Haedong Yonggungsa Temple is situated on the coast of the north-eastern portion of Busan. This superb attraction offers visitors the rare find of a temple along the shore line; most temples in Korea are located in the mountains. Haedong Yonggungsa Temple was first built in 1376 by the great Buddhist teacher known as Naong during the Goryeo Dynasty. Haesu Gwaneum Daebul (Seawater Great Goddess Buddha), Daeungjeon Main Sanctuary, Yongwangdang Shrine, Gulbeop Buddhist Sanctum (enclosed in a cave), and a three-story pagoda with four lions can all be seen looking out over the ocean.
The sky walk has drawn attention as the first of its kind in Korea, and for its long, curving trail. To date, the first section of the walk
Gamcheon Culture Villiage is formed by houses built in staircase-fashion on the foothills of a coastal mountain, earning this village the nickname of "Machu Picchu of Busan." The many alleys cutting through this community are vibrantly decorated with murals and sculptures created by the residents.
Busan’s modern movie district was originally little more than a pair of cinemas that were built following Korea’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule over half a century ago. However, major renovations took place ahead of the first Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) in 1996, and the newly transformed district was named BIFF Square on August 14, 1996
Following the Korean War, refugees who had fled to Busan set up stalls in order to make a living, and this was the beginning of the Gukje Market (gukje meaning "international"). The Gukje Market is one of Korea’s largest markets; each alleyway is crowded with stalls, and it connects to the Bupyeong Market, Kkangtong Market, and other smaller markets. The market stocks such a wide variety of goods, that you can find almost everything you need right here.
The Jagalchi Market is Korea's largest seafood market. After the Korean War the market solidified itself as a fish market. Most of the people who sell fish are women, so the women who sell here are called 'Jagalchi Ajumma,' 'ajumma' meaning middle-aged or married women. This market represents Busan and is famous throughout the country. If you visit you can eat fresh raw fish right at the market. Even these days you can see women selling mackerel, sea squirts (ascidians) and whale meat on wooden boxes along the road.
We will drive you guys to the top Hwangnyeongsan Mountain is located in the heart of Busan. With an altitude of 427m, the mountain is the second highest mountain in the Geumnyeon Mountain Range. The mountain is mostly made up of andesite and the summit is relatively flat. Some parts of the mountain are also characterized by exposed bedrocks. ( We will be driving to the top )
Fantastic tour of Busan, my guide Sue and driver were so helpful as I am travelling on a walker. Very knowledgeable about accessibility. The UN Cemetery was particularly moving as my Dad was a Korean War Vet, the lunch included was delicious. I was so impressed by Sue’s knowledge of the history of her city Busan. I would recommend this tour as a real highlight of my trip to Korea.
Busan is a city of new design, history, ocean and politics. I found very enjoyable and deep insights during the trip. The temple and the United Nations Cemetary was a incredible experience when I come across with the existence. Thanks very much for trip guide and best wishes.
Steve picked us all up at our own locations and was very friendly and informative. We saw many sites and he took us to a restaurant where the food was really enjoyable. Most of the tours I’ve been on the food at the tourist restaurants has not been good so this was a nice experience. Steve took all us of back to our own locations which was really nice
Fun, funny, and educational tour around Busan. Our tour guide Steve is a local from Busan but educated in the US. He answered our many questions about Busan and South Korea - from history, culture, to customs… offering tips about places to eat and drink. We are at a delicious beef Korean BBQ restaurant for lunch. Steve was flexible and thoughtful, and we had a blast!
Everything we saw was memorable. Our tour guide was awesome in explaining in detail the historical facts around Busan and surrounding areas. I recommend Chris as your tour guide.
I had a great time, even though the weather was terrible. It was supposed to be a small group tour, but in the end there was only me, so it turned into a private tour with a fantastic guide, Chris. He was knowledgeable, friendly, funny and accommodating. He answered all my questions and you could tell how proud he is of his town. It was like hanging out with a friend. The places we visited were beautiful, especially Haedong Yonggungsa Temple. I highly recommend this tour.
I gave this 1* because the organisers cancelled the trip 30mins before my pickup was due! They offered me an alternative day trip which I took but the late cancellation was unacceptable.
We had a great day with our guide CK (we booked group, but were solo with him), who managed an ideal balance of providing general information and personal big picture context, and proved well-versed in historical, philosophical and contempary matters, including movies and manhwas! The tour leads you to key seights in the north-east of Busan, so we recommend to take it at the start of a stay there. CK will fill out all the gaps of things you should further explore or missed, so thats an added benefit :)
Steve was a great guide. Very personable and easy to talk to. Busan is definitely a beautiful city worth visiting.
