Asan, just south of the Seoul metropolitan area in South Chungcheong Province, is best known as a hot-springs town — Koreans have called it "the city of spas" for generations — while also being one of the region's largest industrial centers.
History
The modern city was formed in 1995 when the separately administered spa city of Onyang merged with the surrounding Asan County; Onyang had briefly broken off as its own municipality in 1986 before rejoining. The Onyang hot springs themselves have a much longer history, drawing royal visitors during the Joseon dynasty, when kings periodically traveled here to bathe in and recuperate at the thermal waters. In recent decades Asan has also become a major manufacturing base — Samsung Electronics, Samsung Display, and Hyundai Motor all operate large facilities in the city — while retaining its identity as a spa and heritage town.
Highlights
- Onyang Hot Springs, the city's namesake thermal springs, used since the Joseon dynasty and still the base for numerous spa hotels and public bathhouses today.
- Oeam Folk Village, a Joseon-era village founded in the early 1500s where families still live in traditional thatched-roof houses along stone-walled lanes, designated an Important Folklore Cultural Heritage site.
- Hyeonchungsa Shrine, a shrine and memorial complex dedicated to Admiral Yi Sun-sin, hero of the 16th-century naval war against Japan, with an annual memorial festival.
- Asan Spavis, a large modern spa and water park complex built around the Onyang hot springs tradition.
Food
As a spa town, Asan doesn't have a single dominant food specialty, but its restaurants around Onyang lean toward hearty Korean fare meant to follow a day at the baths, and the city's farmland produces rice and seasonal produce typical of the Chungcheong plains.
Annual events
- Asan Hyeonchungsa Grand Festival, held around Admiral Yi Sun-sin's birthday in late April, honors the naval hero with ceremonies and cultural events at his memorial shrine.
Getting there
Asan shares Cheonan-Asan Station with neighboring Cheonan, giving it direct KTX access to Seoul in about 30-45 minutes, and Seoul Subway Line 1 was extended to Asan in December 2008, so the city is also reachable by regular subway train.
How long
A day trip is enough to see Oeam Folk Village and soak briefly at the hot springs, but an overnight at one of the Onyang spa hotels lets you actually use the baths the way locals do rather than rushing through.