Seongeup Folk Village
Seongeup Folk Village
3.5
Tours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travellers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Plan your visit
The area
Address
Reach out directly
Best nearby
Restaurants
5 within 5 kms
Attractions
15 within 10 kms
See what travellers are saying
- Leong Chee ShengSingapore, Singapore353 contributionsInteresting but not worth a special trip downVery small village with a free tour guide to talk about the place. It's a village that the government has preserved for tourism, and has allocated free tour guides to promote its history. It's interesting but bear in mind that the stories are intrinsically linked to the products they are going to sell you at the end. Products are claimed to be the best in the market, though we can't verify that. No obligation to purchase. Starts from 50,000 won for some of the items like horse oil, tea syrup etc to 400,000 won for the horse bone powder.Visited October 2023Travelled with familyWritten 10 October 2023
- Uncle BillLexington, Kentucky231 contributionsA pleasant strollAn authentic Korean village that is worth a brief visit. There are some vendors that sell stuff I did not buy but they were not hard sellers. However we were alone and not on a tour group that may have targeted more. A pleasant stroll.Visited November 2023Travelled as a coupleWritten 14 November 2023
- Czar EmmanuelManila, Philippines10,311 contributionsObserving a bit of Jeju's native lifestyleThis is a small native village of Jeju with thatched-roof stone houses, some temples, a courtyard for royal guests, etc. alongside more touristy restaurants and cafes, souvenir shops and even places where you can rent traditional Korean costumes to wear for some pictorials. The place is surrounded by high walls. Near the main gate you'll find some authentic "dol hareubangs" or typical stone statues. Visiting this place is like traveling back in time. It gives you some idea of how lifestyle once was in Jeju Island before its modernization and the onset of consumerist tourism. Highly recommended!Visited June 2024Travelled with friendsWritten 26 June 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
3.5
583 reviews
Excellent
108
Very good
199
Average
190
Poor
54
Terrible
32
These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
This service may contain translations provided by Google. Google disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to translations, including any warranties of accuracy, reliability, and any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and freedom from forgery.
Traveltheorient
San Antonio, TX596 contributions
Jun 2023
We really enjoyed the village. My wife particularly enjoyed the opportunity to old time borrow outfits for both of us. And so we did and toured the village in our outfits (we were royalty for about 30 minutes) while my wife's niece took pictures of us...
Written 9 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Leong Chee Sheng
Singapore, Singapore353 contributions
Oct 2023 • Family
Very small village with a free tour guide to talk about the place. It's a village that the government has preserved for tourism, and has allocated free tour guides to promote its history. It's interesting but bear in mind that the stories are intrinsically linked to the products they are going to sell you at the end. Products are claimed to be the best in the market, though we can't verify that. No obligation to purchase. Starts from 50,000 won for some of the items like horse oil, tea syrup etc to 400,000 won for the horse bone powder.
Written 11 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
뿡뿡이
Jeju Island, South Korea1 contribution
Feb 2023 • Business
I went there as a student for research purposes. I am from Jeju Island.
I feel sad after reading the reviews, so I'm writing a few words.
1. Please be careful of the signboard on the outside of the wall that says ‘House to Visit’. Instead of locals, outsiders who have come here for commercial activities since long ago tout and sell customers. At first, they approach you kindly and offer you a taste, but then they sell you hard, so be careful.
2. Be sure to check with the management office to see if it is an official guide. There is a free guided activity at Seongeup Folk Village, and other guides join in to guide you to places that are hard to sell. You must check this to avoid damage.
Due to the government's neglect, there are many delays in tourism and residential management, but the residents have a lot of affection for the village. Normally, you can go quietly and look around for about an hour, but during festivals, there is a lot to see, so aim for the festivals.
I feel sad after reading the reviews, so I'm writing a few words.
1. Please be careful of the signboard on the outside of the wall that says ‘House to Visit’. Instead of locals, outsiders who have come here for commercial activities since long ago tout and sell customers. At first, they approach you kindly and offer you a taste, but then they sell you hard, so be careful.
2. Be sure to check with the management office to see if it is an official guide. There is a free guided activity at Seongeup Folk Village, and other guides join in to guide you to places that are hard to sell. You must check this to avoid damage.
Due to the government's neglect, there are many delays in tourism and residential management, but the residents have a lot of affection for the village. Normally, you can go quietly and look around for about an hour, but during festivals, there is a lot to see, so aim for the festivals.
Written 5 December 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dick Z
Bangkok, Thailand3,842 contributions
May 2024 • Couples
Maybe you get a better presentation when with a group tour, but what we got did not look like much. After entering an elderly lady came who explained a few things in broken English while taking us along a few of the huts. Then we ended up inside one and it was clear that we were expected to buy some of the honey. When we didn't want to she asked for a tip. I did oblige because after all there is no entrance fee (which I would have preferred).
