[KR; 2026] Part 5 - Gangneung | KTX, Jungang Market, Wolhwa Bridge
Annyeong Part 5 - Seoul > Gangneung
I wanted to take a small break before heading back home, initially I wanted to go for a temple stay, but the timings and dates didn't work out. But the temples I wanted to go kept using Gangneung as a part of their directions, so that's how I found this city on the east side of South Korea.
Seoul Station
I took an uber from Grand Hyatt down to Seoul Station, it was probably within S$10.
I need some Korean won - just in case for the extended trip. There is one Money Box right outside of the station (next to Daiso).
The rates were slightly lower than Myeongdong, but acceptable, and I saved some time and effort making a trip down.MONEYBOX SEOUL STATION
Seoul Station was bigger than I imagined - I had some time before the train departure, so I did some site recce so that I know where to grab food etc for my return trip enroute to the airport. I will share more in the future post!
I grabbed some gimbap at this random store - they were one of the cheapest gimbap in the station, tucked away at the escalator down to the airport train:
Since I'm staying for a couple of days - I could slowly explore the city on my own pace, so I didn't use any of these tourist package. Or to say - I didn't plan much, so I have no idea where I'm heading everyday, so the buses information didn't relate much to me.
The train arrived the station on time, and thank you to the ahjussi that helped me to lift my heavy luggage up the train (he just lifted the luggage like a feather).
The view on the way to Gangneung:KTX-Eum 81112:11 Seoul > 14:14 Gangneung~$20 on klook after all the discounts
Gangneung Station
The Gangneung station felt quite new:
There were a lot of bus information around the station as most tourist visit the city for a quick day tour from Seoul. The tourism board also introduced a 3 hours taxi package for ~S$30 - which is super affordable for day trips.
Checking in Hotel
Probably the only intensive research I did for Gangneung was on my hotel. I had a long list of shortlisted hotels, and eventually I picked this!
This was probably one of the best decision made for the trip. It was 3 junctions away from the station, it didn't take me 10 mins with my luggage. The staff were friendly and the whole hotel smelt nice. They gave me an early check-in.Gangneung Labelle Hotel Premier 강릉 라벨르호텔 프리미어
And... the washroom, I really love the electric bidet, and the shower functions was great!
At the basement, the hotel is fully equipped with food - everything was free!
There was a small laundry room on level 1 - free again - and the staff helped me to setup the wash & dry cycle. It was 4-5 hours, so I used the opportunity to head out and explore the city.
First impressions of Gangneung
Random shots of the city:
This is a famous tree:
강릉 옥천동 은행나무
It is a 1,000 years old gingko tree! If you're a big fan of the K-variety Six Sense - they did one of their opening episode over here.
This was a super popular potato store in Gangneung, but the google review was quite average. It was featured on Sixth Sense too:
강릉길감자
I wanted to give it a try, but the queue was so long and the portion looks big. I can't do it just alone.
Tons of fried food (of course!) in the traditional market:
I really wanted to bring this strawberry makgeolli back - but I figured out my luggage superb heavy:
Gangneung is famous for potatoes, so there were many cute potatoes gifts. I got this handmade keychain back:
So many dried products & banchan - I wished I had 50kg of luggage allowance, definitely woes of traveling alone:
I stopped myself from buying stuffs in the market, because I had a long list of items to get from Daiso & Olive Young:
I found this small cafe in an alley:
It was a yakgwa shop! I liked how they gave a traditional snack a young vibe. Based on reviews, it was operated by a famous yakgwa maker in Pocheon.장인더 강릉
I bought some snacks to bring home, and the staff gave me a free piece after realising I'm a tourist.
I think I do like shopping in smaller cities, as all the stores were basically next to each other:
The store looks really new! And quite spacious, well stocked with products. I got to try some of their interactive tablets which does the skin colour analysis:올리브영 강릉 타운
The staff could speak little english, and they were pretty generous with free gifts. I got a bag of chips from doing the colour analysis, and another bag of samples after purchase.
Night is still young
I thought the city will probably be quite boring after sunset - but I was totally wrong. I happened to come across this festive night market along the river.
There is actually a Wolhwa Street Night Market during summer & autumn months, every Friday & Saturday. They feature food trucks along the Wolhwa street next to homeplus. But this night market I visited was nearby but it was specific for the dumpling festival.
Sunset was pretty:
I ended up settling my dinner at noodle stall recommended by my colleague:
이화국수
Although it was just simple noodles + seaweed and sauce, it tasted really good!
I headed back to the hotel, picked up my laundry, and headed out again - the festival was featuring fireworks!!!
I felt like a kid all over again :)
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