If you are visiting Busan anytime soon you may be wondering where you to stay and whether you should stay by one of the beaches. In particular whether you should stay at Haeundae Beach vs Gwangalli Beach. I stayed at both Haeundae and Gwangalli on my 9 day solo trip to South Korea and hopefully this post will help you decide where is best to stay for your next trip to Busan, South Korea.
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Busan
Busan is the second largest city in South Korea in South Gyeongsang province, located on the southeastern tip of Korea and is approximately 314 km from Seoul. It is is a large coastal city known for its beautiful beaches and mountainous landscapes. There are many things to do and some of these things are located around Haeundae beach and Gwangalluu beach which are both popular areas in Busan.
Travelling From Seoul to Busan Via Train
Travelling from Seoul to Busan is pretty straight forward and the main ways to get there are by train and bus. The fastest route is via the KTX train from Seoul station which takes 2.5/3 hours and is a very convenient way to travel. You can book tickets via the Korail website or Trip.com and you can choose economy or first class tickets when booking. Some of the main stops on the KTX train from Seoul to Busan are Yongsan, Suwon, Daejon, Dongdaegu, Gyeongju and Ulsan. Gyeongju is a popular historic city in South Korea where many people stop by on the way to or on the way back from Busan, you may want to consider doing this.
I recommend arriving at Seoul station early because it is a very busy station and your train will leave from the KTX area which can be a long way to walk to get to depending on where you enter Seoul station. I took a 6am KTX train and assumed there would be food sold on the train but there is no food sold on board , make sure to buy any snacks or food at Seoul station. The toilets on the train were clean and there are luggage racks.
If you are wondering what to do with luggage, you can leave them at a luggage storage facility. I left my 23kg suitcase at Storr which is a luggage storage facility located in a building close to Seoul Station. This meant I only took my handluggage to Busan which was very convenient for me as I didn’t have to carry around a big suitcase on this trip.
Storr Adddress: South Korea, Seoul, Yongsan District, Hangang-daero, 372 KDB생명타워 아케이드 지하 2층. I recommend having Naver maps and/or Kakao maps as Google maps doesn’t work well in South Korea.
Please note there is the ITX train (Intercity Train Express) which is slower than the KTX. The ITX trains take about 5 hours whereas the KTX trains take 2.5/3 hours.
Busan station is approximately 25 minutes from Haeundae beach and 10/15 minutes from Gwangalli beach by car/taxi. Via the metro, Busan station is 50 minutes away from Haeundae beach and is 35 minutes away from Gwangalli beach.
Haeundae Beach & Where To Stay
Haeundae Beach is one of South Korea’s most famous beaches located in West Busan with hotels, restaurants and different activities close by. It is 1.5km and has some of the popular attractions in the area are located in Haeundae such as the Busan Sky Capsules and Beach Train at Mipo , Busan X The Sky Observatory which is the second tallest building in South Korea, Haeundae Food Market, Dongbaek Island, The Bay 101, Cloud Mipo and more. There is a metro station (Line 2) right by Haeundae Beach which makes it easy to get around Busan and makes it a convenient area to stay.
There are so many hotels around Haeundae Beach , the main areas you will most likely find hotels are Gunam – ro, Mipo and the Haeundae beach front. Gunam -r0 (Gunam Main Road) is a lively main road that leads Haeundae Station (Exit 3 or 5) directly to Haeundae Beach. It has restaurants, cafes and hotels along it and is a very convenient place to stay. Mipo is a waterfront area located at the eastern end of Haeundae Beach where the popular Busan Sky Capsules and Beach Train are located.
Hotels around Haeundae Beach
I stayed at the Best Western Haeundae Hotel for 70K won a night in a Deluxe Double Room with a City View, which is located on Gunam -ro. The Haeundae Traditional Market is located in an alleyway off Gunam road and is directly opposite the Best Western Haunedae Hotel. Best Western is only located 5 minute away from the beach which is a great distance. Best Western is considered a lower end hotel so does not have many frills or even breakfast included but it has what everyone needs and the location is great.
If you are looking for a more luxurious stay you may want to consider Signiel Hotel, Grand Josun, Westin Josun, Park Hyatt, L7 Hotels by Lotte Hotels and Shilla Stay Busan.
