East coast · Yangyang, Gangwon
Hajodae Beach
하조대해변
Turquoise water, very few people, and Korea's surf scene a few minutes up the road.
Hajodae is the east coast beach people name when they want somewhere clean and empty. The pavilion on the rocks at the northern end, and the lighthouse beyond it, are the classic view.
Yangyang county has become the centre of Korean surfing over the last decade, and the surf beaches and schools around Jukdo are a short taxi ride away.
Photograph by 골뱅이, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized for this page.
More on the east coast
Gyeongpo Beach
Gangneung's big, easy beach — white sand, a lake behind it and a KTX from Seoul.
Naksan Beach
Four kilometres of sand with a pine forest behind and a clifftop temple above.
Jeongdongjin Beach
The railway station sits on the sand — and people ride the night train out for the sunrise.