Bukhansan National Park (Baegundae Peak) 북한산국립공원 (백운대)

Bukhansan National Park covers about 77 square kilometres of granite peaks, forested valleys and fortress walls on the northern edge of Seoul, spilling over into Gyeonggi Province. Designated in 1983 as Korea’s 15th national park, it is unusual for lying almost entirely within reach of a city subway, and it is famously crowded: the park service notes that Guinness World Records has listed it as the national park with the most visitors per unit area. The highest point, Baegundae (836 m), sits right on the Seoul–Gyeonggi boundary and is the most popular hiking goal.

Hiking to Baegundae

There are two classic approaches to the summit.

• From Ui-dong (east) – the park service’s standard Baegundae course. From the bus terminus in Ui-dong, walk about 2 km up a paved road past the Doseonsa temple approach to the Baegundae Trail Support Center. From there the trail climbs over Haru-jae pass, past Insu shelter and the Baegundae shelter, then through the old fortress gate Baegunbongammun (also called Wimun) to the top: 1.9 km and around 1.5 hours one way. The route passes beneath Insubong, a sheer granite dome next to Baegundae.
• From Bukhansanseong (west) – starting at the Bukhansanseong trailhead, this route passes the fortress gate Daeseomun and the temple Borisa before climbing to the summit; about 3.4 km and roughly 2 hours 40 minutes one way.

Both routes are rocky, and the last 0.5 km below the summit is steep, with cables and steps fixed into the rock. A Korean flag flies on the summit rock, and the view takes in Seoul and much of Gyeonggi Province at a glance.

Rules and safety

Korean national parks control trail entry by time. For the Baegundae route you may start from 04:00, but the control point closes at 17:00 from March to November and at 16:00 from December to February. Staying on the mountain after dark is not allowed, and areas off the marked trails around Baegundae are closed because of fall risk. At weekends the narrow summit section can back up badly, so start early and allow for delays. Bring water, proper boots and, from late autumn, microspikes or crampons.

Bukhansanseong Fortress

The ridges are threaded with the walls and gates of Bukhansanseong, a mountain fortress whose history the park service traces back some 2,000 years to the Three Kingdoms period, and the park holds around a hundred temples and hermitages. Combining a hike with Seoul’s palaces on another day gives a good sense of how the Joseon capital was defended.

Getting there

Both trailheads are reached by subway plus a short bus ride from central Seoul; see our transportation guide for using a transport card on buses. On a clear day you can also pick out the park’s peaks from the observatory at Lotte World Tower.