Other highly rated but affordable hotels are The Van Hotel, Lavi De Atlan Hotel 2, Hound Hotel Haundae Signature, MS Hotel Haeundae, Le Collective Haeundae Paragraf and Mipo Oceanside Guesthouse.
If you are looking for a hostel you can check out Kimchee Guesthouse and Canvas Black Guesthouse.
Explore more hotels in Haeundae Beach below with the map!
Gwangalli Beach & Where To Stay
Gwangalli Beach is another famous sandy beach located in the southeastern part of Busan, South Korea, specifically in Suyeong-gu. Gwangalli Beach is a crescent-shaped beach 1.4km, with lovely night views of Gwangan Bridge.
Gwangalli beach can seem quite chill but does get busy due to the restaurants and cafe’s being adjacent to the beach. This can be a positive though as it’s quite obvious where the restaurants and food places. Other places located close by are also Millak Waterfront Park and Millak Fisherman’s Live Fish Market. There is also a weekly drone show on Saturdays on Gwangalli Beach which is such a lovely view.
Hotels around Gwangalli Beach
I stayed at Hotel 1 Gwangalli, located right in front of the Gwangalli beachfront. I stayed in a Premium Ocean Touch room for 155K won which had amazing views of Gwangan Bridge! Hotel 1 Gwangali has lovely private rooms like the one i stayed in as well as hostel rooms which also have views! I’ll be writing a separate review on Hotel 1 so look out for it! I will say I do recommend for a hotel with amazing views although breakfast is more of a breakfast bag so no hot breakfast!
Other hotels in the area that are highly recommended are After Chapter Hotel , New CZ LCT Residence , Elmomento Gwangan and Kent Hotel Gwangalli by Kensington
If you are looking for a well recommended hostel in the area then Hotel 1 Gwangalli, also has hostel rooms.
Explore more hotels in Gwangalli Beach below with the map!
Which One is Better – Haeundae Vs Gwangalli Beach?
This really depends on the type of vibe you are going for and what is most important to you on your trip. Haeundae and Gwangalli are also only approximately 15 minutes away from each other via the metro so wherever you stay you will be able to get to either location easily.
I would say Haeundae is busier than Gwangalli, has more tourist attractions close by and is probably more convenient for tourists. Gwangalli has a more relaxed vibe than Haeundae, in my opinion but also has the weekly drone show and Gwangan bridge which is a lovely view at night. Both Hauendae and Gwangalli are sandy beaches which are similar in length but Hauendae is wider than Gwangalli, both have restaurants close by and have a metro station in the area. It’s important to note that Gwangalli can also get busy and due to Haeundae being wider and having more things going on it can feel like Haeundae has more space even when it’s busy.
When staying at Hotel 1 Gwangalli, the night time views of Gwangan Bridge lit up were amazing and seeing Gwangalli beach from my hotel window was lovely. While in Haeundae, I stayed at Best Western Haeundae Hotel which is a more affordable hotel than others in the area but also had great views of the city (although I felt the windows weren’t super clean). You can also easily find a hotel with a sea view at both Haeundae and Gwangalli. From my experience the hotels in Gwangalli seem generally cheaper than Haeundae so if you are looking for nicer room at a lower rate the Gwangallii may be a good option. Both areas have decent hostels and hotels whereas Haeundae was a bit more expensive which would be expected due to a lot of attractions closer to there.
As you can see I can’t say one is better than the other since both areas are great but I would recommend that if you are looking for an area that has a lot of attractions close by, has a lot more going on and has a large range of restaurants and cafes then Haeundae is for you. Gwangalli on the other hand still has a nice vibe but seemed to be less busier than Haeundae but is still a busy place. Gwangalli is closer to Busan station, has the weekly drone show and also seems to be cheaper in terms of accommodation.
When it comes to visiting other attractions like Gamcheon Culttural village, Jagalchi Market etc neither has a significant edge but Gwangalli is closer to Busan station which means it will be slightly quicker to get these places. Whereas if you are heading to Cheongsapo, Haedong Yonggungsa Temple then Haeundae is closer than Gwangalli Beach.
Overall, both areas are great and wherever you choose to stay you will have a great time, you just need to decide what is more important for you – location, price, tourist attractions etc.
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