• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

Busanpedia

Follow me to every corner of Busan and South Korea

  • Home
  • Places to Visit in South Korea
    • Haeundae Beach (해운대 해수욕장) & Busan X the SKY (엑스 더 스카이)
    • Gwangalli Beach & Gwangan Bridge (광안리 해수욕장 & 광안대교)
    • Gamcheon Culture Village (부산 감천문화마을), Busan, South Korea
    • BIFF Square (BIFF 광장) & Kakao Friends, Busan, South Korea
    • Gukje Market (국제시장), Busan, South Korea
    • Taejongdae Resort Park (태종대 유원지), Busan, South Korea
    • Haedong Yonggungsa Temple (해동용궁사), Busan, South Korea
    • Oryukdo Island (오륙도) & Oryukdo Skywalk
    • Songdo Beach & Songdo Cloud Trails (송도해수욕장 & 송도구름산책로), Busan, South Korea
    • Dongbaekseom Island (동백섬) in Busan, South Korea
    • Songjeong Beach (송정해수욕장), Busan, South Korea
    • Jukseong Church (Dream Open Set / 죽성성당) in Busan, South Korea
    • Nakdong Estuary Eco Center (낙동강하구에코센터) in Busan, South Korea
    • Nurimaru APEC House (누리마루 APEC 하우스) in Busan, South Korea
    • F1963, Urban Cultural Complex, Busan, South Korea
    • United Nations Memorial Cemetery (유엔기념공원) in Busan, South Korea
    • Museum of Contemporary Art Busan (부산현대미술관)
    • Hwamyeong Rose Park (화명장미공원), Busan, South Korea
    • Tongdosa Temple (통도사), Gyeongsangnamdo, South Korea
    • Gyeongbokgung Palace (경복궁) in Seoul, South Korea
    • Gwanghwamun Square (광화문광장), Seoul, South Korea
    • The Story of King Sejong (세종이야기) in Seoul, South Korea
    • Insadong (인사동), Seoul, South Korea
    • Jeonju Hyanggyo (전주향교), South Korea
  • Blog
  • Korea 101
    • New K-Dramas in June 2022 (Part 3)
    • Korean Immigration Updates Regarding COVID-19
    • How to Apply for South Korea Visa
    • Korean Food (Beef Dishes)
    • Korean Food (Pork Dishes)
    • Korean Food (Noodles)
    • Interesting Korean Culture (Q&A)
    • Korean Expressions for Real Life
    • Top 10 Best-Selling Korean Ramyeon (Ramen) in South Korea
    • Introduction to Korean History
    • Public Transportation in South Korea
  • Study in Korea
  • About
  • Contact
  • Search

Songdo Beach & Songdo Cloud Trails (송도해수욕장 & 송도구름산책로), Busan, South Korea

First Public Beach Sign at Songdo Beach

Songdo Beach is South Korea’s very first public beach and it features clean sandy beaches, a beautifully designed skywalk, cable cars with breathtaking views, and more. Let’s dive into its beauty.

Location

  • Songdo Beach: 100, Songdohaebyeon-ro, Seo-gu, Busan, South Korea
  • Songdo Cloud Trails: 156, Songdohaebyeon-ro, Seo-gu, Busan, South Korea
 

Hours

  • Open year-round
  • Songdo Cloud Trails: 6 a.m. – 11 p.m.

Admission

Free

Directions

Subway: Line 1 (Orange Line). Get off at Jagalchi Station (자갈치/110), Exit 2 > Walk about 300m (about 1,000 feet) to Chungmu-dong gyocharo (충무동 교차로) bus stop > Transfer to Bus No. 26, 30, or 71 > Get off at Songdo Haesuyokjang (송도해수욕장 / Songdo Beach) bus stop

Parking

Paid Parking at Songdo Beach Parking Lot

Contact

  • Call: Songdo Beach – Seogu Tourist Information Center +82 51-231-0252 / Songdo Cloud Trails – (9 a.m. – 6 p.m.) +82 51-240-4086 or (6 a.m. – 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. – 11 p.m.) +82 51-240-4222
  • Website: Busan Seo-gu Tourism Homepage

Songdo Beach, South Korea’s First Public Beach

Sandy Songdo Beach in Busan, South Korea

Songdo Beach is South Korea’s first public beach. It opened in 1913 and celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2013. Thanks to its location close to the original downtown of Busan, the beach got popular and it was developed way before Haeundae Beach and Gwangalli Beach rose to fame. Even more, the beach was once a top destination for a honeymoon. 

Songdo Beach started losing its popularity once the water pollution in the area became serious. Too many restaurants, houses, lodges, and hotels were built and, eventually, the development around the beach went beyond control. Unfortunately, its natural beauty and fame turned into two sides of the sword. Since then, visitors began to leave for Haeundae and Gwangalli, and Songdo Beach completely lost its glory in the 1990s.

