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Latest update: 3 December 2025
Seoraksan National Park is green and beautiful, and it’s the main reason most people come to Sokcho. You can do several hikes through nature here. And with the paved trails and many, many stairs, it’s maybe a bit less wild than I’d hoped, but still a welcome change from South Korea’s cities.
Visiting Seoraksan National Park
Seoraksan, one of South Korea’s national parks, is known for challenging hikes. I’m pretty surprised when I get off the bus at a huge parking lot with restrooms and food stands. Lots of food stands, actually. There are plenty of paved hiking trails and stairs everywhere. And it’s those stairs that make it challenging. Many parts of the park are accessible via walking paths, but when you go deeper into the park, you’re dealing with stairs, rocks, and boulders.
I’d hoped for spectacular fall foliage in all shades of orange and red, but in early October, the park is still green. Super green, actually. The ‘fall color show’ only comes later in the month, but that’s okay (the rain, though? That’s another story).
Entrance and tickets
Seoraksan is free to enter, but if you want to take the cable car, you pay for it separately. We decide to go hiking only and skipping the cable car. Mostly because it’s raining so hard that you probably won’t see much from the cable car’s endpoint (Gwongeumseon) anyway.
Choosing a trail
So we walk in at the entrance and grab a park map from the information desk. It turns out that’s not necessary, because everything is perfectly marked. But what is helpful, is that the map shows roughly how long the trails are and where you can expect restroom facilities.
You have several options:
- Gwongeumseong (Fortress Wall) – via cable car from Cable Car Station, 1 minute from the entrance
- Tongli Daebul (Great Unification Buddha Statue) – 15 min from entrance
- Sinheungsa Temple – 15 min from the entrance
- Heundeulbawi Rock – 55 min from the entrance
- Ulsanbawi Rock – about 2 hours from the entrance, via Heundeulbawi Rock
- Biseondae Rock – about 1.15 hours from the entrance, via Sinheungsa Temple
- Geumganggul Cave – about 2 hours from the entrance, via Biseondae Rock
- Biryongpokpo Falls – 1 hour from the entrance
Cable car and Gwongeumseong Fortress
If you don’t feel like hiking or want to see the view at Gwongeumseong, you can take the cable car. We skipped that one, but on a clear day, this is probably definitely worth it. You’ll find the cable car a few minutes’ walk past the entrance.
The Buddha and the temple
About fifteen minutes past the entrance, you’ll find a giant Buddha. You can’t miss it. This is the Great Unification Buddha, a 14.6-meter (48-foot) tall bronze statue placed in 1997. It symbolizes the hope for the reunification of North and South Korea.
Further along lies Sinheungsa Temple, one of the oldest Zen temples in the world. The temple dates back to 652 and has been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times. The complex is beautiful to walk through, with colorful buildings in the mountains. The temple is also still in use by monks.
Hiking to Biseondae and Geumganggul Cave
We choose a hike to Biseondae Rock and Geumganggul Cave. It’s wooded, the trail is paved (sometimes with stairs, sometimes just flat), and you can hear the river water flowing. Pretty relaxing little hike, actually, despite the rain.
The trail my best friend and I do is a more leisurely hike than the one to Ulsanbawi, but just before Biseondae, the path is closed because it’s flooded. Two people think that doesn’t apply to them and go past anyway. Dutch people, obviously.
Ulsanbawi Rock: the highlight we skip
Ulsanbawi Rock is THE highlight of Seoraksan. It’s a rock formation with six granite peaks, and you can get there via a pretty tough climb. The first part is relatively relaxed, but the last 0.6-1.2 miles (1-2 kilometers) consists of stairs.
The view from the top is supposed to be fantastic, but because of the bad weather, we expect little to see and slippery stairs and rocks. And so we decide to skip Ulsanbawi. We only hike the first part until it really gets too slippery.
If you’re spending a day in Seoraksan and the weather cooperates, this is THE trail to do. But be warned: it’s also the park’s busiest one.
It’s raining. Hard. Harder and hardest.
