Hongcheon Day Trip Course: A Full Half-Day at Sutasa and the Ginkgo Forest

Hongcheon is about 1 hour 30 minutes from Seoul by car — the perfect distance for a Gangwon-do day trip. To cut right to it, the most efficient route is morning Sutasa Sanso-gil trekking → lunch at a hwarogui restaurant → afternoon at Alpaca World (or the Ginkgo Forest in October). Most admission fees are free, so it’s easy on the wallet too. Here’s a half-day course built for office workers: leave early in the morning and be back home before evening.

🗺️ Hongcheon Day Trip Course at a Glance

This route is planned for office workers driving in from Seoul or the greater capital area. Hongcheon’s attractions are clustered around the town center, so you won’t lose much time getting between them.

The Ginkgo Forest is open only during October each year. If you’re not visiting in October, just swap that afternoon slot for Alpaca World or Garisan Leports Park instead.

Hongcheon’s town center (Yeonggwimi-myeon and Hongcheon-eup) and Naemyeon (home to the Ginkgo Forest) are nearly an hour apart by car. So rather than forcing both into one day, the real trick to a satisfying day trip is picking a single afternoon stop to match the season.

🌲 Morning — Sutasa Sanso-gil Trekking

The first stop is Sutasa, a thousand-year-old temple at the foot of Gongjaksan. Both admission and parking are free, making it an easy, low-pressure place to visit. But the real draw isn’t the temple itself — it’s Sutasa Sanso-gil, the trail that runs alongside it.

Sanso-gil is a roughly 3.8km loop course that starts from the parking lot at the Gongjaksan Ecological Forest Education Center. It follows a valley through forest paths and decking, even crossing a small suspension bridge, so even trekking beginners can comfortably complete the loop in 1 hour 30 minutes~2 hours. Since it’s a nearly flat perimeter trail, a pair of sneakers is all you need.

Parking and Arrival Tips

The parking lot is spacious enough for large vehicles. That said, on summer peak-season or fall foliage weekends, spots fill up by as early as 10:00 AM. We recommend arriving sometime around 9 AM. If you leave Seoul at 9:00 AM, you’ll arrive right around the perfect time to start trekking.

• Sneakers and a bottle of water (few shops along the trail)
• Bug spray for spring~fall
• Watch for icy decking in winter (crampons aren’t necessary though)

🍖 Lunch — Hongcheon’s Best Hwarogui Restaurants

Hongcheon’s signature dish is, hands down, hwarogui — pork belly marinated in gochujang and doenjang, then grilled over charcoal. This local specialty is said to trace back to Yangjimal Hwarogui, a restaurant that’s been running for over 30 years and has appeared on TV multiple times. Its marinade includes native honey, giving the meat a savory sweet-and-salty flavor.

Once you’ve filled up on hwarogui, finishing with makguksu is the classic move. Hongcheon is also known for its buckwheat makguksu and dakgalbi as local specialties, so feel free to pick whichever suits your taste. Weekend lunch peak hours (12~1 PM) bring a wait, so wrapping up your trekking a little early and arriving around 11:30 AM helps you dodge the line.

Hwarogui has a fairly bold marinade, so it’s perfect for when you’re good and hungry after trekking. Since someone has to drive, keep the drinks to just one person — and just a little!

🍂 If It’s October — Hongcheon’s Ginkgo Forest

If you’re visiting Hongcheon in October, your afternoon absolutely has to be the Ginkgo Forest. About 2,000-plus ginkgo trees are planted 5m apart on the mountainside of Gwangwon-ri, Naemyeon, turning the whole area golden come fall.

The most important thing to know is the open period. It’s free to enter for just one month a year — October. As of 2025, it ran from October 3 to November 2, with visiting hours of 10 AM~5 PM (source: Hongcheon County Culture and Tourism Portal). Both admission and parking are free. The exact open dates shift slightly each year depending on when the leaves turn, so it’s safest to check Hongcheon County’s official announcement before you visit.

It’s about a 1-hour drive from Sutasa (Yeonggwimi-myeon) to the Ginkgo Forest (Naemyeon). Since that adds a fair bit of driving, if you’re visiting in October, it’s more relaxed to keep the morning short and devote the entire afternoon to the Ginkgo Forest. Weekdays or early mornings tend to be relatively uncrowded.

🦙 Any Other Time — Alpaca World and Garisan Leports

Even outside of October, there’s plenty to fill your afternoon. If you’re traveling with kids or prefer hands-on experiences, these spots are an even better fit.

If you’d like to learn more about Alpaca World, check out our post Alpaca World Experience Guide — From Admission Tickets to Performance Times too.
Garisan Leports Park charges 18,000 won for Forest Adventure, 35,000 won for Flying Zip, and 18,000 won for the Survival course. If you’re with coworkers who love a good thrill, one ride on the zipline is enough to blow off plenty of stress. At Alpaca World, you climb the slopes feeding and walking alongside the alpacas, which makes for a more relaxed, healing-style outing.

📋 Pre-Visit Checklist

To make the most of your day trip, just check these before you head out.

• The Ginkgo Forest is only open in October — any other month, swap the afternoon for Alpaca World
• For Sutasa parking, arriving around 9 AM is the safe bet (fills up on fall foliage weekends)
• For weekend lunch at the hwarogui restaurant, arrive by 11:30 AM to skip the wait
• The town center (Sutasa) and Naemyeon (Ginkgo Forest) are about an hour apart by car
• Sanso-gil is a flat perimeter trail → sneakers are enough, just watch for winter ice

Fees, open periods, and operating hours can change with the season. In particular, the Ginkgo Forest’s open dates shift every year depending on the foliage, so double-checking the Hongcheon County Culture and Tourism Portal before you leave can save you a wasted trip.

❓ FAQ

Can I visit the Ginkgo Forest at times other than October?

No. It’s private land that’s only opened for the month of October each year. Outside that window, entry is blocked. If you’re not visiting in fall, it’s better to swap your afternoon for Alpaca World or Garisan Leports Park.

Can I see both Sutasa and the Ginkgo Forest in one day?

Physically, yes, but the two spots are about an hour apart by car, which makes for a tight schedule. If you want to see both in October, we’d recommend keeping your Sutasa trek to around an hour and devoting the afternoon to the Ginkgo Forest.

Can I do this as a day trip using public transit?

It takes about 1 hour~1 hour 50 minutes from Dong Seoul Terminal to Hongcheon Terminal. From Hongcheon Terminal, Sutasa is about 40 minutes away on Bus No. 51. That said, it’s a rural bus route with infrequent service, so if you don’t check the timetable ahead of time, you could be waiting a while. If your day trip covers multiple spots, driving is far more convenient.

Is it okay to walk Sutasa’s Sanso-gil in winter?

Yes — since it’s a flat perimeter trail, you can walk it in winter too. That said, the decking sections next to the valley can ice over, so wear slip-resistant shoes and take it slow. A snow-covered mountain temple has its own charm, too.

Hongcheon packs its wallet-friendly attractions right into the town center, so even without much planning, a half day fills up easily. Just pick one afternoon spot to match the season, and you’ll have a day trip that makes the 1-hour-30-minute drive feel entirely worth it.

Sources

• Breathe In the Cool, Sweet Air — Hongcheon’s Sutasa Valley and Sanso-gil – Korea, Every Corner
• Gangwon Hongcheon Travel: A Fall Trip Course with Plenty to Enjoy – Korea, Every Corner
• Yangjimal Hwarogui — Hongcheon’s Signature Dish – Hongcheon County Culture and Tourism Portal