The renewal project for Songdo Beach began in 2000 and it brought back the beach into its heyday. Now Songdo Beach is one of the top beaches in South Korea with over five million annual visitors, thanks to beautiful sandy beaches, clean water, Songdo Cloud Trails, and Songdo Cable Cars. The beach made a list of the 100 Must-Visit Tourism Spots of Korea by The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization two consecutive times from 2019 to 2021.

Whale statue in the ocean at Songdo Beach in Busan
The whale statue in the ocean at Songdo Beach
Dolphin statues and Songdo Marine Cable Car in South Korea
The dolphin statue and Songdo Cable Car make the view picturesque.

Songdo Cloud Trails

Songdo Cloud Trails in Busan, South Korea

Songdo Cloud Trails (also called Songdo Skywalk) is 365-meter long and connects Songdo Beach and Turtle Island. This skywalk resembles a dragon in a curved shape. Visitors can enjoy an amazing view of the ocean and Songdo Cable Car above. At the same time, they will feel like walking over the sea while watching the ocean through a glass floor.

View from Songdo Cloud Trails in South Korea
The view from Songdo Cloud Trails fills you in with the openness of the blue ocean.
Colorful breakwater near Songdo Cloud Trails in Busan
View of Huinnyeoul Culture Village in South Korea
You can see a distant view of Yeongdo Huinnyeoul Culture Village (영도흰여울마을).

Love Story of Turtle Island (거북섬 / Geobukseom)

Mermaid statue at Turtle Island in Busan
Fisherman statue at Turtle Island in Busan, South Korea

On the way to the endpoint of Songdo Cloud Trails, you will step on Turtle Island (거북섬). The small island has a sad love story: A long, long time ago, a fisherman took shelter in a cave during the storm. He found a woman severely injured and took care of her with all the medicinal herbs he could find. Finally, she woke up. She told him that she was the daughter of the King of the Sea and she was actually a dragon. She got hurt while fighting against the sea monster to protect fishermen. As you may guess, they fell in love, and the princess started praying for a thousand days to become human to get married to the fisherman. 

Alas, on the last day of one thousand days, the sea monster came out and interrupted the prayer. The fisherman found out this and he went out to the sea to fight against the sea monster with other village people. Although he won the battle, he lost his life during the fight. The princess couldn’t become a complete human, either, and sadly became a half-woman half-dragon. The King of the Sea had mercy for these two lovebirds. He turned the fisherman into the Turtle Rock and let the princess live on the rock so that they could stay together forever. In addition, the King blesses the visitors to Turtle Island with long life and wealth. If a couple visits the place, he lets their love last.  

Geobukseom or Turtle Island in Korea
Songdo Skywalk in Busan, South Korea
Turtle Island and Songdo Beach are connected through Songdo Cloud Trails.

Annual Festival at Songdo Beach

Every October, the Mackerel Festival is held on Songdo Beach. Visitors can buy mackerels at better prices and taste various food made with this fish. Participants enjoy various music stages, quiz competitions, catching mackerels with bare hands, and many more events. 

During summer, Hyeonin Gayoje opens on the beach as well. It’s an annual joint concert to commemorate Hyeonin, a famous Korean singer from the 1950s. Participating singers are mainly trot singers, and yet you can see singers from more genres including Kpop idol groups. 


In Songdo Beach Area

Songdo Marine Cable Car in Busan, South Korea
Songdo Cable Cars
Hotels and cafes at Songdo Beach in Busan, South Korea

If your schedule allows, you may spend a full day around the Songdo Beach area. Since its rebirth, Songdo Marine Cable Car has been a must-try attraction in Busan. Just steps away from the cable car station, the newly opened Songo Yonggung Suspension Bridge stands. From there you can enjoy hiking, either to Dudo Observatory through Amnam Park or back to Songdo Beach through Songdo Coastal Bollegil Trail, which is a part of the Busan Galmatgil Trail. And, of course, numerous cafes and restaurants will fill you up with good caffeine or delicious Korean food.


  • Planning a trip to South Korea? Click here to find more destinations here.
  • Do you want to study in South Korea? Here is a basic guide to start with.
  • Want to learn about Korean culture and more? Click here to find more information about it.
  • Trying to learn Korean language? I have some interesting real expressions for you.
  • A big fan of Korean food? How about some Korean noodles?

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Before Footer

Footer

Busanpedia on Social Media

  • Privacy Policy

30, Yeonje-ro, Yeonje-gu, Busan, South Korea (Officetel Blgd. 7th Floor. Rm 7105) | [email protected]

Copyright © 2022 · Busanpedia