Way to Danyang

A week in Danyang (1)

He didn't know Danyang. It was too famous for the Eight Scenes of Danyang to not know. In the 80s, I had heard about villages being submerged by Lake Chungju and the Eight Views of Danyang being submerged, but I hadn't really thought about visiting Danyang.

I wanted to take a break from my hectic schedule in Yeouido for a few years and travel slowly to expand my understanding of areas outside of the metropolitan area. My first stop was the well-known Jeju City, and my second was Danyang.

How to get to Danyang

Is it possible to travel to Danyang alone and slowly? The answer is yes. You can get to Danyang from Seoul by highway bus, intercity bus, or train.

Express buses and intercity buses can go to Dong Seoul Terminal or Gangnam Express Bus Terminal (Gyeongbu Line), but there are only a few buses a day (9 in Dong Seoul and 3 in Gangnam). This is probably because it's not that far to Seoul, so it's easier to drive or take the train. The train is the central line, with KTX, Saemaul, and Mugunghwa all running from Cheongnyangni Station, and there's at least one every hour, and it's also cheaper than the bus, with the Mugunghwa costing 9,700 won, the Saemaul 14,900 won, and the KTX 18,300 won.

However, Danyang Station is far from downtown, so you'll need to take a city bus (see photo) or a taxi to get into town (about 7,000 won). Of course, there's also the alternative of walking. If you don't have a lot of luggage and your accommodation isn't too far away, I recommend walking. You'll have to walk alongside traffic without anyone walking with you, but once you get to Sangjin Bridge, you'll feel at ease. The sidewalks of the bridge are decorated with flowers, and if you look up and to the left, you can see the Mancheonha Skywalk, and as you cross the bridge little by little, you can see the promenade on the other side, and to the left, you can see people crossing the famous Zando Bridge.

How to get around in Danyang

After crossing the Sangjin Bridge, you'll see the old Danyang Tourist Hotel right in front of you. If you're staying in Danyang, there are two main areas: the area from Danyang Tourist Hotel to Sonomun Danyang, and the area around the bend in the Namhan River. If your accommodation is in the first zone, Sangjin-ri, you can get there in 30 minutes from the train station.

If you're in the center of town, where there are government offices and schools, you should expect to spend about 50 minutes.

If you're staying at a pension or campground in a different part of Danyang County than the town center, you'll have a harder time using public transportation.

The same is true for other small towns, but many of Danyang's attractions are not easily accessible without a car. An alternative is car sharing. In Danyang, you can rent a Soka car at Danyang Station and downtown. The Soka app lists the location as Danyang Station, but the parking lot is actually quite a walk from the station. This can be quite inconvenient if you have to drag your luggage. If you head towards Sangjin Bridge from Danyang Station and cross the crosswalk, you'll find the off-street parking lot in an industrial area. There is a wide variety of vehicles, so it's easy to rent, but the parking lot is in a rather inconvenient location for those who want to come and go through Danyang Station. For some time now, Soka has been unable to use public parking lots at airports, train stations, and terminals, which is very inconvenient for consumers.

To get to Danyang from Seoul, trains are more frequent and cheaper, but buses also have their advantages. The bus stops at Sangjin-ri, where Danyang Tourist Hotel and Sonomun are located, but it also goes to the terminal in Danyang-eup. In Danyang-eup, you can find a variety of restaurants, and there are many clean motels and guesthouses. There are also soca cars that use the parking lots of guesthouses, which is convenient for travelers who don't have a car.

Where to stay

It's a matter of personal preference, but Danyang has a lot of accommodation options for its size. Danyang-gun has a population of 27,737 (as of October 2023) and Danyang-eup has 10,061 (as of March 2023), but there are large-scale condominiums like Sonomun Danyang and a large hotel called Danyang Tourist Hotel, although it looks old. In addition, there are some neat motels in Danyang near the Gosu Bridge. Other alternatives include guesthouses, campgrounds, and even pensions outside of town.

The tourist information website run by Danyang County is a good place to start.

https://www.danyang.go.kr/tour/527

What to bring

There are many ways to enjoy Danyang, depending on your interests

1. Enjoy the outstanding nature: Danyang eight scenic spots

2. Enjoy paragliding: one of the few paragliding experiences in Korea

3. hiking: various trekking courses on Sobaeksan Mountain and its surroundings

4. relaxation: Beautiful trails along the Namhan River as well as Zando, and quiet neighborhoods that have everything you need.

Danyang is a great place to come and plan according to your interests, or to just come and relax and find something to do. I wanted to spend this week relaxing, walking, thinking, and reading books I don't normally read, rather than trying to see and experience a lot, and Danyang was perfect for that.

But in any case, a digital tourism resident card is useful. On November 9, 2023, the number of digital tourism residents in Danyang exceeded 30,000. That's more than the population of Danyang County. You can sign up for a digital tourism resident card on the Korea Tourism Organization's website and get a 50% discount at various tourist spots and restaurants in Danyang.

In the following articles, I will introduce some of the places I visited in Danyang that impressed me.