The Rainbow Zip Wire: The Longest & Tallest In Korea

Gimcheon is a city in Gyeongsangbuk-do, Korea and is easily accessible via the KTX train line that connects the capital city of Seoul to the coastal city of Busan. In recent years, the city has been getting amped up and looking to get more tourists to the region and might just be the next hot spot for the thrill seekers and adventure hunters in Korea.

If you’re looking for a weekend away in Korea, consider Gimcheon especially if you like zip wires, suspension bridges, and breathtaking views. This city in South Korea isn’t super popular but maybe it should be.

Gimcheon, Gyeongsanbuk-do, Korea: Rainbow Zip Wire & Sky Walk

Plan a trip to Gimcheon, Korea:

How To Get There
Basic Info
Where To Stay
What To Do
- The Buhang Dam Suspension Bridge
- Rainbow Zip Wire & Sky Walk (레인보우짚와이어 & 스카이워크)
  - Sky Walk
  - Zip Wire
Where To Eat

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How To Get There

Address: Gyeongsangbuk-do Gimcheon-si Buhang-myeon Buhang Dam-gil 352 (경북 김천시 부항면 부항댐길 352)

Via Car: The easiest way to get to the zip wire and get off the beaten path in the area is to drive down to see what you can see. If you don’t have a car, consider renting one. There is a lot of fun to be had across Korea and it’s easy enough to rent with Avis. We’ve rented a few times and have always had an easy time of it. Rent a car with Avis here.

Via Public Transport: The easiest way to get here is to hop on the KTX and get off at Gimcheon Train Station. Just across the street from the station is the bus terminal. Get onto bus 885-1 which will take you to the foot of the road that heads up. The walk up isn’t that bad and you’ll pass by a waterpark, glamping grounds and other fun recreational things before reaching the entrance to the suspension bridge and then the Rainbow Zip Wire a bit higher up.

Basic Info

Zipwire Only: W40,000 per person
Sky Walk Only: W80,000 per person (Only available with a reservation.)
Observatory Only: W10,000 per person
Package Including All Above: W100,000
NO REFUNDS given if you go up and change your mind.
DISCOUNTS: If you have four people in your group and buy tickets together you can get a discount: M-F, 4 people pay W200,000 (50% discount); Saturdays and Sundays/Holidays, 4 people pay W300,000 (25% discount).

Where To Stay

Hotel Logenir

Just two blocks from the train station and near restaurants, cafes, and transportation is Hotel Logenir. The rooms were clean, had everything we needed and the staff was attentive. We took advantage of the buffet dinner and breakfast and I was quite please with both. This was a great spot to stay in close proximity to the station so we could head out after check out the next day easily.

Book a room on Booking.com or on Agoda.com.

What To Do

While Gimcheon may not be an area many people are aware of, it definitely will be and it’s easy to stop into as well. Get off at Gimcheon Station on the way to places like Andong and Busan and you can have a little side trip.

The Buhang Dam which was built in response to 2002’s Typhoon Rusa, the most powerful typhoon to hit South Korea in 43 years, was completed in 2013 and after completion various recreational facilities, parks, and camping grounds to increase tourism were completed too. Notably, the longest suspension bridge and tallest zip wire tower structures were built and completed in 2018. Catch those superlatives?

Gimcheon, Gyeongsanbuk-do, Korea: Buhang Dam Suspension Bridge

The Buhang Dam Suspension Bridge

The Buhang Dam Suspension Bridge, which was just completed in December 2018, is currently the longest suspension bridge in Korea with a length of 256 meters.

Over the past few years, I’ve visited a couple other suspension bridges including the Majang Suspension Bridge which spans 220 meters long and WAS the longest at one time as well as the Gamaksan Suspension Bridge which spans 150 meters and sits 675 meters above sea level and is described as the closest suspension bridge to the DMZ. Both of those are closer to Seoul and very easy to access requiring little to no hike at all for those uninclined to hike up to the peak of a mountain for a suspension bridge.

Another one I heard talked about a lot last summer was the Sogeum Suspension Bridge which some friends went out to and said offered up some stunning views. Interestingly, it seems suspension bridges are THE thing to find right now and over the past two years, cities and provinces throughout Korea have been building them and making them just a bit longer each time seemingly to get the coveted title of having the longest.

What started the suspension bridge race in Korea? I have no idea, but I’m a fan and if I happen to be near one, I’ll certainly be walking across and taking a few pictures while I’m at it.

Back to the suspension bridge at hand though, as you walk up from the main road or from the parking lot if you’re driving, the suspension bridge entrance is what you’ll find first on your right. Take the path as it will lead out and around and then up to the Rainbow Zip Wire attraction.