Written 4 May 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Uncle Bill
Lexington, KY231 contributions
Nov 2023 • Couples
An authentic Korean village that is worth a brief visit. There are some vendors that sell stuff I did not buy but they were not hard sellers. However we were alone and not on a tour group that may have targeted more. A pleasant stroll.
Written 14 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
kim buay p
Singapore, Singapore13,871 contributions
Apr 2023 • Friends
We took bus 201 from Seogwipo city to a bus stop after Pyoseon 5 day market. It is very easy and cheap to get around Jeju by bus using the T-money card. Each trip is 1150 won and we are allowed 2 transfers. There is a screen on the bus to announce the stop in English. After alighting we could take bus 221 or 222 to Seongeup-ri bus stop for the folk village. However we decided to take a taxi as we wished to take lunch at Yetnal Putjak. This cosy and popular lunch place serves the traditional red bean soup with rice balls or noodles and it is almost next to the folk village.
After lunch we were happy to be walking around the folk village which is free to enter. We entered from the west gate. This village showcases a vast amount of the unique culture of Jeju. Cultural properties in the folk village have been handed down from generation to generation with well preserved residential houses like the Go Chang-Hwan historic house (once used as an inn), Confucian shrines, schools, ancient government offices, stone statues, large millstones, fortress ruins, and stone monuments.
There are 4 grandpa stone statues guarding the West gate of the Jeongui-hyeon fortress, 2 on the left and 2 on the right. They serve as boundary stones and also as guardians for the visitors' health and safety.
I loved walking along the alleys with black lava rock walls to see the thick thatched houses looking like mushrooms and the stone grandfather statues (Harubang). My enjoyment is enhanced by the numerous saw-leaf zelkova (about 1000 years old) and Japanese Hackberries trees (about 600 years old) and the dense yellow canola flowers which are in bloom in Spring. There are also cafes, toilets and shops within this folk village which has a fortress wall surrounding it with east, west, north and south entrances. We did not manage to walk around the whole village as it is quite large. We retraced our steps back to the west entrance where we took bus 221 to Pyoseon High school to change to bus 201 to visit another highlight for the day, namely the Namwon Keuneong Coastal trail (bus stop is Dongbu Health centre) which starts from Kumho Resort.
After lunch we were happy to be walking around the folk village which is free to enter. We entered from the west gate. This village showcases a vast amount of the unique culture of Jeju. Cultural properties in the folk village have been handed down from generation to generation with well preserved residential houses like the Go Chang-Hwan historic house (once used as an inn), Confucian shrines, schools, ancient government offices, stone statues, large millstones, fortress ruins, and stone monuments.
There are 4 grandpa stone statues guarding the West gate of the Jeongui-hyeon fortress, 2 on the left and 2 on the right. They serve as boundary stones and also as guardians for the visitors' health and safety.
I loved walking along the alleys with black lava rock walls to see the thick thatched houses looking like mushrooms and the stone grandfather statues (Harubang). My enjoyment is enhanced by the numerous saw-leaf zelkova (about 1000 years old) and Japanese Hackberries trees (about 600 years old) and the dense yellow canola flowers which are in bloom in Spring. There are also cafes, toilets and shops within this folk village which has a fortress wall surrounding it with east, west, north and south entrances. We did not manage to walk around the whole village as it is quite large. We retraced our steps back to the west entrance where we took bus 221 to Pyoseon High school to change to bus 201 to visit another highlight for the day, namely the Namwon Keuneong Coastal trail (bus stop is Dongbu Health centre) which starts from Kumho Resort.
Written 12 April 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KarlMessner
Sunny Isles Beach, FL305 contributions
Apr 2018
We were cruising the Far East and stopped at Jeju.
The cheapest excursion was $120 per person. $240 for the two of us.
Instead we walked around Jeju a little then hailed a cab. He took us all over the island doing all the same things for $100. Personal service. Stayed. As long as we wanted. Left when we were ready. One of the many ways weve seen the world much cheaper than most. 73 countries and territories so far.
The village is interesting. 100 huts. Some occupied. And a black pig. A guy will tell you about a tea they sell that if it tastes salty or sweet will diagnose your ailments. We passed.
Not sure how many people read my reviews. If you hit “helpful”, I’ll get an email and they always encourage me to write more :)
The cheapest excursion was $120 per person. $240 for the two of us.