Jay Song our guide for the day was fantastic. Well versed and accommodating. She organised a special Buddhist temple meal for us since we were vegetarian. Highly recommend 😊
We really enjoyed this tour. Steve did a fantastic job showing us around Busan, explaining tha history and culture. He also has a great sense of humor to make the tour fun.
Both “ Young” our tour guide & our driver were such a pleasure & both very attentive to cater to us . Thank you for the wonderful experience & it definitely opened up our eyes to consider coming back & stay even longer . Traveling in a cruise ship is fun, but never enough time at the ports we visit , so it just gives you a small taste of what it could be .., but we were very happy to have “Young” as our tour guide , she was very caring , knowledgeable , funny at times & wonderful all around ! Thank you again ! Edward & Richard Solomon
Hands down Steve was our favorite tour guide during our entire vacation. Not only was he super friendly and amazingly knowledgeable but really made us fall in love with Busan. We had even told him about our plans for the evening (doing an evening cruise) he told us the company that advertised it no longer runs the cruise, but he had a lady who booked a private tour with him who would be willing to do a small group. We were in!!! In-between our day and evening tours he took us to a shopping area to have dinner and walk around. Highly recommend Steve and the Busan day and evening tours.
The tour guide is one of the best I'd come across and very informative. The tour is culturally immersive. I'd enjoyed it, especially the Gukjae Market.
I was initially booked for a Shared Tour, but due to a lack of registration, I ended up getting the Private Tour instead with added cost, the operator communicate with me a couple of days prior whether I decide to proceed or not. The tour guide Steve, gave a lot of insights and information on the locations and took photos for me. He gave me ample time to look around before proceeding with the subsequent locations. Personally, the highlight of the tour was Headong Yonggungsa. Since this tour had become a Private Tour, it was tailored towards my speed and I finished this tour earlier than expected.
So happy we decided to take this tour at the last minute. Steve was a wealth of knowledge and truly made our visit to Busan 100% better.
It was nice and enjoyable, it was a small group with my partner and I and 2 other people only. Hotel pickup was offered which is really easy and convenient. Our guide Steve was friendly and easy going and shared about the history. Food was good too and water and heat packs and snacks were offered during the trip and flexibility. One thing I would've liked is to give a little free and easy time at each site. Each site we visited was touch and go and I feel like I didn't get to have any time at all to explore and soak in the atmosphere of the place. However I do understand due to time constraints this is not really feasible and he did mention himself to come back to the places we liked ourselves. It just felt really rushed , but it's a good tour if you don't know much about Busan and this serves as a good introduction and you can go to those places yourselves after that the rest of the trip. If you have time in Busan and have several days to do this go ahead but since we were only in Busan for a short time I think it's better if we had prioritised which ones we wanted to do and go there ourselves. To each their own.
Busan is a big city, and taking this tour allows you to see sights at the far East and West edges of the city, all in one day. Seeing Haedong Yonggungsa Temple on the sea was amazing! What a beautiful site! You get to enjoy an Korean BBQ lunch and round out the day at Gamcheon Culture Village. The guide Steve Kim was wonderful! He knows Busan!
Very informative. Our guide had incredibly good English and was very personable. The locations we visited were pretty
I was nervous as my original tour was cancelled, but the operator offered me another tour - however it was missing the destination I particualrly wanted to see. Our guide offered to include this on the itinerary if no-one else had already seen it and I was able to go to it at the end of the trip. Our guide was incredibly friendly, helpful, and knowledgable, and the day flew by in no time at all. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to anyone interested in getting the most out of a day in Busan!
My family and I had a great time! We visited so many places this day and will cherish these memories forever. What a beautiful city! Our special thanks to Steve who made this tour so much fun. My kids voted this and this tour was the best part of our stay in Busan.
Couldn't have asked for a better tour guide. Steve was excellent, he gave great descriptions and context for the places we visited but also allowed for exploration time so we could check out the places ourselves. As it was hot when we took the tour, Steve provided frozen water bottles which were a life saver! We enjoyed the tour so much we booked another one with Steve for the following day.
