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Voykit pocket guide · South Korea
Jeongseon
정선
Give Jeongseon 1–2 nights only if you have a car or will pay taxis: sights sit 20–40 min apart and buses are few. Otherwise skip it.
Jeongseon is a mountain county in southeastern Gangwon, not a walkable town. Its draws are spread across three clusters: the county seat with the Five Day Market and the Arirang festival, Hwaam with its gold-mine cave, and Sabuk/Gohan with the High1 resort and Kangwon Land casino. Without a car, taxis and a few daily buses set your pace; with one, it is a solid 2-night mountain stop between Pyeongchang and Taebaek.
- Country
- South Korea
- Local name
- 정선
- Best months
- May–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (rain and heat), Jan–Feb (ice on mountain roads)
- Stay
- 1–2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- KRW
- Money
- Cards work almost everywhere, including taxis, convenience stores and many market stalls; carry ₩30,000–50,000 in cash for street food, small markets and temple donations.
- Daily spend
- Budget ₩60,000–100,000 excl. bed · Mid ₩100,000–180,000 excl. bed · High ₩180,000+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- SK Telecom, KT and LG U+ sell tourist SIMs and eSIMs at airport arrivals; a passport is required, and data-only plans are cheapest.
- Emergency
- Police 112 · Fire and ambulance 119 · Foreigner information centre 1345
- Plugs
- Types C, F · 220 V · 60 Hz · Round two-pin European plugs fit; US and UK plugs need an adapter, and US-only appliances need a converter.
- Tipping
- Restaurants and cafés: No tip; a service charge appears only in top hotels.; Taxis: No tip; pay the meter.; Hotel porter: Not expected; ₩1,000–2,000 in luxury hotels if you want.; Private guide or driver: Not expected; ₩10,000–20,000 or a meal is a thank-you.
- Water
- Officially safe from the tap; most people drink filtered water, and restaurants serve it free. Bottles cost ₩800–1,500 at convenience stores.
- Toilets
- Free, clean public toilets in every subway station; paper goes in the toilet in new buildings, in the bin where a sign asks. Bidets are common.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | ₩3,000–6,000 |
| Gondre rice or kotdeungchigi buckwheat noodles | ₩9,000–15,000 |
| Beer: draught in a bar / can at a convenience store | ₩5,000–8,000 / ₩2,500–4,000 |
| Taxi flag fall | ₩2,800 plus about ₩100 per 152 m (check) |
| Hwaam Cave entry | ₩7,000 adult, ₩5,500 teen, ₩4,000 child (check) |
| Rail bike, 2- or 4-person car | check on the operator site |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | ₩20,000–40,000 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- ICN · Incheon International
- AREX to Seoul then bus or train east; 4–5 h door to door
- GMP · Gimpo International
- Domestic links to Yangyang and Wonju; check schedules
Typical fares
- Taxi Jeongseon-eup → Hwaam Cave
- about ₩30,000 one way (check)
- Mugunghwa train Sabuk → Taebaek
- about ₩3,000–5,000, about 1 h (check)
- Bus Jeongseon → Pyeongchang
- about ₩5,000–8,000, about 1 h (check)
Get around
Local buses run infrequently, so a car or taxi is the practical choice. Taxis charge about ₩2,800 flag fall plus roughly ₩100 per 152 m, with area surcharges; most drivers speak no English. The Taebaek Line Mugunghwa train links Gohan, Sabuk and Mindungsan, and the A-train runs scenic routes on the Jeongseon Line but not on Monday and Tuesday.
See and do
Known for
- Jeongseon Arirang folk song
- Five Day Market
- Hwaam Cave
- High1 resort and Kangwon Land casino
- Rail biking to Auraji
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Pyeongchang | Bus or car via National Highway 42 | About 1 h |
| Taebaek | Taebaek Line Mugunghwa from Sabuk or Gohan | About 1 h |
| Chuncheon | Bus via Wonju or Pyeongchang | 2.5–3 h |
| Gangneung | Bus or car via Pyeongchang and Daegwallyeong | 2.5–3 h |
Sleep
- Jeongseon-eup (county seat)
- Market, bus terminal and most motels; best base without a car.
- Sabuk and Gohan
- High1 resort hotels, casino and ski slopes; Taebaek Line stations.
- Hwaam
- Closest to Hwaam Cave; very few beds, book ahead.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | 안녕하세요annyeonghaseyo |
| Thank you | 감사합니다gamsahamnida |
| How much is it? | 얼마예요?eolmayeyo |
| Please take me to this address | 이 주소로 가주세요i jusoro gajuseyo |
| Where is the bus terminal? | 버스터미널이 어디예요?beoseu teomineori eodiyeyo |
| Can I pay by card? | 카드로 될까요?kadeuro doelkkayo |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: A slight bow with a 'annyeonghaseyo'; handshake with the right hand, left hand touching the right forearm; avoid: Hugs and cheek kisses with people you have just met
- Age and rank: Expect to be asked your age; it sets how people speak to you. Let the eldest sit and start first; avoid: Calling older people by their given name
- Handing things: Two hands for money, cards, gifts and drinks; avoid: Passing things with one hand to older people
- Subway: Quiet voices, bags off seats, queue at the marked lines; avoid: Priority and pink pregnancy seats, even when empty
- Home visit: Shoes off; bring fruit or a boxed gift; refuse once before accepting; avoid: Writing names in red ink — it is used for the dead
- Temples: Covered shoulders and knees; bow at the main hall; avoid: Stepping on thresholds; loud talk; pointing at Buddha statues
- Numbers: Know that 4 is unlucky; buildings may show F instead of a fourth floor; avoid: Giving gifts in sets of four
- Sensitive topics: Listen; follow your host's lead; avoid: Comparing Korea with Japan or China casually; jokes about the North, the Japanese colonial era, or plastic surgery
Scams and watch-outs
- Distances between sights are long: a taxi from Jeongseon-eup to Hwaam Cave is a real fare, not a short hop.
- Gambling is legal only inside Kangwon Land; casinos elsewhere in Korea are off-limits to Korean citizens.
- Mountain roads ice over in winter and fog in summer rain; drive to conditions.
- The Five Day Market runs only on the 2nd, 7th, 12th, 17th, 22nd and 27th of each month.
Jeongseon is as safe as the rest of rural South Korea; the real risks are mountain-road ice and fog, long unlit stretches between towns, and gambling debts — gambling is illegal outside Kangwon Land.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Jeongseon yet. Suggested stay: 1–2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Jeongseon Arirang folk song
- Five Day Market
- Hwaam Cave
- High1 resort and Kangwon Land casino
- Rail biking to Auraji
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Wikivoyage: Jeongseon, revision 4984003 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=4984003
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Jeongseon정선
이 주소로 가주세요
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Jeongseon; most are in Seoul. For consular help, contact your embassy in Seoul first (check).
Tipping is not expected. 112 police, 119 fire and ambulance, 1345 for immigration and foreigner help.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/jeongseon). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.