After 2 days in Busan, we moved to Ulsan on our second night for the third day. For those who are not familiar with South Korea’s geography, Ulsan is located an hour away on the north of Busan.

Taehwagang Grand Park (태화강 대공원)

Our first stop for the day was Taehwagang Grand Park. It’s basically a park with Taehwa river flowing in the middle of the park. The park got really famous after Korea’s president visited the park during her summer break (Read more about it here). Besides the beautiful river and bridge, you will be able to find a scenic bamboo forest there too. Although the weather was not on our side when we visited, the park was still very beautiful to stroll in.

To get to this park, take City Bus 317, 402, 421, 422, 426, 442, 802, 807 or 817 to Taehwagang River.

Daewangam Park (대왕암공원)

We went to another park in Ulsan after the bamboo forest. It’s called the Daewangam (which means the “Great King’s Rock”) Park. The park is known for Ulsan’s legend. The story goes: There was a queen of the Shilla dynasty who was buried at this site and because she wanted to continue protecting her people, she turned into a dragon.

The park was so beautiful even in the storm. Definitely a must go if you are near the area. The view from the rock was breathtaking although I could not get a good picture of it due to the weather. Just look at how the wind was blowing as we crossed the bridge to the rocks:

From Ulsan Intercity Bus Terminal or Express Bus Terminal, walk 400m to the bus stop in front of Lotte Hotel Ulsan. Take Bus 108, 133 or 401 and get off at the entrance of Ilsan Beach.  It is located about 1.2km from the bus stop.

Jujeon Mongdol Beach (주전몽돌해변)

We were supposed to go to the beach to ride on the transparent kayaks but due to the horrible weather conditions when we were there, we could not 🙁  We ended up trying out a restaurant they have there instead called Jangyukkal, a Yukgaejang place. Yukgaejang is Korea’s spicy beef and vegetable soup – very good for a cold and rainy day.  The prices were quite reasonable: the soup dishes cost 8,000 KRW and the Mandus (Korean dumplings) cost 5,000 KRW a tray.

If you happen to be in Ulsan on a good clear day, try going to the beach to kayak! From Ulsan Terminal, you can take Bus 133, 401, 126, 108, and get off at Jeongsujang(정수장) and then transfer to Bus 411 bound for Jujeon Saemaeul(주전새마을). The bus runs between 06:10-22:10 on 27min intervals.

Jangsaengpo Whale Museum (장생포 고래박물관)

I don’t usually go to museums but this one was quite interesting. We went to a Jangsaengpo Whale Museum (장생포 고래박물관) in Ulsan. It was definitely a good place to hide from the storm outside. There you’ll get to see how did people in Ulsan catch and proses Whales in the 1900s before the government banned whale catching. It was quite gruesome but yet it was very interesting. On a good weather, you may also opt to go on a whale watching cruise and see the whales in the sea around the museum! There were also some activities for children so if you have children, definitely bring them here when you are in Ulsan.