Seokguram Grotto 석굴암

Seokguram Grotto is free and opens at 09:00 every day, with last entry at 17:30 in October, 17:00 from November to January and 18:00 from March to September. Reach it by bus 12 from Bulguksa (08:40–16:40, about hourly) or a 2.2 km forest trail (about 50 minutes). The Buddha is seen through a glass wall, so the visit is short: allow about 2 hours from Bulguksa and back.

Seokguram is a man-made cave shrine of white granite high on Tohamsan, the mountain above Bulguksa. Inside sits a seated stone Buddha about 3.4 m tall, carved in the 8th century and counted among the masterpieces of East Asian Buddhist sculpture. The grotto and Bulguksa were listed together as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995, and the grotto is a National Treasure.

Is Seokguram worth the trip up?

Go if you are already at Bulguksa, like sculpture or temples, and can spare about 2 hours. The ride up Tohamsan and the forest walk from the car park are part of the visit.

Skip it if you have only a few hours in Gyeongju, or you expect to walk inside. Since 1976 visitors have viewed the grotto from the entrance through a glass wall, which protects the stone from damp and temperature changes. You stand at the front, look in at the Buddha and the carved figures on the walls, and move on; the time at the grotto itself is short.

Opens	09:00 every day, all year
Last entry	18:00 (Mar–Sep), 17:30 (Feb and Oct), 17:00 (Nov–Jan)
Admission	Free since 4 May 2023
Car park	Cars 2,000 won, buses 4,000 won
Pets	Not allowed
Bad weather	Entry may be stopped under heavy rain, typhoon or snow warnings
Time needed	About 2 hours from Bulguksa and back, including the bus or walk

Hours, fees, parking and weather rule from Seokguram’s own visitor page, with the same free entry, seasonal times and parking fees on VisitKorea’s Korean page, checked 23 October 2026. The temple has closed the grotto after heavy snow before, reopening the next afternoon once the snow was cleared, so check its notice board on a winter day.

Getting there: bus 12 or the trail

Option	How	Time	Notes
City bus 12	From the 불국사 (Bulguksa) stop or the 불국사매표소 (Bulguksa ticket office) stop up to 석굴암주차장 (Seokguram car park)	First bus 08:40, last 16:40, every 60–80 minutes	A loop: the same bus goes back down via the ticket office to 불국사. 1,500 won, 50 won less with a transport card
Trail from Bulguksa	National park forest trail from Bulguksa to the Seokguram car park	2.2 km, about 50 minutes up	A gentle gradient; the national park rates it easier than its other trails
Car park to grotto	Footpath from the car park and gate	About 10 minutes, 0.6 km	Everyone walks this last part, whether by bus, car or trail
Taxi	From Bulguksa or the centre		Useful when the next bus is far off

Bus times and stop order from Gyeongju City’s live bus system; trail distances and times from the Korea National Park Service, checked 23 October 2026.

• Plan around bus 12. With only one bus an hour or so, check the next departure on the stop display or the Gyeongju live bus site before you go up, and note the time of a bus down. The last bus leaves 불국사 at 16:40.
• Getting to Bulguksa first. From the bus terminals or the city centre, take bus 10 or 11 to the 불국사 stop; from Gyeongju Station (KTX), most visitors change at the terminal stop or take a taxi. The Bulguksa page has the full bus table.
• Walking up, riding down suits most people: the climb is steady but easy, and bus 12 takes the strain out of the return.
• By car. From Bulguksa, follow the Seokguram signs up Tohamsan for about 20 minutes to the car park.

What you see inside

The Korea Heritage Service dates the grotto to 751, when the minister Kim Dae-seong began it, the same year he began Bulguksa; it was finished in 774 and was first called Seokbulsa, “stone Buddha temple”. It is not cut into a cliff: the chamber was built by hand from white granite partway up the mountain.

• The layout. A rectangular antechamber leads through a short passage into a round main chamber. Its domed ceiling is made of more than 360 flat stones, a construction the heritage service calls without parallel anywhere.
• The main Buddha. A seated Shakyamuni about 3.4 m tall on a lotus pedestal, set slightly back from the centre of the round chamber. His right hand touches the ground, the gesture of the moment of enlightenment.
• The wall carvings. Of the original 40 figures, 38 remain. Eight guardian deities line the antechamber, two muscular door guardians flank the passage and the Four Heavenly Kings stand inside it. In the main chamber come gods, bodhisattvas and ten disciples, each with a different face.
• The eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara. On the back wall, directly behind the Buddha, stands the most finely carved figure in the grotto. It is hard to see from the glass, but it is the reason to take a moment at the front.

Seokguram is a working place of worship, so keep your voice down at the entrance. See Korean etiquette for temple manners and temples for other temples worth visiting.

Tohamsan summit trail closed this winter

The national park has closed the 1.4 km trail from the Seokguram ranger post to the summit of Tohamsan from 1 November 2026 to 31 March 2027 while Gyeongju City carries out a second phase of slope-reinforcement work around the grotto. It plans to open the trail for one day on 1 January 2027 for the New Year sunrise. The notice does not cover the grotto itself or the trail between Bulguksa and Seokguram. Korea National Park Service notice of 22 October 2026.

Tips for a first visit

• Go up first, then see Bulguksa. Taking an early bus 12 or walking up at 09:00 gets the grotto done while the day is fresh, and you finish at Bulguksa with no bus to catch.
• Mind the last entry. It is 17:30 in October and 17:00 from November to January, and the last bus 12 is at 16:40, so an afternoon visit needs a firm plan.
• Bring a layer. The grotto is higher up the mountain than Bulguksa, and the path runs through shaded forest.
• Autumn. Late October to early November is Tohamsan’s maple season and the busiest time on the bus. See autumn leaves.

Around Seokguram

Bulguksa, at the bottom of bus 12, is the natural pair; together they make a half day. Bomun Lake, on bus 10’s route back to town, has resort hotels and a lakeside path. Namsan is a mountain of Silla rock carvings for a half-day hike, and the grotto lies inside Gyeongju National Park.

Back in the centre, end the day at the lit-up Donggung Palace and Wolji Pond, open until 22:00, or the tomb park at Daereungwon. For trains, where to stay and the rest of the city, see the Gyeongju guide and the Gyeongsang region page. For a route that adds Gyeongju between Seoul and Busan, see Korea in 7 days.