Sun, surf and (relative) solitude
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Sun, surf and (relative) solitude
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An updated list of 20 beach spots to get your summer started

Get your sunscreen, your hat and folding chair ready. Swimming season is here, and Jeju has 20 top-notch beaches for you to enjoy. Of course, there are innumerable smaller coastal areas to explore, but you’ll find that even on the hottest days, when much of the population is on vacation, it will be rare to find the six-figure crowds that Busan’s Haeundae Beach is infamous for.

Take note: Beaches here are open to everyone, and using common sense you should be able to spend time on the beach or swim whenever you please. Still, be careful to obey any posted signs or directions from government personnel.

Jeju’s beach service areas open officially for the summer season from June 19 until Aug. 31 (that’s 74 days, folks). There are seven beaches with special services such as lifeguards, chairs, parasol rentals, showers and the like. They are Iho (from June 19), Hyeopjae (June 24), Geumneung (June 24), Gwakji (July 1), Samyang (July 1), Hamdeok (July 1) and Gimnyeong (July 1) beaches.

According to government statistics, these government-administered beaches recorded a combined total of 1.5 million visitors during the 2010 season. Compare this to 2002, when six such beaches (Geumneung Beach was added in 2010) saw only 254,000 people that season. That’s a big jump, but there’s more than enough beach to go around! Remember, Haeundae Beach in Busan can have hundreds of thousands of visitors in a single day during the summer.

So, let’s run down the 20 beaches on the map. Many of last year’s festivals have yet to be announced for 2011. There will be more details available in July. So please note that the information below can change without notice. You can always call tourist information (064-1330) to get the latest info in English, Chinese and Japanese on the beach or festival of your choice.

1 Iho Tewoo Beach
Location: Iho-dong, Jeju City
Festivals: Iho Tewoo Festival (Aug. 5 to Aug. 7)
Notes: Night swim until 10 p.m. from July 16 until Aug. 21. The closest beach from Jeju City and Shin-Jeju, it is the island’s urban beach. Significant infrastructure has been added within the last five years. It is popular and crowded with various stalls.
 
2 Gwakji Beach
Location: Gwakji-ri, Aewol-eup, Jeju
Festivals: Gwakji Beach Festival (TBA*)
Notes: Gwakji boasts a lot of sand to get lost in. There is an open-air public sea bath available (look for the many pig statues which guard the entrance). The baths are gender segregated.
* Many of the following festival dates have yet to be announced as of this printing.
 
3 Mojini Beach
Location: Hachuja-do, Chuja-myeon, Jeju City
Festivals: Annual Chujado Dried Yellow Corvina Festival (July 29 to July 31)
Notes: Located on Chuja Island, about 90 minutes by high-speed ferry. This is Chuja’s lone beach, but be warned it has many small pebbles as its sand base, making for a hard night’s sleep in a tent.
The view, however, is unparalleled.

4 Hyeopjae Beach
Location: Hyeopjae-ri, Hallim-eup, Jeju
Festivals: Baek Nan Ah Song Festival (TBA)
Notes: Beautiful vista of Biyang Island. Beach is about 200 meters-long with fine, crushed seashell “sand.” Close proximity to Geumneung Beach. Night swim until 10 p.m. from July 16 until Aug. 21.
 
5 Geumneung Beach
Location: Geumneung-ri, Hallim-eup, Jeju
Festivals: Geumneung Wondam Festival (TBA)
Notes: Hallim's second beach is in close proximity to Hyeopjae Beach. During a high tide, there is minimal sand, sometimes none.
 
6 Hamo Beach
Location: Hamo-ri, Daejeong-eup, Seogwipo
Notes: Completely protected by a harbor, it may be the island's best swimming spot due to virtually no current or waves. Flanked by a forest to the east, the water resembles a lake.
 
7 Hwasun Beach
Location: Hwasun-ri, Andeok-myeon, Seogwipo
Notes: In the shadow of Sanbangsan, there has been significant development in the last year and a half. It has become a busy beach for kids, complete with pool.
 
