Jeju
Jeju
LG전자 · CC BY 2.0
A volcanic island in the south with a crater lake on Hallasan, lava tubes beneath the ground and haenyeo diving off its shores.
Jeju is a short flight from the mainland but feels like its own country: a dialect even Seoulites struggle with, black stone walls stacked without mortar along every field, and dol hareubang stone grandfathers guarding the village gates. The island is one volcanic mass — Hallasan in the middle, more than three hundred small oreum cones scattered around it, and a system of lava tubes running underneath. Haenyeo women still dive without air tanks for abalone, a trade now fading. The east coast takes the sunrise, the west keeps the sunset, and the Olle trail stitches it all together in 27 coastal walking stages.
Best time to visit: April–June and September–November
Local specialties
- Grilled black pork
- Braised cutlassfish
- Jeju tangerines
- Abalone
Places (14)
Hallasan Mountain
Korea's highest peak — a dormant volcano with a crater lake sitting right on its summit.
Sanbangsan & Yongmeori Coast
A lava dome standing like a stone bell, above a shore of layered rock folded like dragon scales.
Jeju Olle Trail
Four hundred and twenty-five kilometres of walking trail around the island, in twenty-seven coastal stages.
Seongsan Ilchulbong (Sunrise Peak)
A volcanic crater rising straight out of the sea like a stone crown, at its best at sunrise.
Hyeopjae Beach
White sand and shallow water facing Biyangdo island — the finest sunset on Jeju's west coast.
Haenyeo Museum
A museum to the women who dive without air tanks — a trade fading with its last generation.
Seogwipo Maeil Olle Market
Four hundred metres of covered market: hallabong tangerines, black pork and fish cakes stacked in heaps.
Manjanggul Lava Tube
A tunnel carved underground by flowing lava, cold and pitch dark in every season.
Seongeup Folk Village
A lived-in village of rope-lashed thatch and black stone walls stacked without mortar.
Bijarim Nutmeg Yew Forest
The world's largest pure stand of nutmeg yew — over two thousand trees, the oldest eight hundred years old.
Cheonjiyeon Waterfall
A waterfall in a subtropical gorge right behind the city, floodlit until late.
Jeongbang Waterfall
One of Asia's rare waterfalls that drops straight into the sea, on the edge of Seogwipo city.
Jusangjeolli Basalt Cliffs
Thousands of vertical hexagonal stone columns by the sea, formed as lava cooled.
Udo Island
A small island shaped like a lying cow, easy to circle by bike in half a day.