Top 10 Things to Do in Busan, South Korea

I had the wonderful opportunity of going to South Korea twice, first time was for the month of January and the second time was for the month of August. Both times I had the pleasure of meeting lots of new people, trying new things, learning new things, and of course, sightseeing! I was also provided with the greatest opportunity the second time I went by being able to volunteer as an English teacher! Here I have compiled a list of my top 10 favorite things to do in Busan! They are in no particular order:

1.) Busan Gamcheon Culture Village

The culture village was beautiful; various buildings built in the mountains that are painted bright colours! There are plenty of pathways between the houses with new things to discover and see around each corner. I went during the summer and there were plenty of cute shops selling Korean fans, shoes, jewelry, etc. Not only are the old houses beautiful, but the street art is fascinating. I definitely recommend visiting if you are in the area!

2.) United Nations Memorial Cemetery

This is a burial ground for the casualties of the Korean War from 1950-1953. It contains 2,300 graves in honour of UN soldiers from 16 countries and is the only United Nations cemetery in the world. Walking around all the graves was extremely humbling, especially seeing that most of the soldiers were in their early twenties, some the same age as me. There are monuments in honour of each participating country as well as a wall listing all the names of the deceased.

3.) Sea Life Aquarium

This aquarium is right on Haeundae Beach and contains various sea animals to see. There was a water tunnel you can walk through to discover sharks, turtles, and other fish. There is also the option to ride in a glass bottom boat with the sharks. Finally, you can see a really good 4D movie, I saw the dinosaur one while I was there. It was around $30/person and was very entertaining.

4.) Haeundae Dongbaekseom Island

It used to be an island but through years of sedimentation, it has connected to the mainland. Here you can go on a beautiful scenic walk along the shoreline and see several attractions along the way. There is a monument of Choe Chi-Won, a mermaid statue among the rocks, a lighthouse, and the APEC house. If you go later during the day, you can watch the sunset past the famous Diamond Bridge, which makes for a breathtaking view!

5.) Busan Tower

The Busan Tower stands at 120m and provides a spectacular view of Busan. The view is from the top provides a view of the mountains, ocean, and tall buildings. At the base of the tower, there is a beautiful love lock fence where my boyfriend and I wrote on a heart and attached a lock. Also at the base, there are souvenir shops, monuments, and a shopping market nearby.

6.) Haegong Yonggungsa Temple

This beautiful temple is a rare find as it is located along the water, whereas most temples in Korea are located in the mountains. It was first built in 1376 and has various attractions amongst it. There are four lions (anger, joy, sadness, and happiness) that are looking over the ocean, a cave that has a Buddhist sanctum, various Buddhist statues, and a wishing pond. There are also 108 stairs you can walk to enjoy the sounds of the waves and the view.

7.) Lotte World Waterpark

This was one of the best waterparks I have ever been to! It has a lot of different, exciting water slides to choose from. My favorite water slide was Aqua Drop. You start by standing straight up and then the floor beneath you moves and you drop into the slide! Also, the wave pool was by far the best wave pool I have ever been in! Everyone is required to wear a life jacket in it for safety, which I completely understood why after being in it. One wave comes at a time and it is like a huge wall is coming at you that just tosses you around! If you love waterparks, this is one is a MUST.

8.) Beaches

There are lots of beaches within Busan, which I loved since I love just relaxing on a beach and swimming. While there, I went to two beaches— Haeundae Beach and Gwangalli Beach. Both beaches were beautiful and lots of fun with beautiful views. At both beaches, I rented an umbrella (5,000 won) that is already set up on the beach since it is extremely hot and the sun is beating down. You can also rent tubes for 5,000 won that are a lot of fun since there are tons of waves! One thing I wish I had done was gone for surf lessons at these beaches, so if you want to learn to surf, you can do so at one of the beaches!

9.) Thursday Party

Thursday Party was my favorite bar to go to in Korea! There are lots of these bars located throughout Korea but my favorite one was right by my apartment in Jangsan. They have lots of yummy drinks and food options, darts, beer pong, and the best staff ever! The staff at the Thursday Party in Jangsan, Busan were absolutely amazing and became my friends! They would give us free drinks, play beer pong with us, talk with us, and even bought us cake & pizza for my boyfriend's birthday. They also held a beer pong tournament while I was there and gave us all our own t-shirts. If you are looking for a fun place to drink, I definitely recommend Thursday Party!

10.) Korean BBQ

This was by far my favorite thing to eat! There are different Korean BBQ's all over Korea and each one was super delicious. Now some of the BBQ’s are really expensive, but there are also lots that are cheap. You order any meat you want from the menu, cook it yourself, and they provide you with a table FULL of sauces, leaves, kimchi, garlic, etc. It tasted amazing and I ate here at least once a week!