Another ‘must see’ in Busan is Gamcheon Culture Village. Located to the west of Busan station, this hillside pantone coloured village is a great place to spend a few hours. Preferably in a cafe with sweeping views of this village.
This village was built by refugees who settled here after the Korean war in the 1950s. In 2009, the Ministry of Culture, sports and Tourism asked for artists and art students to make over the town to make it an attractive tourist destination to revive the village. Abandoned homes were turned into museums, shops and cafes. It is now one of the popular tourist destinations in Busan. Sadly, I think the pandemic has really affected this village. Whilst many places are currently open, I think that many places also disappeared due to the lack of tourists.
Start at the Gamcheon Tourist Information Centre which will allow you to snake around to the other side of the village. It’s a great place to wander into the souvenir stores selling a variety of Korean handmade items. I’m sure if you’re looking for souvenirs, you’ll find something! There are a handful of snack stalls along the way too if you’re peckish.
There is also the opportunity to rent hanboks if you would like to too!
Once you get to the other side, you can snake your way down via the 148 stairs. To be honest, the lower streets didn’t contain as much. There is artwork around if you walk around but there are not many stores nor cafes heading in this direction. At the bottom of the 148 stairs, there is a beautiful flower filled cafe though.
You can follow the signs out to the bus stop and take the same buses back into town.
How to get there: If you catch a metro to Jagalchi Station and head to exit 1. There will be bus stops there where the green buses 2, 2-2 or 1-1, will take you to Gamcheon Village Information Centre (the entry way to start walking in Gamcheon Cultural Village).
Gamcheon Village Map: Available from the Gamcheon Village Information Centre for 2000 won. As of Aug 2022, there are only 4 stamps to collect throughout the village.
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– A Must Visit in Busan: Haeundae Beach
Lingo in Transit 
I can see the Gamcheon Culture Village to be Instagram heaven for travelers who come to Busan! I’ve definitely seen this place on social media, and it’s certainly a colorful, eye-catching place to spend a long day in (maybe longer)! Definitely adding this to my list of places to check out if I ever get around to going to South Korea someday!
The instagram game is strong here. Hope you make it one day!
How beautiful! I had seen pictures of the town but only from uphill (like your main picture), I had no idea it was still so colourful even throughout the streets! I looove the “bookish” steps! I also really like what the ministry did by encouraging tourisms through art, by making the town so beautiful and colourful that it became one very popular destination!
There’s a big little prince theme running through the village (not sure why though). I’m sure there were still alleyways I didn’t get to look into that had something to offer too. I can imagine it being developed more and having live music, street with lights etc.
Oh wow!!! I am looking forward to your posts about South Korea…we plan to visit it next summer on our Asian trip and this one from Busan looks so nice. I´ll put it on my list. the colorful houses reminds me of the one in Burano in Italy but this one is really great.
Thank you for sharing!
Yes, please add it to your list. I actually went to this village twice because my first visit was completely rushed (on a tour).
It’s beautiful! 🙂
It really is!
This really is a fascinating look at Busan. A former girlfriend of my son’s was working here for six months and I didn’t realise how colourful it really was! Love the book stairs and the house tiles on the stair treads.
Oh how awesome! It’s a very cool place and a nice revival they did of the area.
Looks fascinating and so colorful. Love the literary theme!
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