Planning a
trip to South Korea? Do you have any idea of where in the earth it is located,
how big it is, or how far is it from one end to another? Your travel will be so
much easier once you understand the geography. You can just follow me now.
South Korea in the world
Well, that
small part in the map is South Korea. North Korea is not marked at all.
Anyways, South Korea is ranked at 109th place in the world by its
total area, comparable with Iceland and only one fifth of Thailand. It is
smaller than any states of the USA.
South Korea in Asia
Now you can distinguish South and North Korea on
the map. If not divided, you could go all the way to China, Russia and Mongolia
by train departing from South Korea, but it is almost an island for now. Less
than half size of neighboring Japan, only bigger than Taiwan.
South Korea
Bottom right part of the map is Japan. It’s so
close that to go to Kyushu region of Japan from Seoul takes as short as to go
to Jeju island. Though the map doesn’t show many of them, South Korea has
whopping 3,400 islands, ranked 5th place in the world.
17 provinces and metropolitan
cities
South Korea has 17 major administrative divisions;
9 provinces which are similar with prefecture of Japan or State of the USA and
8 special/metropolitan cities. 9 provinces are Gyeonggido, Gangwondo, North
Chungcheongdo, South Chungcheongdo, North Jeollado, South Jeollado, North
Gyeongsangdo, South Gyeongsangdo and Jejudo. 8 first level cities are Seoul, Busan,
Daegu, Incheon, Gwangju, Daejeon, Ulsan and Sejong.
With those 17 administrative divisions, you’ve become a
master in South Korean geography.
But it’s okay if you forget it in a minute.
1. Seoul
Han River runs through the very center of Seoul dividing the city into Gangnam (south of river) and Gangbuk (north of river).
Most of tourist attractions are in Gangbuk because that was the capital of
Joseon dynasty for more than 500 years and Gangnam area was incorporated into
Seoul only a few decades before. Palaces, mountains, trails and museums are all
in this area.
Gangnam is a refined modern city. There are many clubs, luxury
bars, luxury shopping malls and international hotels are here. Many of chaebol headquarters
are also situated here so visitors with business purpose usually go to Gangnam.
You can go pretty much everywhere you wanna go with subways in Seoul.
2. Busan
The passionate,
vibrant and restless harbor city is the second biggest city in South Korea. Two
and half hours of KTX ride from Seoul will take you to Busan.
Every summer,
millions of people gather at the famous beaches such as Haeundae and Gwangalli.
Right on the corner of Haeundae is a complex of skyscrapers and mega size malls
such as Centum City, the world's largest department store. It is a perfect
place to enjoy sea bathing by day and night life by night with luxury bars and
clubs.
3. Jeju Island
Jeju’s
weather is completely distinguished from the Korean peninsula, so some say they should
give independence to the island. It has exceptionally beautiful natural
landscapes including great beaches and Mt. Halla, the highest in South Korea,
and Jeju Olle Trail is established mostly along the coastline. It is the most
beloved holiday destination for Koreans as well, one-hour’s flight distance
from Seoul.
4. Gyeonggido
Gyeonggido is
the area surrounding capital,
so they are practically divided into two; north and south of Seoul. It has the
most population among 17 major administrative divisions,
with wide variety of urban and rural environments. Seoulites usually go on a
short trip to rural part of Gyeonggido on weekends.
5. Gangwondo
Gangwondo is
very popular for vacation spot both in Winter and Summer. It is a good place
for winter sports with cold weather and heavy snow, and many of high mountains
including Mt. Seorak are located here. Pyeongchang, the
host of 2018 Winter Olympics is also in this province. Gangwondo is also the home of many great
beaches such as Gyeongpo Beach, facing the East Sea to the east.
6. Gyeongsangdo
(North and South)
7. Jeollado
(North and South)
This southwestern
part of South Korea is highly renowned for its foods. “A trip to Jeollado” in
Korea is a synonym of “A journey of gourmandism”. Jindo, Suncheon, Yeosu,
Damyang and Jeonju, the home of Bibimbap, are in this area. You can reach here
within 5~6 hours by bus from Seoul.
8. Chungcheongdo
(North and South)
Located at the
very center of South Korea, North Chungcheongdo is the only inland province
bordering Gyeonggido, Gangwondo, Gyeongsangdo and Jeollado. South Chungcheongdo
has many small but beautiful islands and Boryeong, the home of Mud Festival.
Danyang and Jecheon have surprisingly scenic nature and superb extreme sports
infrastructure.
How big is
Seoul?
Seoul has amazingly well-established transportation
system that allows you to access almost everywhere via subway. The longest
distance from one tip to another is roughly one and half hour’s ride by subway.
You can walk around between most of popular tourist attractions in Jongno
District.
How far are they from Seoul?
From Seoul to Busan is 2.5 hours by KTX and to Jeju
Island is 1 hour by flight. To Sokcho and Donghae on the east coast is 3 hours
and to Jindo on the south coast is 5 hours each by express bus. It takes 2:10
to Tokyo of Japan, 2 hours to Beijing or Shanghai of China, and 3:30 to Hong
Kong respectively by flight.
More Korea
Written by Marcus
He was born in Singapore and went to schools in China and Australia. Having Engineering background, he have worked in Japan and South Korea before finally settled in Seoul. When he is not working, he loves to go on a quick trip to anywhere he wants to go with his beautiful wife.