Our tour guide Steve was wonderful. He knew so much about the city and gave us suggestions for other places to visit in Busan and restaurants/bars to go to as well. It was just my friend and I on the tour and Steve was really accommodating to us and even packed us some much-needed water considering it was an extremely hot day. It felt like we were on a road trip with a friend and we had a fantastic time laughing and sightseeing. If we go back to Busan we will definitely book the nighttime tour that Steve told us about. Thank you for a great tour :)
Had a great day with our experienced guide, Steve -made it a fun and very informative tour Also both being vegetarian we had a really enjoyable lunch
Booking an very expensive private tour should be rewarding. Then waiting 2 hours for a car to arrive for the tour and not turning up is very disappointing, but in saying that we did get our money back the next day.
This tour was the absolute perfect way to see every side of Busan. Our guide Steve was knowledgeable, friendly, accommodating, and fun! He made the tour more than any of the sights. He was also a fantastic photographer and sent us the photos quickly. The sights were fantastic, with amazing views and interesting history. It was fun to see the city from every side and above. Absolutely would love to do another tour with Steve in this fantastic city!
This was my absolute best booking in trip advisor ever..... and I've been here a while lol. Our guide, Steve, was very tolerant, smart, witty and kind. He had a unique reverence for all historical sites he showed us but also was a ton a fun. I am still shocked that we fit all tgat plus more in a into 8 hrs and still did not feel rushed. And lunch was amazing. His English was also pretty solid, lol he went to college in Houston TX. Amazing time. Too bad I can't post pics. Steve is the best!!!
The tour was cancelled less than 24 hours after booking. It shouldn't have been offered if it was not available. Still waiting for my refund.
The sights were incredible, probably the best I'll get out of my entire trip to korea. Our tour guide Steve was very nice. I wasn't expecting too much English from the guide when we bought our tickets but not only was he fluent he was funny and has good character. It made the trip comfortable and better than expected.
Verry good guide, good explanations, attentive to our needs, best tour we had in Korea, we visited many great sites, all close range (no long bus ride in between) and bbq lunch was very tasty. If you can only do 1 day tour, this is the one to pick
I travelled with my boyfriend, and we had a good time with Mr. Kim, he was very kind with is and he spoke english very well, so we understood all he explained to our small group of People (4 persons). At the end of the tour he took us to eat korean barbacoa and explained us how to eat in the correct way. We are glad with him, because we fotgot our camera in his car, and he went to give us.
Beth was such an amazing guide. She was knowledgeable, entertaining and funny. She made this day an experience I will never forget. Not to mention the beauty of Busan temples and scenic views... Highly recommended.
It was a rainy day when we had this tour but we covered everything that this tour was about. CK was an excellent guide. We learned so much about Busan and loved this place. CK also acted as our photographer and took beautiful photos. He was professional and we're happy we had him as our guide.
Ck was the tour guide. He was very friendly and helpful and speak very good english (important!) I really enjoyed the tour
A recent trip to South Korea included a trip to Haedong Yonggungsa Temple. The tour felt rushed and did not leave sufficient time to look at all the amazing statues and temples. Included in the tour was a trip to the APEC meeting venue and the international market. This was again time limited and rushed. Our guide Willow was an absolute delight and tried her best to keep to the time schedule. Busan is an amazing city with much to offer and should make it onto a travel short list to South Korea.
Everything was excellent, except that the tour could include more places in Busan. The temple site was the best, but the rest of the tour could show more of the city. As it is, the tour is divided into sections of the city when it could all be seen in one day.
Due to the fireworks festival the tour started early. This was announced in the confirmation off pick up at hotel. A very good choice it turned out. We arrived at all stops early and as such these stops were not so crowded. This is something I like. Also the sun was still rising and that resulted in some nice views from the temple and the H-mountain. Our guide was Steve. Steve is an excellent guide. He shares his knowledge with great enthousiasm. Whilst navigating traffic he knows a short cut or two. Very handy in the busy traffic resulting from road closures because of the fireworks festival.