8 Jungmun Beach
Location: Yerae-dong, Seogwipo
Festivals: Yerae Nonjitmul Festival (Aug. 5 to Aug. 7); Jungmun International Surfing Competition (TBA)
Notes: Jeju's most well-known beach, mainly because of its proximity to the island's major tourist resorts in Seogwipo City. It has also been labeled Korea’s Best Beach, by the central government. You may find it relatively crowded for a Jeju beach. Surfing and tropical vegetation give it a feeling of being somewhere in the South Pacific. Open at night from this year.

9 Soesokkak Beach
Location: Hahyo-dong, Seogwipo
Festivals: Soesokkak Beach Festival (Aug. 6 to Aug. 7)
Notes: Rent a small paddle boat or walk the wood stairs that run adjacent to the small inland water valley.

10 Pyoseon Beach
Location: Pyoseon-ri, Pyoseon-myeon, Seogwipo
Festivals: Pyoseon White Sand Festival (Aug. 6 to Aug. 7)
Notes: The island’s largest area of sand, during a low tide it is a virtual dry lake. No matter how many people there are, space is always available. A perfect place to float in the shallows.

11 Sinyang Beach
Location: Goseong-ri, Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo
Festivals: Sinyang Beach Festival (TBA)
Notes: Popular with windsurfers, Sinyang offers spectacular views of Seongsan Ilchulbong. Throughout the year, massive amounts of seaweed roll on shore, but during peak summer season the beach is regularly groomed.

12 Hagosudong Beach
Location: Udo-myeon, Jeju
Notes: Located on Udo Island, some 20 minutes from Seongsan Port by ferry, this is Udo’s secondary beach. A large haenyeo statue adorns the sand. Come here to take a break from Udo’s other tourist attractions. It has a great flat grassy area to pitch a tent.

13 Sanhosa Beach
Location: Udo-myeon, Jeju
Notes: Located on Udo Island, some 20 minutes from Seongsan Port by ferry. A quick five-minute walk from the ferry, the popcorn sand is unlike any other.

14 Hado Beach
Location: Hado-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju
Notes: Head east on a scooter and get lost on Hado’s proud strip of luxury. It is usually not crowded, though sometimes it can be eerily bare during the right time of day.

15 Sehwa Beach
Location: Sehwa-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju
Notes: A beautiful beach along the coastal road. Come here on days ending in 0 or 5 to take in the Sehwa Five-Day Traditional Market.

16 Pyeongdae Beach
Location: Pyeongdae, Gujwa-eup, Jeju
Notes: With your own transportation, head east from Gimnyeong on the coast road and try to find this spot. You’ll be glad you did. Relax, there will only be a handful of people.

17 Woljeong Beach
Location: Woljeong-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju
Notes: Jeju’s most underrated gem. Relatively unknown and very quiet, you can spend all day here reading a book. One bus stop to the east of Manjang Cave and a 10-minute walk to the sea.

18 Gimnyeong Beach
Location: Gimnyeong-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju
Notes: Popular with foreigners for its combo of white sand and azure water, the island bus from Jeju City toward Seongsan deposits a passenger at Gimnyeong’s front door.

19 Hamdeok Seowoobong Beach
Location: Hamdeok-ri, Jocheon-eup, Jeju
Festivals: Hamdeok Beach Festival (TBA)
Notes: Three separate beaches, a large open park and Seowoobong hill. This is the north side of the island’s answer to Jungmun, and, in the summer, undoubtedly boasts the most people. There are kayaks and banana boats for rent. Foreigners favor the small east beach, next to Seowoobong. Night swim until 10 p.m. from July 16 until Aug. 21. Take buses 10 or 20 from Jeju City.

20 Samyang Black Sand Beach
Location: Samyang-dong, Jeju
Festivals: Black Sand Festival (July 29 to July 31)
Notes: The black sand beach is composed of pulverized volcanic rock. Some seek it out for medicinal purposes and cover most of their body in a pit. First beach east of Jeju City. Take bus 100.


This article includes reporting by Kim Jung Lim and research from a story written last year by Yang Ho Geun.  <Jeju Weekly>

<Todd Thacker, Steve Oberhauser  toddthacker@jejuweekly.com ⓒ Jeju Weekly All rights reserved>


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