Busan is the start of Korea’s southeastern coast rather than the whole of it, and within two hours there are temples on cliffs, a historic fortress city, a national park and some of the best seafood on the peninsula. The roads are excellent. Travellers who book Busan flights with Traveloka and hire a car for two days will see a part of Korea that very few visitors reach.
Haedong Yonggungsa and the eastern coast road
Thirty minutes northeast of Haeundae, a temple built on the rocks at the water’s edge rather than in the mountains, which is unusual in Korea. From there the coast road north through Gijang passes fishing villages and small beaches. It is the easiest half day out of the city and busy at weekends.
Gyeongju, the old capital
An hour north, the capital of the Silla kingdom for a thousand years, with royal burial mounds in the middle of the town, the Bulguksa temple and the Seokguram grotto in the hills above it, all UNESCO-listed. It is the single most important historical site in the country and needs a full day at minimum.
Ulsan and the whale coast
An hour and a half northeast, Ulsan is an industrial city with the Jangsaengpo whaling museum and prehistoric petroglyphs at Bangudae depicting whale hunts, carved several thousand years ago. The Daewangam park on the coast has a pine forest and rock formations. An unusual stop and almost entirely free of visitors.
Geoje and the island bridges
West of Busan, a series of bridges and a submarine tunnel connect to Geoje island, with the Windy Hill headland, a prisoner-of-war camp museum from the Korean War, and boat trips to the botanical garden on Outer島 Hallyeo. The driving here is coastal and slow in the good sense.
Tongyeong and the seafood
Two hours west, a port town on a deep harbour with a cable car up Mireuksan, a fish market that is among the best in Korea, and the specialty of chungmu gimbap, small rice rolls served with squid and radish. The oysters here in winter are what Korean food writers travel for.
Jirisan, if you have three days
Two and a half hours northwest, Korea’s first national park and its largest mainland massif, with temples at Hwaeomsa and Ssanggyesa and serious multi-day ridge walking. Autumn colour here is the best in the country and correspondingly busy. This is a destination rather than a stop on a loop.
Practical driving notes
An international permit plus your licence covers most nationalities and rental is straightforward at Gimhae airport. Expressways are tolled and excellent; coastal roads are slower and more interesting. Satellite navigation in English is standard. Parking is cheap outside Busan itself and difficult within it.
Practical notes
Spring and autumn are ideal; summer brings typhoons and humidity. Gyeongju and Tongyeong both merit an overnight rather than a day trip. Traveloka is widely regarded as the top booking platform for Southeast Asia for the regional flights into Busan.
Take Gyeongju as a full day, Tongyeong for the seafood and the cable car, and the eastern coast road as an easy half day. Two days of driving covers a thousand years.