<p>Although I originally booked the Gyeongju tour, I changed to this one since when wasn't enough people for it to go ahead, and I had a great time seeing Busan. Our guide Steve did an amazing job at showing us around and was really friendly and talkative. I was only in Busan for 3 nights and was travelling by myself, so this tour allowed me to see much more of the city than I otherwise would have. The tour included lunch bibimbap at a korean restaurant and Steve took lots of photos for us at all the scenic locations. After the tour he offered to either drop us off at our hotels or at the east side of the city where there's a huge shopping centre and spaland which was really convenient.</p>
My wife and I did Busan in May 2018, and we had a great time. Not surprised Lonely Planet recently voted it best Asian destination for 2018. We stayed about 4 nights, and while the weather was pleasant and cool, it did rain a fair bit. The one day tour we did with the Busan Tourism Centre was a great way to cover some of the main attractions of the city, as we were in a private and very comfortable van with another couple, and our guide cum driver, Steve. It was the best way to roll, given the weather, as Steve managed to navigate the key areas with minimal disruption and maximum impact. The highlights were the Yonggungsa Temple, and while I'm not one for war, the UN Memorial was very moving. The rain disrupted the free diving grannies visit, but overall it was a very enjoyable and comfortable tour. Steve spoke very good english, was knowledgeable and communicative, and most importantly, friendly and fun. Highly recommended. We're going back in October.
We had an amazing tour with our guide Steve, he has so much knowledge about Korea so we learned so much while on the tour! If you want to see Busan and have a great time while doing so, this is the tour for you! Couldn’t recommend him enough!
<p>This was my first time in Korea with my mother. Our guide Steve is very friendly and is highly knowledgeable about Busan. My mother was a picky eater but she enjoyed the food at the restaurant we were taken to very much. At the end of our trip we ask to be dropped off at Spa land as he recommend it as one of the best in Korea.</p>
<p>Our day tour of Busan, led by Steve with assistance from Jake and Amy, was awesome. Despite it being the coldest day in Busan in nearly a decade, the tour went at our pace. By far, we enjoyed our time spent at Haedong Yonggungsa Temple and the APEC House the most. The UN Memorial Cemetery was also a must-see, especially as Steve ensured we made it there in time to see the flag lowering ceremony. We learned about the history of South Korea's second largest city, as well as recent developments. All three guides spoke fluent English as they attended university in the States and were welcoming and helpful with our two toddler-aged children. Photographs were taken by a tour guide and sent to us a few days after our tour, part of the tour we most appreciated, as we rarely have more than a few photos of our family together on holiday. Our lunch at a Korean bbq restaurant, included in the tour price, was delicious and very, very filling. </p> <p>While Busan can be explored without a tour, based upon what we learned and how we experienced the City, I wouldn't recommend doing it any other way.</p>
<p>Thoroughly enjoyed this tour. Steve was great! Also Beth, our tour guide. Loved how accommodating they were and it was such a day well spent. They made us feel comfortable and were super knowledgeable.</p>
<p>Great tour and Beth our guide was very informative and lots of fun!</p>
<p>Beth, was our tour guide, she was so cute , and she was really nice and knowledgeable. She took for us many pictures ...thank you Beth!! This tour is very good for those who are for the first time in Busan, i hight recommended. We was 5 persons in one mini van...Lunch was tasty olso. I enjoy every touristic attraction . thank you</p>
<p>We genuinely enjoyed our tour, Busan is diverse and offers beautiful sights.Thanks to our guide, Steve Kim, who is a friendly, knowledgeable, eloquent and full of sincere humour person, we saw a lot, had all our questions answered and problems solved, and fell in love with Busan....and South Korea, even more...</p>
<p>Steve, our tour guide gave us the most fun, meaningful, informative and just a worth for your buck tour This was our first time to Korea and we were very skeptical but, Steve erased all of that and made us feel right at home from the get go. It helped a lot that his english was great as well as his Korean. We enjoyed Steve so much that we now have him as our Hanai adopted son from another country.<br/> Steve took a lot of pictures and we loved the tour very much, my husband had a lot of questions and Steve had the answers it was so cool. This tour was by far the best and I mean best tour we've been on anywhere. Thank You Steve. Hope to see you again.<br/> We Love You: Jan and Joy Muranaka</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I was the only person that booked this tour. However, Busan Tourism Center worked to book me on a different tour. I ended up taking the day trip to Gyeongju. Steve, our guide, was great. The tour was informative and wearing the traditional Korean clothing was a blast. I highly recommend any of the tours offered by Busan Tourism Center.</p>
<p>Steve was our tour guide and he was awesome! He's friendly and gave us recommendations on eateries and other attractions as well! What was even better was that we were the only ones for the tour that day so we had the flexibility of time. Lunch was also catered according to our needs. Two thumbs up!</p>
<p>The tour guide called Steve is friendly and helpful. He took a lot of great photos for us. This tour is highly recommended to those who are not going to drive by car in Busan as most of the spots are far away from subways. Steve will lead you guys to the designated locations efficiently.</p>
Monday through Friday 9 am to 7 pm EST
Reach us by phone
Reach us by email