If you love long beaches with aqua water playing with the sand, you’ve found the city for you. Then, this list of 6 best Gangneung beaches offers a little something for everyone.
About Gangneung
Honestly, you can straight skip this part if you have read my other blogs on Gangneung. We always include a quick blurb about the location in our South of Seoul blogs. However, if you haven’t read the other posts, just keep reading.
Gangneung sits on the edge of Gangwondo on the east coast of South Korea. It’s about 1.5 hours south of Sokcho and connected to Seoul by both the KTX and a freeway that cuts across the country.
For those of us obsessed with Gangneung, we love it because it mixes both city life and nature. It’s also filled with artists and artisans being nerdy and fabulous in a very hometown way. If you love the process of making things, Gangneung has what you want. It might take a few trips to connect with all the hidden corners. However, you won’t regret taking the time to fall in love with the place.
Gangneung also has spectacular food. Some of our favorite international and Korean restaurants exist in this seaside town. From homemade tofu to fabulous crab, the perfect brunch, and excellent craft beer – Gangneung has it all.
About Gangneung Beaches
Gangneung offers different types of beaches. You can find beaches filled with people and beaches with space to escape the crowds. You can also find beaches with lots of amenities and those with very few amenities. It just depends on how far you feel like going to the north or south.
Keep in mind, that Korea doesn’t pretend to be Hawaii or the Caribbean. Instead, we have our own beach life culture here that we love. With a country surrounded by beaches on three sides, it’s almost impossible to avoid falling in love with beach life here.
If you only like one kind of beach in the world that’s ok and I am not trying to change your mind. Some folks have a limited framework for what beach fun means to them. That means experiencing different types of beaches doesn’t feel fun. Know yourself and don’t try to force things that don’t fit. Instead, let others love what they love while embracing things you love as well. Book those tickets to Thailand and Vietnam!
However, I love beaches of all types and experiences. These recommendations should not be taken as some sort of global comparison. They are the beaches I love in my life as a person who lives in South Korea and loves what this country offers. I share my love with those who also embrace beach diversity.
I personally feel the beaches of Gangneung and the east coast of Korea offer me a type of relaxation that I haven’t often experienced in more tropic places. It’s hard for me to even put it into words. Specifically, I love the relaxed waves, crystal clear waters, and the fact I can bring a tent to nap in or I can hang out in the trees. I don’t have to always be exposed to the sun. They are home.
About Korean Beach Season
The official ‘Swimming Season’ in South Korea is from about mid-July to sometime in August. Swimming Season is when beaches are at their height of popularity. Popular and rural Korean beaches are filled with visitors, lifeguards, public showers, and activities. All the businesses are open and supporting visitors. It’s beach party time.
During ‘Swimming Season’ your activities will be restricted to certain marked swimming areas that are strictly patrolled by lifeguards on jet skies. You may find this strange if you come from parts of the world where swimming in the sea and ocean is an unrestricted activity. However, you can quickly adjust and find tons of joy within the limited area.
During the off-season, you can still visit the beaches and be allowed to swim at most of them, except in areas like Busan and other extremely popular beaches that have begun enforcing beach closures during different times of the year. Basically, during the off-season, you can pretty much do what you want in the sea but most support services like lifeguards and public showers will be closed. However, public restrooms are often -but not always – still open.
Water Temperatures
In Gangneung the water feels warmest in the summer and freezing in the winter. In the spring and fall, I also find the water nice but I’m from Alaska so I can’t be trusted.
Honestly, if you understand the basics of water and nature the water temp changes will not come as a surprise. However, due to the number of people who have been shocked and angry that the sea feels cold in non-summer months, it feels important to mention it briefly.
Wave Height and Type
Families will want to stay on top of wave conditions when visiting the east coast beaches. The east coast of Korea has beaches that drop off much more quickly into the ocean than the west coast of Korea. This means the waves can either be quite large or smaller depending on a variety of factors. Sometimes you may find the waves extremely small and other times getting in the water may be dangerous.
Keep an eye on the tides and wave conditions when visiting the beaches. You can use different websites online to learn which areas might have the largest waves for the weekend.
Swimming Attire
We don’t wear a lot of western-style bathing suits in South Korea. Instead, most of us choose to wear swimming clothes that mostly cover us from the sun. This might include rash guards and long swimming leggings. These clothes allow us to play all day in the water without worrying as much about sunscreen or our suites getting dislodged in the surf.
That said, no one really cares if anyone wears a western-style swimsuit. It’s your personal choice. Nobody will kick you off the beach unless you are butt naked. Many young men and women will wear western swimming gear in order to be cute and sexy just like in the west. Nobody cares. It’s your choice.
People will certainly notice, I know seeing western-style swimming gear always catches me off guard. I feel worried for their future lives. However, it’s not a big deal socially.
6 Best Gangneung Beaches
Honestly, no bad Gangneung beaches exist as far as I am concerned. Each beach has its own vibe and reason for existing. I tend to lean toward beaches with fewer people but the busy beaches have their own charm. I’m sure you will find the perfect beach for you.
Jumun Beach
Hangul Address
강원도 강릉시 주문진읍 교항리 1255
Gyeongpodo Beach Cafe Area
A beautiful beach lined with lined with excellent cafes.
Hangul Address
강원 강릉시 사천면 순포안길 6
Gangmun Swimming Beach
Hangul Address
강원도 강릉시 창해로350번길 9
SongJung ⛱ Beach
SongJung beach where is located in Gangneung. Nice beach ⛱ is named as SongJung because over 700years of pine trees are covered there.♡
Hangul Address
강원도 강릉시 안현동 89-43
Amnok Beach And Coffee Beach
A commercialized and popular beach with cafes and restaurants.
Hangul Address
강원 강릉시 창해로14번길 20-1
Namhangjin Beach
Hangul Address
강원도 강릉시 남항진동 1-1
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Lanae Rivers-Woods moved to Korea in 2011 where she lives in the countryside with her family, friends, and puppies. She holds a BSSW (Bachelor’s of Science in Social Work), a MAIT (Master’s of Arts in International Teaching), and registered by the Pyeongtaek Korean Times with the Korean government as a Cultural Expert.
Ms. Rivers-Woods used her 15 years experience as a social architect, UX/UI designer, and technology consultant to found South of Seoul in 2015. South of Seoul is a volunteer organization that leverages technological tools to mitigate cultural dissonance in multi-cultural communities.
Through South of Seoul, Ms. Rivers-Woods works with independent volunteers, non-profit organizations, businesses, local & federal government, universities, and US military organizations to develop solutions to support English speaking international residents in rural South Korea.
Additionally, Ms. Rivers-Woods founded the South of Seoul smart phone app available for Google Play and iPhone. The app provides information a resources for those living and traveling in South Korea.
When she isn’t in South of Seoul development meetings or working her day job, Ms. Rivers-Woods loves to be outside at skate parks, the beach, or playing in the mountains.
