Ihwa Mural Village: A Guide & Guidelines For Seeing The Area

Mt. Naksan in Seoul is home to one of the most popular mountainside mural villages in Korea. Ihwa Mural Village (이화동벽화마을) is known as a moon village or “daldongne” due to being set on the hillside which means you should be prepared for a bit of a hike up to see this famous village and the views of surrounding Seoul from the village.

If you’re looking for a mural village in Seoul, this is the first one that will come up when you begin your search and there’s good reason for that. Learn more about this popular tourist destination in Seoul, Korea.

Get ready to see Ihwa Mural Village:

• How To Get There
• What To Know
• Guidelines to consider while visiting
• What To See in Ihwa Mural Village
• What To Do
• What To Eat
• Visiting On The Weekend Bonuses
• Map of Ihwa Mural Village

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How To Get There

You’ll want to start from Hyehwa Station, exit 2. There are signs along the way, but check out the map below for more details. Once you get past the restaurants and cafes near the main road, you’ll be on a road that pretty much takes you up and over and it’s easy to follow along until you want to come down again.

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What To Know

Like the Ant Mural Village in Hongje, or the Huinnyeoul Culture Village in Busan, the Ihwa Mural Village (이화동벽화마을) was set for destruction as it was seen as a bit of a slum and down-trodden area but in 2006 under the “Art in City Project” carried out by The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, murals were added in an effort to revitalize the neighborhood in Seoul.

The revitalization has come at a cost though. Beautiful murals in varying sizes placed on walls, fences and rooftops were created by 70 artists and certainly brought loads of tourists to the area, however, no one really asked the residents, mostly elderly Korean citizens, if they were okay with this or explained what the murals might bring. This is a similar story with what is going on in the Bukchon Hanok Village one of the MOST visited neighborhoods in the city of Seoul and the residents aren’t all that happy with the influx.

With an influx of people, the noise increased, the foot traffic increased and peering eyes around every corner became the norm when that was anything but normal previously.

In April of 2016, some of the residents became so fed up they actually took their grievances (that the local government did nothing about) and turned them into action and painted over some of the most popular murals in the neighborhood.

Was it the right thing to do? That’s not for me to say, but I get it. I like knowing my neighbors and seeing the same faces walk up and down the streets every day. Not only do I feel safe because of this, but I also feel like it’s my home and not some tourist trap that the government decided to throw onto me without asking. I get it.

With that said, I think it’s okay to visit this mural village and others in Korea and elsewhere IF you abide by some specific guidelines in order to respect the residents that may or may not be happy about their new found popularity.

As of 2019, the murals for the most part are very much in tact. After news broke in 2016 that some of the murals had been painted over, it seemed to suggest to many that the murals were all gone and forgotten. That just isn’t so.

To be clear, two of the most popular murals which were painted on the two steepest staircases are gone and have NOT been repainted and no plans seem to be in the works to do so. However, the rest of the murals are still in tact and some have even been added!

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Guidelines to consider while visiting

• Remember this is a residential living neighborhood and be respectful of property.
• Do NOT walk into doorways or gates unless there is an explicit sign directing you to do so. Signs may say “Open” or “Come In”. If there is no sign, do NOT assume the building is open for your peering eyes.
• Considering it’s a neighborhood, treat it like your neighborhood. DO NOT yell or scream or make noise above normal conversation level.
• If you are taking pictures and a local is in the shot, and you’ll recognize the locals by their perturbed look due to your gawking display, ask them before you take their photo. They are NOT on display for you.
• Be friendly and say “hello” and greet any locals that you do see. Remember this is their neighborhood that you’ve entered and show consideration for them allowing you in.
• Do NOT throw trash onto the ground here and assume someone else will sweep it up for you. If you can’t find a trash can, keep the trash until you do.
• Try to support local and purchase something in the area from a locally owned shop.
• Visit during “normal” hours like you would a park. Not before sunrise or after sunset.

With these guidelines in mind while visiting, the locals who can be seen sitting in the corner shops together chatting about this and that and shopkeepers with the doors ajar will likely be much more kind to your visiting to see their neighborhood. There are some great murals in the area and art installations and it does make for a lovely place to walk around to get views of the city below.

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What To See In Ihwa Mural Village

Ihwa Mural Village: Obviously the reason you’ve clicked on this post is to get info on the mural village and that is a highlight while in the area, but there are some other great places to stop as well.