It’s raining heavily when we arrive, but gradually it gets worse and worse. My clothes are soaked, my shoes are soaked, everything is soaked. We decide to do part of another route, but then we call it quits. We settle down at one of the many cafés in the park for a cup of coffee and to dry off a bit. Plenty of choices here.
View? What view?
Seoraksan is known for its views. The high mountains, the rock formations. But due to the gray sky and rain, we see little of that. The mountains are there, we know that for sure. But they’re hiding behind clouds and mist.
So we’ll take everyone’s word for it. When it clears up, it must be spectacular here. The photos I see online of Seoraksan in the fall with all the colors? Incredibly beautiful. But we just got unlucky with the weather.
What to wear?
- Good hiking shoes. No slip-ons, no sandals. Just sturdy shoes.
- Rain gear. It can rain unexpectedly (like it did for us).
- Layers. It can be cold in the mountains, even when it’s warm in the city. It can be cold in the mountains, even when it’s warm in the city.
- A windbreaker. It can be quite windy, especially on mountain peaks
How much time should you set aside?
That depends entirely on what you want to do:
- Cable car and temple: 2-3 hours
- Easy hike to Biseondae: 2-3 hours
- Ulsanbawi Rock: 4-5 hours (including breaks)
- Combining multiple routes: a full day
We were there for about 4 hours, but we didn’t get very far because of the weather.
Best time to visit Soraksan
The best time to visit Seoraksan is in the fall. Everyone says that because of the fall foliage. Think of all shades of red, orange, and yellow. It’s also crowded in the park then. So come early (like 6:30 AM early) if you want to avoid the crowds. Or come in the rain, haha. Then you’ll have the park almost to yourself in some places. Good to know: in early October, there’s still no sign of fall colors.
In spring, the park blooms and everything is fresh green. Summer can be pretty hot, but then the waterfalls are at their most beautiful. In winter, there’s (hopefully) snow, and some trails can be closed due to ice and slippery conditions.
Food and drink in the park
There are plenty of cafés and restaurants in and around the park. So you don’t necessarily have to bring a packed lunch, though it’s always a good idea to have some snacks and water with you. Keep in mind that prices are a bit higher than outside the park.
Stay overnight in Sokcho or by the park?
Most people stay overnight in Sokcho, because there are more accommodation options there and it’s only about half an hour’s drive. But there are also hotels right by the park (check them at Booking, the Kensington Hotel is the closest). The advantage: you’re there early, and you can do multiple routes without traveling back and forth all the time.
We stay overnight in Sokcho, and that works fine for us. You get to the park quickly enough, and you have more choices of restaurants in the evening. Want to know more about Sokcho? You can. Here you’ll find my Sokcho tips.
Bus or car to Seoraksan National Park
From Sokcho, getting to Seoraksan is easy. You take bus 7 or 7-1, and you’re there within 30 minutes. The bus stops at the park’s main entrance, where you can buy souvenirs or something to eat, use the restroom one more time, and simply walk into the park.
By car, you should count on about 20 to 30 minutes from Sokcho. At the entrance, there’s a huge parking lot where you can park safely.
More South Korea inspiration
Useful links for your South Korea trip
- Accommodation. Always handy is Booking.com, but compare prices. Trip is often much cheaper in South Korea. Rather stay in a hostel? Try HostelWorld.
- Activities. You can book the best tours and activities with GetYourGuide, Klook and Viator. You can book ‘free’ walking tours at Freetour and cool food tours at Secret Food Tours.
- Attractions and museums. For 5% off museums and attractions, use discount code KIMOPREIS22 at Tiqets.
- Car rental. Compare your options at Discover Cars and Rentalcars.com.
- Flights. Compare all your options! Be sure to check Expedia, Kiwi and Trip.
- Guide books. I love the practical guides by Lonely Planet, for sale at Amazon.
- Package deals. Rather go on a catered trip? Check out your options at Expedia and CheapOair for example.
- SIM card. Beware of unexpectedly high phone and internet costs. Buy a local SIM card when you arrive, or arrange one online via Airalo. Use the code THISIS8469 for a discount.
- Train and bus. Buy your train tickets directly on the Korail site and intercity buses also directly via this site. Some trips can also be booked on
Klook or via12Go . For local transport in the city, you use a T-Money card.
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