The Buhang Dam Suspension Bridge though long, is NOT the tallest out there and is actually easily accessible via a wooden boardwalk that connects to the nearby road. This means families with small children and even strollers and wheelchairs can get across this bridge easily. Though it doesn’t offer the mountain valley views that some others might, this offers some beautiful views of the nearby river and is a great spot for the people among the group that want some fun but maybe DON’T want to go on the longest and tallest zip wire in Korea that is just on the other side of the suspension bridge.

The suspension bridge is a planked so for those that don’t like the glass floor type, no need to worry. There ARE just two 2ft by 2 ft square cut-out glass sections in the middle, but they are easy to avoid if you don’t want that view down through your feet. It’s a fun little walk and a bonus spot that’s easy to check out in the vicinity of the Rainbow Zip Wire.

If I’m being completely honest though, I’ll add that I would NOT go all the way down to Gimcheon JUST to see this suspension bridge. The views were a bit more stunning from the other suspension bridges I’ve walked across and mentioned above. This one was more like a fun lakeside boardwalk. Since the area was under development for so much time, I think it just needs to fill in around the bridge a bit to feel more lost and one with nature or something.

Gimcheon, Gyeongsanbuk-do, Korea: Rainbow Zip Wire & Sky Walk: Hallie Bradley

Rainbow Zip Wire & Sky Walk (레인보우짚와이어 & 스카이워크)

After walking over the suspension bridge and following the path up, you’ll come to a massive tower that is painted with a rainbow on the top levels. This tower and the one on the other side of the river were completed in April of 2018 and are the tallest zip line structures in Korea. The first tower is 93 meters tall and the second is 87 meters tall.

Visitors can choose to take a zip wire back and forth between the structures or get a package that includes a Sky Walk experience 85 meters up on the first tower. If you just want a view, but don’t want to go flying across or walk around outside the tower, there’s also an observatory view ticket. If for nothing else, get the view. It is breath taking to look out over the sprawling mountains. From the observatory, you can also walk on the glass floor to look down and see the rainbow structure from the inside out.

Sky Walk

The Sky Walk experience starts on the ground floor where visitors get helmets and step into safety harnesses. Step into an elevator that comes to a stop 85 meters up and you’ll find an indoor space with flooring that is glass and provides a view both straight down to the ground through all of the metal girders holding you up and out to the river and mountains surrounding like I mentioned just above.

If there are those in your crew that don’t want to do the sky walk or zip wire, get them to get the observatory ticket so they can take pics of you on the outside while they’re on the interior. Just outside of a door on the observatory level, a guide will ask those going to do the sky walk to step outside onto a fenced in portion of the ledge. Here the harness is attached to safety lines outside so that you can safely walk around the outer ledge of the tower. The guide adeptly shows visitors various things like how to lean off side ways and backwards and even how to jump out and around.

For those first-timers doing something like this, it might be enough just to walk, while some thrill seekers are ready to leap out and around as much as possible. Cameras and other paraphernalia are not allowed to go out with visitors as fear could cause something to be dropped injuring someone below but someone on the interior is welcome to take photos. It’s worth it to add it to the entire experience. The guide was fantastic and funny and we had a great time learning the ropes… literally.

Zip Wire

Whether you do the Sky Walk or not, everyone gets helmets and harnassed at the bottom and then takes the elevator up to depart on the same platform. From there, you head up a flight of stairs to get outside and find the zip wire platform. Enjoy the surrounding views as you wait to get locked and loaded to fly 1.7 kilometers across to the other tower.

This is the longest zip wire ride in Korea and really just seems to go on. Enough time to scream, collect yourself, scream again and collect yourself all before you land on the other side. And then, you have to do it all over again to get back. There are no one-way tickets on this trip, but only return options. When you land on the other side, you’ll wait for four to five people to collect and then you’ll load the elevator together to go up to return again.

The guides and assistants are skilled at the timing and people can be seen zip lining back and forth on an even keel so the wait is never too long… or too short. If you’re just along for the ride, but don’t want to take a ride and become the photographer of the group, head into the pagoda that’s at the foot of the first tower. From the top, you can get a great view of your friends coming in to land and you’ll be able to get some great photos.

Where To Eat Nearby

Do NOT pass by 수라간 at the end of the street without entering. To get there, just head back to where the bus dropped you near the waterpark and camping grounds and you can hop on bus 84-7, 85, 94 or 95 and go just two stops to stop 15624. Lots of black pig at great prices and plenty of side dishes. After flying through the sky, you’ll want to devour something good and this is the spot to find just down the road. There’s also a café right next door.