Naksan Park (낙산공원): Not only are you going to walk right by this to head to the mural village, but it also offers up amazing views of the surrounding city of Seoul. There is also a portion of the Seoul Fortress Wall that goes through the park, so it’s a beautiful and historical location to take a rest or a walk.

Marronnier Park (마로니에공원): This park is near Hyehwa Station before you really get going up into the hillside. There are often performances and events taking place here as well as touts letting you know what shows are playing in the numerous theaters nearby.

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What To Do

Aside from the obvious of taking fun photos with the murals…

Rent old school Korean school uniforms

As a tribute to the “Live Well Academy” that once sat in this moon village which educated the underprivileged teenagers in the area from 1965 to 1987 and produced more than 3,600 graduates, there is now a sort of living museum in its place.

Not only can you rent uniforms from 졸리상점, but you can also peruse the various school rooms and displays which are now backdrops for photos. This is super popular with Korean students on the weekends and on the weekdays eerily void of people so the mannequins and all of the old school paraphernalia is just a bit creepy.

• Address: 46 Naksan 4-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul (서울특별시 종로구 낙산4길 46)
• Rental Fee: W5,000 for one hour, W8,000 for two hours

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What To Eat

When you come out of Hyewha Station, you’ll find that the area is just streets of restaurants and cafes in between theaters. There is plenty to choose from. Whether you want to eat before going up and after coming down, you’ll have plenty of options. I recommend taking a bottle of water up the mountain with you, but finding something to eat near the station won’t be an issue at all.

Hakrim Dabang (학림다방)

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Hakrim Dabang (학림다방). This cafe is one of the oldest in the city and since 1956 really nothing much has changed which means you can almost literally step back in time by stepping inside.

Popular with the Hallyu fans due to being in K-dramas like My Love From The Star and The Heirs, it’s a pretty hopping place in the afternoons so it’s best to get their early, especially if you want to sit on the uber popular booths where the stars sat.

• Address: 119 Daehak-ro Jongno-gu, Seoul (서울특별시 종로구 대학로 119)

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Map of Ihwa  Mural Village

To get around the area, there have been signs placed in strategic positions to make sure you don’t get too lost and turned around. They point you along this general track. However, some of the murals that we found weren’t on this track which is why you need to keep your eyes peeled and go where you want at times.

For example, just after 7 on this route, we took a left up some steps and found some great cafes with views, the Seoul Fortress Wall and a balloon installation that was fun to take pictures with. After this, we did a u-turn and got back onto the track.

Also, at 11, you  might feel like you don’t want to make that “useless” loop around, but, you do! Just beneath the bridge is that awesome mural with the woman and her sewing machine. And then you can take the steps back up to get on the path again. This map also shows the two staircases that were painted over by the residents as a warning to loud tourists.

The art on those staircases (at 6 and 9) has not been replaced and may not ever be due to the cost being too high for the local government. BUT if you’re looking for the koi fish staircase, the original one was painted over, BUT there is a smaller one that has been painted which you can find up on the path between 7 and 8 on the map below.

Recently while giving a tour in the area, I also took a little detour along the Seoul Fortress Wall at the top there because of interest by the group and we ended up at a great overlook that we could see down to Dongdaemun Design Plaza and beyond after we headed north.

If you want to learn more about the Seoul Fortress Wall and haven’t visited it yet or want an easy spot to jump onto it, this is a great spot for that too. You could easily walk along it and then back to the mural route in about 30 minutes too to get the view and get back.

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The Ihwa Mural Village is still a vibrant and beautiful area to spend an afternoon in cafe hopping, enjoying some outdoor art and installations and learning about the history of the area. Just remember to be respectful of the residents that call the place home.

If you like visiting murals and street art, you’ll definitely also love visiting the street art around Hongdae or if you’re headed to Busan, don’t miss the Gamcheon Culture Village there that was also repainted with murals. It’s a great music and arts district that can’t be missed.

Mullae-dong is another great district that is relatively unknown but has seen an influx of artists and musicians moving the area in recent years due to high rent prices in other areas. There are also villages outside of Seoul that have had regeneration projects done in the way of murals like the Yugu Mural Village in Gongju to check out.

If you want something that’s a bit more difficult to get to but well worth it, head up to Yongma Land. This abandoned amusement park doesn’t have a ton of street art and murals, but it’s got the aesthetics going for it. There are even some great artistic spots to check out in Incheon’s Chinatown too.

There are some great areas of Seoul to enjoy street art and murals so I hope you get out and about and see what you can see! Don’t be afraid to take that wander.

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