In a nutshell

A journey to the city of Busan and surroundings to discover its many sides: a wonderful Buddhist temple and Busan Museum, beautiful views of the city and two quaint, bustling markets. And of course, time for a delicious lunch of local products.

Main stops

Beomeosa Buddhist temple
Typical Korean lunch
Yongdusan Park (photo stop)
Jagalchi Fish Market
Gukje Marketù
Busan Museum

The programme

We will leave the port behind us to reach the woody slopes of Geumjeongsan Mountain, the location of our first stop on this excursion: the Beomeosa Buddhist temple, built in 678 by Ui Sang, a monk and an important figure in Korean Buddhism.
We will cross the monumental entrances of the temple, laid out on various levels along a slope, and admire the exquisite combination of Korean and Japanese architecture as far as the main hall, with a magnificent ceiling covered with carved floral motifs.
We will continue to the Busan Museum which offers seven regular exhibition rooms spread over three floors in addition to the Kiln Exhibition Hall, and the Outdoor Exhibition Hall, with thirteen thousand relics. The typical relic is national treasure number 200, a Gilt-bronze Buddhist Saint standing statue created in the period of united Silla.
When we start feeling peckish, we can enjoy a delicious lunch featuring Korean grilled dishes.
After lunch, we will head to Yongdusan Park, located on the top of the hill in the centre of Busan, where we can admire amazing views of the port and the surroundings. We will stop here briefly to take some incredible photos.
In the afternoon, we will explore Jagalchi Fish Market, the largest in South Korea where the majority of traders are women. We will walk among the colourful stalls with their strong scents and simple wooden crates placed on the ground selling mackerel, octopus and whale steaks.
We will then move on to Gukje Market, the largest traditional market in Busan. In the 1950s it was given over to the refugees, who could open up shops to make a living, but it has since developed into a popular, colourful market where we can find practically everything at a reasonable price.

Good to know

This excursion is not recommended for wheelchair users.