Cycle Touring in South Korea! Basic Information and videos!
 

Hello everyone!

We are very happy to be registered on this cycle community.

We hope, we can receive information from you if we need it.
If you need information about cycling in Korea, feel free to ask.

For those whose never been riding in Korea, below is a quick introduction of the country.

For the past few years Korea has built brand new segregated bicycle facilities around the country. These bike paths are very modern and most of them are located along the major rivers. Hence, they are mostly flat and easy to cycle, about 90% of these dedicated bike paths being paved and completely separated from the cars. So riding on these bicycle paths is very easy and not exhausting.


These bicycle paths are as good as the ones you would find in bike friendly countries such as the Netherlands. Along these paths, there are plenty of convenient stores, coffee shops, and rest areas for cyclists. Some tourist places and stopping points are also nearby these bicycle paths.[/LEFT]

Spring (April, May) & autumn (Sept., Oct) are the best season for cycling in Korea.

Below is our youtube page. We posted some videos about our past trips
https://www.youtube.com/user/bikeOasis

This is a good map of the bike paths of Korea. It's becoming a world-class cycling destination, but publicity and tourism marketing has, and continues to be, somewhat awkward at times. Still, Korea is a great place for cycling and an interesting country to live and work in.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=498301

Cycle Touring in South Korea! Basic Information and videos!
 

Thanks for your reply PDKL45. Glad to hear that some people already know about bicycle paths in Korea.
Most of people we contacted living outside of Korea did not even know or imagine the existence of such infrastructures in Korea before we told them.

We hope in the close future information will spread about this amazing bicycle infrastructure and that people coming to South Korea for cycling will get a positive experience as you had/have PDKL45

Did you live or are you currently living in Korea?
If yes,where did you cycle in Korea?

Cheers

bikeOasis KOREA

I live near Seoul, in Uijeongbu. I ride around Seoul and Gyeonggido on river paths and on mixed rides, on river paths and then up and down mountains. I really like doing stuff like taking the train to Chuncheon (and eating dakgalbi) before riding back to Seoul on the Bukhangang Path.

I agree that people need to know more about the bike infrastructure here, because it's really world class. Everyone has been posting online about the German "bike super highway" recently, but it's actually nothing compared to what we already have here in Korea. The government here--the tourism ministry--could be doing a lot more to promote it, because it would earn a lot of money, and cyclists going down the paths take money to rural areas and give business to restaurants and min baks/pensions etc. I have wondered why the government people don't do more to publicize the bike paths, because they are really, really good. It's something Korea should be really proud of, like the excellent public transport here.

One thing the Korea tourism people could be doing is going to places where the bike industry goes and setting up booths with press kits for the bike journalists from Bike Rumor etc. Like go to the Taipei bike show, the big one in Las Vegas, Interbike, the London one, the German one etc. Go to places where bike people are and publicize the whole bike network here and invite journalists (or someone like the Bike Snob--BSNYC) to come ride here and write about it. The tourism people could also hire a part-time English bike blogger (I would LOVE that job! ^^) to make posts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Not spamming though, raising awareness in a relaxed way and being honest about what they are doing by properly answering questions and offering advice from a local perspective, rather than aggressively creating repetitive threads etc.

I want to go in a "ride around Korea" race/Korean style bike "rally" when the DMZ and the East, South and West Sea bike paths are finished that goes around Korea in a circle. Like Ride Across America or the Tour Divide, but in this case "Ride Around Korea." Riding events like that, endurance races that people will enter for fun and adventure, rather to win, would put Korea on the map, and make it a stop for long distance bike racers. Organizing a self-supported touring race without big prizes (pride and accomplishment are the prizes) would be really good for bike tourism as more and more people heard about the race and it could be the focus of cycle tourist marketing campaigns. Even do a ride/race for bikepackers/adventure tourers that is 50/50 on bike paths and mountains, just like the Kiwi Brevet in New Zealand.

Another thing is trains. Everyone wants to take their bike back to Seoul on the KTX, but it does not allow bikes. If the KTX made one bike carriage and made one service a day from Busan to Seoul with a bike carriage, it would be really popular. Even on the Saemaeul, a bike carriage from Busan to Seoul would be really popular. The only train you can take a bike on now is the Muganghwa, and not all of them have the amusement/games carriage that you are allowed to put your bike in. Korail already runs a perfect service to Chun Cheon, with bike carriages, from Seoul. If they did the same, just bigger, with the KTX or Saemaeul, it would be perfect for casual tourists. Right now, there is no linking bike path back to Seoul. While there will be by 2019, looking at the map I posted, at the moment, no cyclists want to ride back to Seoul on the same path, so a big problem with getting more people to ride the paths is the lack of a dedicated train service back to Seoul. There is already some train called "Leports" or something that takes bikes, but I don't think it goes from Busan to Seoul. Korea already has everything in place for bikes on trains and a KTX bike carriage would be like the final link in the chain. A quick, efficient means of getting back to Seoul with your bike to fly out of the country after having explored Busan would make it HUGE with international tourists.

