Gimhae Gaya Theme Park Is Fun For Everyone
We head down to Gimhae, Korea for every major Korean holiday to see my Korean in-laws so I’m always looking for things to do in Gimhae and the Gaya Theme Park (김해가야테마파크) was AMAZING! This theme park in Gyeongsangnam-do really has something for everyone from the extreme fun to the cultural (and apparently it’s going to get even better as they’re expanding and building Korea’s largest freshwater aquarium).
The great thing about visiting amusement parks in Korea that are off the beaten path and in more rural areas is that you can have a lot more space and you can ride the rides and have the experiences without the lines. Get ready to have all of the fun at this amusement park in Korea.
What to know to enjoy the Gimhae Gaya Theme Park:
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How To Get There
Address: 161 Gaya thema-gil, Gimhae-si, Gyeongsangnam-do (경상남도 김해시 가야테마길 161)
Directions: The easiest way to get here is definitely by car though you can take public transportation, but then there is quite a walk up a mountain. I would recommend going to Jinae Station and then getting a taxi from there, but you could also switch to bus 97 or 98 to go as close as possible and then walk.
Basic Info
Hours: Every day: 9:30am ~ 6:00pm
Admission: Basic Entrance for Adults: W5,000 and Children: W3,000. Adding on Painters, the extreme experiences, ceramics classes etc., the admission can range from W8,000 to W49,000.
- Discounted Tickets: You can get discounted tickets in advance on kkday
Website: www.gaya-park.com
All of the fun things to do
The Gimhae Gaya Theme Park is a multiplex theme park where you can experience a number of tings from performances, archery, pottery, and playgrounds, to a sky bicycle, and a climbing tower.
Double Extreme
Korea’s first extreme experience facility using wires, if you’re looking for something a bit more adventurous or have older/taller kids, this is where you’ll want to spend some time no doubt. There are four major parts to this area and we loved them all, though my not-so-adventurous husband was definitely ready to get down ASAP. If you’re afraid of heights, probably not for you.
Exacting Tower: This huge climbing tower has 72 missions and 4 difficulty levels that are shown with color coded lines so you can decide if you’re a beginner or expert climber. You can get up to 15 meters high and go through various obstacles.
Exacting Cycle: I honestly do not know how this works, but ride a bicycle across a wire 22 meters above the ground down and back. The round trip is 500 meters and it’s quite thrilling. Get ready to feel like you’re in the movie ET.
Exacting Flying: After the highflying bike ride, you might opt to end the fun with the zipline experience. The lines are 22 meters up and you can fly 250 meters across the park.
Dragon’s Net: Before we got into the exhilarating climbing and flying experiences, we headed through the 120 meter circular net tunnel which culminates with a 25 meter high slide. There’s also a sky trampoline halfway through. This is super fun, family-friendly, and Instgrammable.
Gaya Royal Palace Exhibition
After some extreme fun, you might want a little quiet walk-around to stabilize yourself and that’s when you should find the Gaya Royal Palace. Walk through the buildings to learn about King Suro and Queen Hoe, you can learn more about them at the King Suro and Queen Heo’s Royal Tombs (수로왕릉) also in Gimhae. There is a story hall, relics, and artifacts inside the main palace hall. It’s a very cool site which has even been used in Korean dramas.
Gaya Warrior Adventure Playground
If you’ve got young kids, you’ll probably spend quite a bit of time in this playground area. The Gaya Warrior Adventure Playground is massive and is actually the largest eco-friendly non-motorized amusement facility in Korea.
You will probably want to get all up in the fun too. I followed my daughter up into the maze of nets and obstacles and it was great fun. There’s also a zipline area, a water playground in the summer, and slides. So much to do here. Be prepared for your little ones to see it and never want to leave.
Painters: Gaya Kingdom
Our first experience seeing a Painters performance and it was amazing. You can also see Painters in Seoul, but if you’re headed to Gimhae, know that the performance is different here and relays the story of the Gaya Kingdom in a fun and artistic way. You and your kids will love it suffice to say. You’ll laugh, you’ll learn, you’ll be inspired to create.
The performance is 1 hour and you should be prepared to get involved because they do come into the audience and turn the lights up so everyone can respond. It’s a non-verbal performance so if you don’t speak Korean, no worries, you can still get involved.
Ceramic Experience Center
Gimhae has a lot of history with ceramics, which you can learn even more about at the Clayarch Gimhae Museum (클레이아크 김해미술관) and nearby Gimhae Buncheong Ceramics Museum (김해분청도자박물관). The Gaya Theme Park takes advantage of that history and provides some great experiences for you to create your own artwork. There are pottery making classes, ceramic painting, white porcelain and more.
Ask about the classes and times when you arrive so you can make sure you get into one.
Warrior Experience Center
If you want to try your hand at archery, head to the Warrior Experience Center that runs bow making programs, crown making, and traditional archery practice.
What To Eat
There are a number of places to quick up some food. There are a couple snack stands with fried Korean food, pork cutlets, hot dogs and there’s also a restaurant with bibimbap, soup, fried rice, bulgogi, and other bigger dishes if you need to fill up.
The Gimhae Gaya Theme Park is an amazingly fun spot to have fun in Gimhae and I highly recommend it for families headed to the area. Kids of all ages will have fun and the parents with them will too.
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