Ulsan travel info

Ulsan is known for its car plants, shipyards and petrochemical complexes. Step past them and the city turns out to have a sea, a river and mountains all at once. Taehwagang National Garden has a bamboo grove that runs for kilometres along the river, and Ganjeolgot, on the eastern tip, is billed as the first place on the Korean mainland to see the sunrise. A five-metre red postbox stands at the end of the cape, and on New Year's morning people start gathering there well before dawn.

Down the coast, Daewangam Park has pine trees growing out of sea-cut rock and a suspension footbridge over the water. Jangsaengpo, a former whaling district, tells its story in the Whale Museum. Inland at Eonyang, a street of restaurants grills thin-sliced beef over charcoal, with no broth in the pan. The prehistoric rock carvings at Bangudae became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2025.

From Seoul it is a little over two hours on the KTX. The catch is that Ulsan Station sits in Ulju County to the west, not in the city, so you need one more hop to reach downtown or the coast. Public transport thins out at many of the sights, so decide which direction you are heading each day before you leave.

From Seoul (KTX)

From Busan and nearby cities (BUS)

From the airport (USN)