Instead we walked around Jeju a little then hailed a cab. He took us all over the island doing all the same things for $100. Personal service. Stayed. As long as we wanted. Left when we were ready. One of the many ways weve seen the world much cheaper than most. 73 countries and territories so far.
The village is interesting. 100 huts. Some occupied. And a black pig. A guy will tell you about a tea they sell that if it tastes salty or sweet will diagnose your ailments. We passed.
Not sure how many people read my reviews. If you hit “helpful”, I’ll get an email and they always encourage me to write more :)
Written 8 April 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A_BZ_Traveler
Singapore2 contributions
May 2014 • Friends
I visited Seongeup Folk Village as part of the tour package to Jeju Island that was provided as free gift by a company that I need not mentioned here. As an Asian and having extensively travelled throughout Asia. I am familiar have experience all sorts of tricks and gimmicks. The first tip that this was another hard sell stop is that there is no time limit for the stop. Prior to this stop, we visited the famous Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak, they insisted that we returned to the bus by 1 hour which is not enough to really enjoy the place. However, we were told we can take all the time we need at Seongeup. Then a nice looking old lady who can speak Mandarin were waiting to greet us and give us a tour of the place. I was curios why no such tour guide were organised for Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak. The whole tour of the village was short 15 minutes, most of the info she provided I can easily find out from internet, then we were ushered into a room in one 'village building' where she proceed to let taste and test their natural products and tell us how miraculous is the products, the tea, the honey, horse bones and horse cream. The whole presentation took twice as long as the village tour. Then she went on and on and on about how healthy are the people and it is due to the miracles of horse bones. I mean come on. There are horses the world over. Surely if horse bones are the key to living longer and younger,.Someone other than the Jeju people would have known about it. Then next she talks about pricing which I almost fell out of my chair. Korean Won 190,000 or USD 185 for horse bones pellet? I am not sure how many fools are there in the world that bought into this ludicrous claims. Right there and then I wanted to leave. She then changes tack and describe how they money will help preserve the village, fund village children education healthcare etc etc. I heard that before in almost all my travel. Apparently, some of my fellow tour travellers are interested, so they stayed in the room while I explored the 'village'. The area is very small, most of the 'buildings' are similar to the one that I was in and there are various product demo sessions going on in other 'buldings'. In the end, we spend a total a 2 hour there and the organizer waited until everyone got onto the bus. It so different from the Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak stop where they chased back onto the bus and even went into the washroom to look for missing passengers. Just for non-asian travellers tour organiser gets sales commissions if the tour groups buy something. So they benefit if when they spend more types at such places rather then the actual sight that you wanted to see.
Written 22 May 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dazhu
Singapore, Singapore29 contributions
May 2013 • Couples
We came to this village with our hired taxi driver. The driver had apparently informed the staff in this village in advance, because a Chinese-speaking woman came out to greet us just as we approached the village. The woman spent the next ten minutes bringing us to different places around the village and giving a brief introduction. We learnt a bit from her about their traditional way of living and even saw a live black pig in captivity. She then brought us to a room saying we could take a rest and had a sip of their tea since the weather was warm. For the next 20 minutes, she tried to persuade us to buy the pills which she claimed to be made from bones of Jeju horses and a bottle of tea, costing a total of 190,000 Korean won. When we said we weren't keen, she was flabbergasted and said everyone who came before us bought items from here. We still refused to buy and returned to our taxi. She followed us to our taxi and spoke in Korean to the taxi driver. Didn't know what she was saying but she might be complaining. She then asked us what could we have bought by not spending 190,000 Korean won here. I replied: a lot of things. We didn't like her tone and told the driver to drive off. It was a waste of our time coming here. We didn't have any time to wander around the village by ourselves and hence no photos. It seemed the main purpose was to sell those items to us.
Written 1 June 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
emperorwee
Singapore, Singapore106 contributions
Nov 2014 • Couples
We did not find anything great about this place to be honest. There was the tour guide giving a minor introduction of this village and we took some photos of the village from the top and that was all.
Written 4 January 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
would like to know how i can buy the omija tea from the village. does the village ship it abroad?
Written 20 January 2017
I am not sure if you have tried them, and would like to buy more? I really don't think it is a mass production. It looks like a small scale business. However, we think they do sell these at the local market. They are all in Korean... Not sure they are exactly the same or not. However, if you are visiting them, I am sure he would tell you, coz he speaks English.
Written 29 June 2017
At the end of the tour the guy gave us a little tea. It was delicious. Does anyone know what kind of tea he was serving?
Written 27 April 2015
From our tour last week ,the tour guide gave us omija tea which is made from fermented berries, and pitched to us at the end of the tour for about 40 dollars per box
Written 29 October 2016
Showing results 1-5 of 5
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing