Busan

Busan (formerly romanized as Pusan) is a city located in the south-eastern province of South Gyeongsang, South Korea.

Located at the southern tip of the Korean peninsula and with over 3.6 million people, Busan is South Korea's second largest city and is known for its beaches, local seafood and events such as the city's renowned international film festival. It appeals to those seeking a more laid back atmosphere than Seoul as well as possessing an international flair, with sailors from around the world trooping through and a growing number of tourists. The Haeundae area of Busan that contains a large amount of the city's attractions is described in a separate article.

Busan has a sub-tropical climate with a hot humid summer and autumn along with a mild winter. Busan typically doesn't experience snow.

Busan sits roughly 450 km southeast of Seoul and about 150 km (93 miles) northwest of Japan's main islands. Nampodong to the south is Busan's shopping and entertainment downtown, while central Seomyeon at the intersection of metro lines 1 and 2 is the main office building area. Between them are Busan's train station and its international ferry terminals. The beaches of Gwangalli, Haeundae and Songjeong lie to the east, the ruins of mountain fortress Geumjeong guard the north. To the west is Gimhae town where the Busan Airport is located. The eastern district of Haeundae is the most accessible area for foreigners, and many of Busan's attractions can be found here making it a good base to start exploring the city.

English in Busan is not quite as widely understood as it is in Seoul although still people should know enough to help you out. Taxi drivers are unlikely to have much English knowledge, although there is a translation service the taxi driver can call up if needed. Owing to the sizable number of Japanese tourists visiting Busan, knowing even limited Japanese may be useful since this is often understood by people working in hotels, restaurants and taxis. Busan has a strong and distinct dialect that may be a little hard to understand if you have been studying Korean in Seoul. However, everyone in Busan will be able to understand a Seoul accent.

See the Districts articles for more listings.

• The Haeundae area in East Busan is the main tourist destination of the city and is described in its own article.
• The Suyeong area in East Busan is another noteworthy destination of the city and is described in its own article.

This is the old town of Busan with a lot of post-war buildings, large docks and atmosphere. This is the place to go see the heritage of the city. The Central Busan is described in its own article.

Easy to overlook, the north part of the city has few tourist attractions. Nevertheless it offers excellent hiking opportunities, the famous Beomeosa Temple as well as vibrant student life around the PNU university.

The western part of the city is full of industrial parks leading to docks and the airport. There are however some nature areas preserved, such as the Nakdong River Estuary Migratory Bird Sanctuary and Taejongdae Park.

See the Districts articles for more listings.

As Korea's second largest city, there are a large number of events. The online Busan Haps magazine has a listing of new events in English.

• The Busan International Film Festival. Typically runs the first 10 days every year in October. It takes place all across Busan showcasing many international films and often some significant premieres of new Korean films. Most of the events are held on Haeundae beach where there are many tents promoting the industry as well as public interviews with stars. The Busan Cinema Center opened in 2011 to support this event. Tickets sell out quickly, and very long queues can be seen outside cinemas in the early morning for people wanting to catch the most anticipated films.

• Polar Bear Swim, Haeundae Beach. A famous beach swim in the first week of January when the temperature is around 0°C. Hundreds of participants brave the cold to compete in the sea. This event has run annually at the Choseon Beach Hotel since 1988.

• Busan International Rock Festival, Samrak Park. Busan has been holding an annual Rock festival for 12 years now in August. Mostly Korean and Asian rock bands although some Western bands do appear.

• Sea Art Festival 2013, Songdo Beach. An art festival held on the beach every year from mid-September to mid-October.

The mountains around Busan have some good hiking trails. It should be noted that hiking trails are not really well marked in Korea, even if you can read Korean script. Definitely do your research before you hike. Hiking clothes are a must have fashion item in Korea these days, even if they only get used in the local mall. Prices are extremely high, so you should purchase what you need before coming to Korea.

• Geumjeong Fortress. A popular route is to take the metro to Oncheongjang, and then a short taxi ride to the cable car station. At the top of the mountain head towards the South Gate of Geumjeong Fortress and then through the North Gate (Bukmun) and down to Beomeosa Temple. This has a distance of 9 km (Taking between 3 to 4 hours).

• Seokbulsa temple. Another impressive temple about 90 minutes hike from the cable car station. It is often overlooked, but has magnificent statues carved into the mountain itself. Great views over Busan and very peaceful. From the South Gate (남문), the path indicated by the Mandeokchon (만덕촌) sign leads to a collection of restaurants and volleyball courts in Namman Village (남만 마을). At one point, the path stops at a court; walk right and pick up the trail on the other side. About 500m down the trail look for a sign that reads in Korean 석불사 입구 (Seokbulsa entrance). You will come to a steep mountain road. Turn right and walk the road 600m uphill to the temple.

• Jangsan Mountain. If you are near Haeundae, then Jangsan mountain can provide a good day's hiking. There are military bases at the summit, complete with minefields but these are clearly marked and fenced off, and great views over Busan and on a clear day to Japan. A good starting point is Daecheon Park in Jangsan. A hike to the summit and back should take 3–4 hours.

Busan has a strong reputation for film, holding the Busan International Film Festival every year. There are cinemas in every area of the city, although unfortunately it is hard to find Korean films with English subtitles. The film festival being an exception to this. Please note that it is really hard to get tickets to the Busan International Film Festival. People wait outside festival ticket offices for hours hoping to get something, so do some planning before traveling to Busan just for this. Haeundae beach has a public red carpet event at the beginning of the festival where you can see Korean film stars and hear them being interviewed.

• Baseball Busan is home to the 'Lotte Giants' team, and home games are held at Sajik Baseball Stadium.

• Basketball The Busan KT Sonicboom team is based in Sajik Arena.

• Football

• Busan Sailing. Haeundae has the largest leisure marina in Korea located about 10 minutes away from the beach walking in the direction of the Chosun Beach Hotel.

• Chicago Fitness Club. Is a great place to train. It has a wide range of cardio equipment, free weights (dumbbells up to 100lbs) and machines as well as golf practice facilities. It is located on the 5th floor of the Milligore Shopping Center in Seomyeon.

See the Districts articles for more listings. Currency exchange is possible near Nampo-dong and Hauendae at banks such as KB BS Bank (Busan Bank) and NH Bank. Withdrawing cash at an ATM with your foreign MasterCard or Visa is usually simple, with most cash machines have an English language option. American Express cards are more difficult to use.

See the Districts articles for more listings. Korea is justly renowned for its great seafood tradition, and Busan as Korea's main coastal city provides possibly the best opportunity to try fresh seafood caught locally. Jagalchi fish market where most of the seafood is landed. You can turn up at 07:00 for delicious grilled fish and a variation of Korean 'hangover soup', although many experiences at both the high and low end are available to you throughout the day. International market where everything is available at very cheap prices. You can eat Spicy Glass Noodles, Chungmu-style Gimbap and Ssiat hotteok etc. Note that restaurants in Korea can open and close frequently, although if an establishment listed below has closed then another good option is likely to be found close by. Korean restaurants also usually serve only a few specialty dishes, so check with your party beforehand. Vegetarians, as elsewhere in Korea, should be mindful that there are limited options in Busan.

There are dishes you should try in Busan that are not typically available in other parts of Korea.

• Dong-nae pajeon is a seafood and green onion pancake, an affordable and popular Busan dish.

• Daegu Tang (대구탕) is a delicious flaky cod soup with vegetables. You will find dedicated restaurants for this at the east side of Haeundae beach.

• Bokguk is a soup made with pufferfish, the type of which is extremely poisonous. It is the same as Japanese Fugu. There are many places in Busan licensed to prepare pufferfish, but you may want to know what you are getting into. Typically there are cartoon pictures of a fish looking like a balloon outside, so should be easy to spot.

See the Districts articles for more listings. Busan has thousands if not tens of thousands of drinking places scattered throughout the city and popular spots include Nampodong and the area around Pusan National University. Just look around, and look up, on most streets if you are looking for a bar. Any tall commercial building is likely to have a few inside, usually with English words displayed and often the German word 'Hof' that indicated a place for eating and drinking. The Kyungsung University area has the most selections in terms of density and sheer numbers of drinking establishments of any area in Busan. Gwangalli beach in Suyeong is a great place for a drink, especially at night time with the Gwangan bridge lit up over the bay. In Haeundae, most of the bars that appeal to westerners are on the main street between Haeundae metro station (exit 5) and the beach. Refer to the main Haeundae article for a full list.

• Emergency Numbers * Police: ☎ 112 * Fire Department: ☎119

• Tourist information Center: 051-253-8253 or 1330
• Gimhae International Airport: 051-463-9457
• Busan Station: 1544-7788
• KTX Reservations: 1544-8545
• Busan Ferry Terminal: 051-465-3471
• Busan Coastal Ferry Terminal: 051-400-3399
• Busan Express Bus Terminal: 051-508-9955

Generally speaking Busan is as safe as most places in South Korea, which is to say very safe. Busan is very safe to roam around freely at night. Be a little bit cautious when most bars close at around 3AM. Do note that some bars stay open until the business dies down and in many cases this may not be until sunrise. Also take care in the area around Busan Station. If any place could be deemed seedy in Busan this area could be considered so. On the metro late at night, you may encounter elderly men who are rather vocal, and under the influence of alcohol, who may be unpleasant towards you. This is however unlikely to be dangerous, and you should just move to another metro car. There are occasionally sand storms from China covering Busan. You should avoid going outside if one passes through. Driving standards are rather erratic in Busan, even by general Korean standards. Be careful of zebra crossing without traffic lights since they are effectively ignored. Korean women driving large SUVs with mobile phones glued to their ears are a common sight, as are the in-car TV entertainment systems running in many vehicles. Also be wary of scooters/mopeds, since they tend to follow even fewer road rules and are often trying to deliver something very quickly. Switching between sidewalk and road as it suits)

Beaches in Busan do experience riptides, and lifeguard cover outside summer is limited. There is a tsunami warning system and signs on the beaches, although the risk of a tsunami is far less than in nearby Japan. In the unlikely event a tsunami warning is issued for Busan or the South Korean coastline, head for the top of a tall building or higher ground. Higher ground not being easily accessible on Haeundae Beach. Every summer the local press gets very concerned about foreigners behaving badly on Busan beaches, usually by photographing Korean girls wearing bikinis, although the same press publishes similar photos of foreign women on Busan beaches. Since it can be a police matter, be careful what pictures you take on the beach.

With Seoul being so close by KTX train, the consulates in Busan do not have a lot to do. The British Consulate appears to have closed. For quick responses you should get your country's Embassy contact details in Seoul.

• Australia Australia, Room 802 Samwhan Officetel, 830-295, Bumil 2-dong, Dong-Ku, Busan 601-709, +82 51 647 1762. Honorary consulate

• Canada Canada, 99 Sinsan-ro, Saha-gu, Busan 604-721 (10-minute walk from Sinpyeong subway station, +82 51-204-5581. 9:00 - 11:30, 13:00 - 17:00 Monday - Friday. Passport, Citizenship, and Notary Services for walk-in clients

• China China, 1418,U-2-dong, Haeundae, +82 51 743-7983. The Chinese consulate might be able to issue a Chinese travel visa if you do so through a local travel agent. In person applications are not allowed.

• Japan Japan, 1147-11 Choryang-3 dong, Dong-gu, +82 51 465-5101. Provides services in Korean and Japanese only

• Russia Russia, 94 Jungang-daero, Jung-gu, Busan, +82 51-441-9904. 09:30-13:00 & 14:00-17:30. The visa section is open from 09:30-12:15 every day except Wednesdays and weekends.

• Taiwan Taiwan, 9F Dongbang B/D, 25, 4-Ga, Jungang-Dong, Jung-Gu, +82 51 463-7965.

• United States United States, 6F Rm 12, Lotte Gold Rose Bldg, #150-3, Yangjung-dong, Busan jin-gu, +82 51 863-0731. 08:30 - 12:30, 13:00 - 17:00 Monday - Friday. As of 2016, the US is expanding this diplomatic post to become a full consulate, with a corresponding range of expanded consular services.

• Mongolia Mongolia, fifth floor, Haecheon Building, Jangsan, Busan (Near Jangsan Metro station, +82 51-465-9996. 09:00-17:30. New and expanded office opened in 2017

• New Zealand New Zealand, Seo gu Amnam dong Wonyang Plaza 3Fl., Busan, +82 51 250-0630. 09:00 - 18:00. Helping organize cultural exchanges and offering advice and help regarding studying abroad and immigration issues. Does not deal with visas directly.

• Indonesia Indonesia, Korea Express Building #103, 1211-1 Choryang-Dong, Dong-Gu, Busan, +82 51 806-5676. A trade office rather than a consulate. Indonesian visas may be available here.

The Busan government websites often provide useful tourist information in English, but then neglect to maintain them. For example the now discontinued ferry to Geoje island is still listed as a current destination and many links to other English language pages are frequently broken. You should always double check before planning an itinerary.

An important and up to date resource in English is the Busan Haps online magazine. It is aimed at the expatriate community, and covers subjects ranging from completely irrelevant (expat opinions on American politics) to somewhat useful (Travel destinations in Seoul and Japan) to very useful (hidden places in Busan off the tourist trail). The event listings will definitely provide some options for you during your stay.

• Gyeongju - arguably Korea's cultural capital, just over an hour away by bus or direct train
• Geoje - Korea's second largest resort island, now directly accessible by bridge and slightly over an hour away by expressway bus
• Jinju - a quiet city known for its fortress, 1.5 hours away by bus
• Miryang - a peaceful country town and location for many Korean films, 1 hour away by bus or direct train
• Jeju Island - South Korea's favorite domestic vacation spot, reachable in 1 hour by plane or 12 hours by ferry.
• Tsushima island, Japan, makes for a good day trip from Busan.
• Fukuoka is the closest major Japanese city, just three hours away by hydrofoil.
• Japan by rail. You can sail to Fukuoka or Osaka and then use the Japanese Rail network. You can also purchase a Japan Rail Pass at the International Ferry Terminal.