One express bus, the 101, to the drama shores of eastern Jeju

Right now

1. 1Seongsan Ilchulbong closes on the first Monday of every month. If that day is a public holiday, it closes the next day instead.
2. 2The green rocks at Gwangchigi Beach only show at low tide. Check that day's tides first on the Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Agency's Smart Tide Forecast.
3. 3On the 101 express with a transit card, you pay a base fare of 2,000 won (up to 20km) when you board, and a distance fare is added when you get off. Paying in cash means the maximum fare of 3,000 won from the start.

Getting there

• Jeju International Airport

  Take the 101 express from the airport. The route goes via Jeju Bus Terminal and follows the east coast to Namwon, stopping at Gimnyeong Elementary School (김녕초등학교) and Seongsan Ilchulbong Entrance (성산일출봉입구). To follow the order in this guide, get off at Seongsan Ilchulbong Entrance first.

  Cost:

  With a transit card, you pay a base fare of 2,000 won (up to 20km) when you board, and a distance fare is added when you get off, up to a maximum of 3,000 won. In cash, you pay 3,000 won from the start.

  The 101 from the airport toward Namwon runs every 30 to 120 minutes (timetable in effect from August 15, 2024).

• Jeju Bus Terminal

  The 101 express also passes the terminal. Instead of the express, you can take the 201 regular trunk bus, which goes via Jocheon, Sehwa and Seongsan toward Namwon and Seogwipo.

  Regular trunk buses charge the same fare regardless of distance.

What to have ready

• A transit card: Nationally compatible prepaid transit cards such as T-money and Cashbee work, as do credit cards with a postpaid transit function. On the express bus, paying in cash means the maximum fare from the start.
• That day's tides: The green rocks at Gwangchigi Beach only appear at low tide. Check the Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Agency's Smart Tide Forecast.

Phrases you can copy and paste

Step by step

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   Climb Seongsan Ilchulbong in the morning, avoiding the first Monday

   Where:

   Get off the 101 express at the Seongsan Ilchulbong Entrance (성산일출봉입구) stop

   How long:

   November to February 06:00~18:00 (tickets until 17:00), March, April, September and October 05:00~19:00 (tickets until 18:00), May to August 04:30~20:00 (tickets until 19:00). Closed on the first Monday of every month

   Cost:

   Adults (ages 25 to 64) 5,000 won. There is also a free trail on the Umutgae coast side

   Seongsan Ilchulbong is a volcanic cone rising out of the sea, inscribed as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in 2007. The trails split into a paid section that leads to the summit and a free section that goes around the Umutgae coast. Stairs and slopes continue all the way to the summit, and the climb usually takes 30 to 40 minutes. If the stairs are too much, walking just the free section still lets you see the peak and the sea together. It closes on the first Monday of every month, and if that day is a public holiday, it closes the next day. You cannot bring food inside. hizine notes that the site appears again and again as the Jeju backdrop in "When Life Gives You Tangerines".

   Filmed here: When Life Gives You Tangerines

   284-12 Ilchul-ro, Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do, Republic of Korea

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   The green rocks at Gwangchigi Beach only appear at low tide

   Where:

   On the way from Seongsan Ilchulbong to Seopjikoji, where Jeju Olle Trail Route 1 ends

   How long:

   Always open. The rocks appear at low tide and go under at high tide

   Cost:

   There is no admission facility

   Gwangchigi Beach was formed when hot lava met the sea and cooled quickly. At low tide, the lava rocks that were under water appear along with the green moss that covers them, and at high tide the rocks go under again. So at this beach you check the tides before the clock. That day's tides are on the Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Agency's Smart Tide Forecast. It is a natural beach with no admission facility, open at all times. It is also where Jeju Olle Trail Route 1 ends and Route 2 begins. hizine introduces it as the coastal road Sam-dal and Yong-pil pass in episode 8 of "Welcome to Samdal-ri", on their way to the Jeju weather service photo exhibition.

   Filmed here: Welcome to Samdal-ri

   63 Seopjikoji-ro, Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do, Republic of Korea

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   Stop at the Gimnyeong sea on your way back to the airport

   Where:

   The Gimnyeong Elementary School (김녕초등학교) stop on the 101 express. Buses toward the airport and toward Namwon both stop here

   How long:

   Beach opening dates differ every year. Gimnyeong control center 064-728-3988

   Gimnyeong Beach is in Gujwa-eup in northeastern Jeju. hizine lists this sea as a filming location for three productions: the sea that Ae-sun's mother and the village haenyeo divers plunge into to work in episode 1 of "When Life Gives You Tangerines", the shore with a red lighthouse and wind turbines in "Welcome to Samdal-ri", and the Jeju scenes in the later part of "Filing for Love". The 101 express stops at Gimnyeong Elementary School. It passes there first on the way from the airport to Seongsan, so if you get off the 101 heading back to the airport after Seongsan, you simply retrace the same route. Beach opening dates differ every year, so ask the Gimnyeong control center (064-728-3988).

   Filmed here: When Life Gives You Tangerines, Welcome to Samdal-ri, Filing for Love

   7-6 Haemajihaean-ro, Gujwa-eup, Jeju-si, Jeju-do, Republic of Korea

   Open in Google MapsDirections from where you are

The Korean words

급행버스geuphaeng beoseu, express bus

On Jeju's express buses, you pay a base fare when you board and pay more by distance when you get off.

하차hacha, getting off

Getting off the bus. On express buses, the distance fare is added when you get off.

물때multtae, tide times

The times when the sea comes in and goes out. Check them before going to Gwangchigi Beach.

썰물sseolmul, ebb tide

The sea going out. This is when the mossy lava rocks at Gwangchigi Beach appear.

정기 휴무jeonggi hyumu, regular closing day

Closing on set days. For Seongsan Ilchulbong, it is the first Monday of every month.

유료 구간yuryo gugan, paid section

A stretch you pay to enter. At Seongsan Ilchulbong, the path to the summit is paid.

Easy to miss

• ·If you ride the express bus paying cash, you pay the maximum fare of 3,000 won from the start, whatever the distance. With a transit card, the base fare of 2,000 won (up to 20km) is charged when you board, and when you tap your card again as you get off, a distance fare is added. The maximum fare is the same 3,000 won.
• ·The 101 from the airport toward Namwon runs every 30 to 120 minutes (timetable in effect from August 15, 2024). If you miss one, you may wait a long time, so check the return bus times on the Jeju Bus Information System timetable in advance as well.
• ·You cannot bring food into Seongsan Ilchulbong.

You can skip this if

• If you are going to swim, this guide alone is not enough. Gimnyeong Beach's opening dates differ every year, so you need to ask the Gimnyeong control center (064-728-3988).

Where this comes from

• Seongsan Ilchulbong, UNESCO World Natural Heritage (Visit Jeju)
• Seongsan Ilchulbong Tuff Cone visitor information and admission fees (Jeju World Heritage Office)
• Gwangchigi Beach (Visit Jeju)
• Gimnyeong Beach (Visit Jeju)
• Bus 101 timetable, airport to Namwon (Jeju Bus Information System)
• Bus 101 timetable, Namwon to airport (Jeju Bus Information System)
• Jeju bus fares and transit card guide (Jeju Bus Information System)
• Bus 201 timetable, Jeju Bus Terminal toward Seogwipo (Jeju Bus Information System)
• Smart Tide Forecast (Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Agency)