comes, yellow rape flowers bloom all over Jeju Island. The rape flower festival, designed to praise the beauty of rape flowers, combines the three colors of Jeju's blue

Buy

Cards are useful, however there may still be many places that are cash only. In Seogwipo, there's a BK Star bank, East of Jeunghang Rotary which accepts foreign cards. Most Family Mart convenience stores which have an ATM inside work with foreign cards too.

One Jeju specialty is brown colored clothing. These have been dyed via juice from the persimmon fruit, which is the traditional way of dying clothing. The iconic stone statues, usually in pairs, are called grandfather statues and are for protection. Many places sell small stone replicas of them made of Jeju basalt (volcanic stone). If aircraft weight restrictions are a concern, check the back of the statue for vugs (cavities) as it's entirely possible to find the odd one as light as a feather. Citrus fruit (hallabong and mandarines). The specialty citrus of Jeju is the hallabong (dekopon in Japanese) something akin to an over-sized tangerine which has a very distinctive bump bulge on its top. Its fame comes from its sweet taste and peelability. Do not be at all surprised if, when arriving back on the mainland, you find your bag in the baggage claim tucked between many crates of hallabong. Mandarin oranges are also a major Jeju product. Jeju hallabong chocolate. These come in varieties. The first is a plain flat chocolate with a layer of hallabong flavor sandwiched in the middle. The second however is shaped like a little grandfather statue and is primarily the "flavor" component of the first with a tiny slither of chocolate on the back. The latter tend to be a little less flavorsome (ironically) but are cute enough to make nice gifts. If hallabongs aren't your thing, fear not, for they also come in orange, kiwi, green tea and purple cactus fruit (somewhat a mixed berry flavor) varieties. There are crunch chocolates too, less unique but very tasty. Jeju kamgyul (citrus) wine. Similar to Japanese sake but with a fresh citrus finish. At only ₩5,000 for an entire 750-mL bottle though, honestly, you can't complain even if it isn't quite your thing. Green tea. Although perhaps not as famed as Boseong, the entire Western end tip of the island is littered with tea plantations. Ganse dolls. A souvenir of the Olle hiking coastal trails, they are cute little (15 cm) plush ponies on mobile phone straps handmade out of used clothing (and thus individually unique) by the women of Jeju. Profits go to developing and maintaining the island's hiking trails and they're available from tourist information centers and many budget accommodation. ₩15,000. Shop at Jeju Folk Arts Complex. This place is practically a big gift

Eat

Regional products The people of Jeju have evolved various lifestyles, depending on whether they live in fishing villages, farm villages, or mountain villages so specialties vary within the region. Life in the farm villages was centered on farming, as it did around fishing or diving fishery in fishing villages, and did around dry-field farming or mushroom/mountain-green gathering in the mountain areas. As for agriculture, the production of rice is surprisingly low. Instead, beans, barley, millet, buckwheat, and dry-field (upland) rice are the major items. Foods from Jeju mainly made with saltwater fish, vegetables, and seaweed, and are usually seasoned with soybean paste. Salt water fish is used to make soup, and pork and chicken are used to make pyeonyuk (sliced boiled meat). The number of dishes set on a table is small and few seasonings are used. And usually, small numbers of ingredients are required to make dishes native to Jeju. The key to making Jeju-style foods is to keep the ingredient's natural flavor. The taste of the food is generally a bit salty, probably because foods are easily spoiled due to the warm temperature. In Jeju, there is no need to prepare large amounts of Kimchi for the winter as in mainland Korea. It is quite warm during the winter and Chinese cabbages are left in the field. Restaurants are scattered across the entire island, usually near highway intersections, but the majority naturally lie around the coast and particularly in the urban centers of Jeju City and Jungmun/Seogwipo. As more young people move to Jeju Island these days, the number of cafes is increasing. Well-known Jeju food includes:

Jeju black pork (흑돼지) among Korean domestic tourists, this is the most well-known dish from Jeju. Due to the high demand, restaurants charge a premium for this dish. Umu pudding (우무 푸딩) is a pudding made by boiling agar for a long time. Agar, rich in dietary fiber and low in calories, has a somewhat watery texture, less dense than regular pudding, so you can drink it. Silver hairtail (은갈치) is a fish well known as a Jeju product which Korean domestic tourists all want to eat. Accordingly, prices are high. Jeju citrus (제주 감귤) refers to all citrus fruits, a specialty of Jeju Island. It can be largely divided into Jeju Island traditional citrus fruits and Jeju Island cultivated citrus fruits. Jeju Hallabong (한라봉) has been cultivated in Jeju Island in earnest since the 1990s, and it has established itself as a representative specialty of Jeju Island, and in 2015, "Jeju Hallabong" was registered in the geographical labeling system. It is s

Drink & nightlife

The local specialty soju is Hallasan Soju and runs from ₩1,000 to ₩3,000 a bottle. Except for Gecko's in the South, there aren't any other genuine Western pubs on the island, but there are some good options. In Jeju City, all the real partying establishments are in Shin-Jeju, about a ₩5,000 taxi ride from Jeju city proper. Some of the establishments in this area rumored to be worthwhile are La Vie, Boris Brewery, Modern Time, Blue Agave, and GP. There is also Led Zeppelin, a vinyl bar which as the name suggests is focused on album-oriented rock, and has a massive selection of records, CDs, tapes, and DVDs. Song requests are the main pastime and the sound-system rules. Off the main drag in Shin-jeju next to the Indian restaurant. You'll see various types of Hallabong ades, which are drinks made from hallabong juice.

Sleep

If you are not looking for luxury, minbak (guesthouses) abound on Jeju, and due to its reputation as a honeymoon getaway, there is a wide variety of other accommodation. Outside of the peak tourist seasons (such as Korean national holidays and July–August summer holiday season), and as long as all you're looking for is a clean affordable room, don't be afraid to come to Jeju and find accommodation as you travel. In Jeju City, Seogwipo and the smaller towns there is an abundance of rooms in small guesthouses with character. There are several motels next to the bus terminal in Jeju City at around ₩30,000 a night. They are fairly obvious to find as all three are in a row with lit signs and the ubiquitous motel logo of South Korea and are called You-cheong, Oh-cheon, and Nam-san. For larger hotels, the majority are in the urban centers of Jeju City and Seogwipo with the most luxurious 5-star options on the entire island within Seogwipo's Jungmun Tourist Resort Complex. Refer to the individual city pages for listings. For budget travellers, jjimjillbangs, Korean public bathhouses with sleeping facilities, are pretty ubiquitous in Jeju City but outside of the capital city's limits, the only other jjimjillbang options exist under the World Cup Stadium in Seogwipo.

Hotel There are thirteen five-star hotels on Jeju. Examples include Grand Hyatt Jeju, Maison Glad Jeju, Ramada Plaza Jeju, Haevichi Hotel & Resort Jeju, Marriott Hall Jeju Shinhwa World Hotel & Resort, Howard Johnson Jeju Hotel, Sweet Hotel Jeju, Jeju Sun Hotel & Casino (postponement of reopening), Lotte Hotel Jeju, Jeju Shilla Hotel, Grand Chosun Jeju, CS Hotel & Resort, and Lotte Jeju Resort Art Villas.

Work See the main South Korean article for more information Jobs are available as English teachers throughout the year in private institutes (hagwons). However, whilst public school jobs exist via the official EPIK programme, the reality on Jeju is that no more than a couple of positions open per year, as it is by far the most requested and lowest turnover region in the entire country, above both Seoul and Busan.

Go next

Mainland South Korea – flights to most major cities. Within South Korea there are also ferries to and from Jeju. Ferries to Wando leave daily at 7:20 and 19:30 for a 3-hour journey. The ferry to Nokdong leaves daily at 16:30. The ferry to Yeosu leaves every afternoon. Japan – flights to Fukuoka (the nearest), Osaka, Tokyo, and Nagoya China – flights to Shanghai (the nearest), Beijing, Hong Kong, Tianjin, Hangzhou, Shenyang, Dalian, Yangzhou, Kunming, Nanjing, Harbin, Ningbo, Xi'an, Changsha, and Changchun There are also flights to Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, and Hanoi.