Caves In Korea You Can Visit For Fun
If you’re planning a family trip to Korea, make sure to add visiting caves in Korea to your itinerary! The caves in Korea are not only magnificent, but also offer a unique educational experience for kids. From the world’s 12th longest lava tube at Manjanggul Lava Tube in Jeju Island, to the Gosu Cave System, which was formed over 450 million years ago, there are plenty of caves to explore.
There are even caves with wine for parents or groups of friends. Don’t forget to pack a jacket and shoes with grip to make the most of your cave exploration with your family! Add some of these great caves in Korea to your list of things to see in Korea.
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Tips for visiting caves in Korea
- Take a jacket: All of the caves are quite chilly year round so if you visit in the humid summer you might think that you’ll be just fine and really want that chill but trust me, it feels great for like 10 minutes. After that, it is CHILLY. Take a jacket no matter what season you visit.
- Wear shoes with grip: Wear good shoes with grip because it is often a bit wet and can be slippery inside.
- Take your time: The caves are lit, but are quite dim and dark in spots. Don’t rush, take your time, and watch where you step.
Cave systems to visit in Korea
Manjanggul Lava Tube (만장굴)
A cave that you hear about mainly if you’re headed to Jeju Island, the Manjanggul Lava Tube is the world’s 12th longest lava tube and the second longest on Jeju Island. I have walked through a lot of tunnels and cave systems in Korea (for some reason) and this was the tallest one I’ve walked through.
There are lava stalactites and stalagmites, lava columns, lava flowstones, lava helictites, lava blisters, cave coral, benches, lava rafts, lava bridges and all of the other lava related things you might study about. There are three entrances, the second one is open to the public. It’s a pretty epic cave to walk through.
- Address: 182 Manjanggul-gil, Jeju-si, Jeju-do (제주특별자치도 제주시 구좌읍 만장굴길 182 (구좌읍))
- Hours: 9:00am ~ 6:00pm
Gosu Cave System (고수동굴)
It is listed as “Natural Monument Number 256” and was formed over 450 million years ago. You can tell your friends back home that you were in a cave that was around even before the dinosaurs were alive! The cave was found in the early 1970s and evidence was found that indicated it was formerly home to prehistoric people. It definitely makes the list for things to do when you visit Danyang.
The formations inside have names attributed to them so look carefully and you might see a Lion in Lion Rock, maybe a heart in the Love Rock, there’s a Virgin Mary Rock and others with interesting names. Make sure to also be wary of the metal walkway due to it’s slippery nature, while the lighting is dim enough to where you should move slowly and carefully as you proceed.
- Address: 8 Gosudonggul-gil, Danyang-eup, Danyang-gun, Chungcheongbuk-do (충청북도 단양군 단양읍 고수동굴길 8)
- Hours: April – October: 9:00am ~ 5:30pm; November – March: 9:00am ~ 5:00pm
Cheongok Golden Bat Cave (천곡황금박쥐동굴)
The Cheongok Golden Bat Cave is the only natural cave in Korea that is located in a downtown area so if you’re in Donghae, there’s no reason to miss it really. While you’re probably headed to Donghae to visit beaches, this is a good place to cool off after the heat. Created 400 to 500 million years ago, this cave is a habitat for endangered golden bats, now you understand the name. 810 meters of the 1,510 meter long cave is open to the public while the rest is preserved and protected.
Inside, you can see ceiling craters, one of which is the longest in Korea, as well as stalactite curtains, cascades, and other cool formations. There is a 785 meter long walkway that was made using the sinkhole that was created by dissolved limestone.
- Address: 50 Donggul-ro, Donghae-si, Gangwon-do (강원도 동해시 동굴로 50)
- Hours: 9:00am ~ 6:00pm
Gwangmyeong Cave (광명동굴)
Originally the Siheung Mine, it was the largest metal mine in the metropolitan area and produced almost 100 tonnes of gold, silver, bronze, zinc, and other minerals every month for 60 years. In 2011, the city of Gwangmyeong took over and transformed the cave into a theme park of sorts that is meant to showcase the industrial heritage of the cave and the fun and culture of the area. Oh, and just for kicks, experts say that there is most definitely still a large amount of gold still in the cave that has yet to be discovered.
There is a lot to do inside and outside at Gwangmyeong Cave. Inside, there are some light exhibits to make it exciting, installations depicting how the workers worked but there’s also an arts center inside. The Cave Arts Center is the first of its kind in Korea and has held fashion shows, music concerts and other events. Aside from events, on any normal day, there is a light show inside of this huge cavern space. It’s awesome.
And once you’ve visited all of the things to see, and maybe let the kids have fun, there’s also a wine cave inside for the adults. Actually you can take the kids, they have juice in there too.
- Address: 142 Gahak-ro 85 beon-gil, Gwangmyeong-si, Gyeonggi-do (경기도 광명시 가학로85번길 142)
- Hours: 9:00am ~ 6:00pm
Hwaamdonggul Cave (화암동굴)
The Hwaamdonggul Cave out in Jeongseon in Gangwon-do is called a Paleozoic Geopark. Originally a gold mine that was commercially operated from 1922 until 1945, it was Korea’s fifth largest gold mine. After finding natural stalactites later, the cave was developed into an experiential cave for people to visit and see the combination of gold and nature in one place.
Inside there are 5 sections which take about an hour and a half to two hours to get through. There are some amazing stalactites to see, but it can also be a bit narrow and small in some places so if you have claustrophobia, do reconsider this one. This cave was built with education in mind so there is a lot of info though they also hold some rather… unique events. Last year for a number of months they held a scary goblin event.
Mind you this was in the middle of summer and not at all related to Halloween. It was a bit odd, but the cave itself is really cool. The interesting thing about this one and the Gosu caves are the natural wonders of the cave while the other caves were more so used as mines so the tunnels are all fairly the same. Once you get to the stalactites here, you’ll see what I’m talking about.
- Address: 12 Hwaamdonggul-gil, Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon-do (강원도 정선군 화암면 화암동굴길 12)
- Hours: 9:00am ~ 5:00pm
Amethyst Cavern Park (자수정동굴)
This is the cool cave that kicked off my cave discussion today actually. I saw some pictures that someone shared of this awesome cavern and here we are. This fun spot is in Ulsan down south. The Amethyst Cavern is one of the largest man-made cave attractions in Korea and is made in a closed amethyst mine. There is a labyrinth of tunnels in the 2.5 kilometer long system and there are amethyst stone exhibitions inside.
Like a lot of the other caves I mentioned, there are light exhibitions to draw the eye and make the caves really artsy and fun. They call this the New Media section and it looks pretty fantastical. There are also installations to show what the workers did inside the cave.
BUT something a bit different about this cave is that at one point, you actually take a boat to see the inside of the cave because it’s filled with water at the bottom. A lot of them have water, but I’ve never visited one with actual boats taking you through. Outside of this cave, there are quite a few sledding hills set up right now too so you can have fun both inside and outside.
- Address: 212 Jasujeong-ro, Samnam-myeon, Ulju-gun, Ulsan (울산광역시 울주군 삼남면 수정로 11)
- Hours: 9:00am ~ 6:00pm
Muju Meoru Wine Cave (무주머루와인동굴)
Maybe one a bit more for the parents or the friends groups traveling around Korea, this cave is filled with wine. The tunnel system was a site built for the Muju Water Power Plant. It maintains a consistent temperature and with no light has made for an ideal place to keep a storage of wine. Head in to cool off and taste wild grape wine and have a foot bath to relax.
- Address: 359 Sanseong-ro, Muju-gun, Jeollabuk-do (전라북도 무주군 적상면 산성로 359)
- Hours: April – October: 10:00am ~ 5:30pm; November – March: 10:30pm ~ 4:30pm
There are some amazing caves in Korea to explore and lava tubes to walk through as well. Whether you’re looking for educational opportunities for your kids in Korea, want to cool off during the summer period, or just want to learn about cave systems, these are some great ones to visit. Get ready for an adventure!
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