Looks like a great place for a bike tour. I will put it on my list of future spots I want to visit.

Interesting thread, I'd love to check out Korea only being a short flight away.

Where are you based, RayB? I am keen to tour Japan and China in the future, China in particular.

Thank you all for your interest in this discussion.

Yes Dakgalbi* is also one of our favourite dishes. We usually eat it in Dalkalbi Street in Chuncheon when we do our Dream Bike Tour: Seoul to Andong.

*Chuncheon(춘천) is very popular for its Dakgalbi Street; a street mushroomed with many restaurants that only specialized in Dakgalbi (닭갈비). Dakgalbi is a South Korean dish featuring delicious chicken cubes with vegetables and topped off with a spicy Gochujang sauce. However taste is not very spicy. Foreigners can manage it ;)

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=499186

I do agree with you PDKL45. KTO (Korea Tourism Organization) should promote more aggressively bicycle tourism. It is a shame that the world does not know about this cycling infrastructure.
We already had some journalists on our tours and they wrote some articles about their experience (see articles: bikeOasis KOREA - Experience unique bicycle tours in Korea).

If you plan to cycle in our country, please do not hesitate to have a look on our website. We have many pictures of our bicycle tours and other information.

There is a lot to see in Korea and the new East Sea bike path looks like a great way to see the beautiful rocky east coast of Korea. I think the biggest recommendation I would make is to leave the river path at various locations and strike off inland to see other attractions, like Gyeongju and the tombs of the kings of the Silla dynasty. Bike tourists really do not need to limit themselves to the bike paths, as to do so is to miss a lot of wonderful things that are often very close to the river paths.

Of course, you might miss some important places if you do not go out of the bike paths in such cities like Gyeongju, Seoul or Busan.
However in the countryside most of the interesting attractions are very nearby the bike paths (I am talking for the two tours, we are currently offering). Moreover riding along the river offers very nice landscapes for those who love nature.

You can see the different places we visit in our programs if it can help you:

Welcome to joyful online shopping!
bikeOasis KOREA - Experience unique bicycle tours in Korea

We have also many pics of our trip on our facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/BikeOasis-K...3597591057676/

The bike path system looks quite impressive! I think that Korean food would be great for bike tourists esp with kimchee, an original superfood.

The food here is quite cheap as well, so with minimal Korean (easily gleaned from the Internet and guide books) any cyclist could easily combine credit card touring (eating) with camping. Restaurants in Korea are often open much later than in other countries, but it's not always the way in smaller towns and on public holidays. Still, convenience stores are always open and always have enough food available for a make-shift meal, including the ubiquitous cup ramen. I sometimes measure rides by the amount of large shin raman cups I am likely to consume, as it's the perfect food for cycling in Korea. The salty broth keeps cramps at bay and the carbohydrate rich noodles keep you fueled for riding all day. There's also a salty sports drink full of electrolytes called "Pocari Sweat," which helps with maintaining your electrolyte levels.

There are a range of cheap accommodation options, though, not just camping, many of them cyclist-friendly, and at least one place will even come to the main bike path (Seoul-Busan route) with a small truck, collect bikes and riders and take them to a cheap B&B (Sort of!) style place called a pension (borrowed from the French for some reason) with food (often delicious grilled pork for wrapping in lettuce called "Sam Gyeop Sal") available at reasonable prices.

Bringing this thread up from the dead, hoping to catch the attention of PDKL45 as I'm considering a trip to Korea in September, hoping to ride some of the river trail and finish up with a trip to ride around Jeju Island, hike up its mountain, etc.

Would you guys recommend renting a bike or bringing my own (probably a folding 20" tire bike)?
If not on an organized tour, is it simple for a westerner to get a hotel room or hostel each day without having advance reservations?

There are bike rentals here. You can hire bikes with panniers from a few places. They range from hardtail MTBs to 700c touring bikes.

It's easy to get accommodation without a booking and with minimal Korean (many will speak enough English for you to get by).

Join the "Cycling Seoul to Busan and Beyond" group on Facebook and look through some old discussions; there's a lot of info there that can be of help.

Also:

Beautiful Riverside Bicycle Routes in Korea | Official Korea Tourism Organization

https://travellinghajo.wordpress.com...-in-one-piece/

Cycling South Korea on the Four Rivers bike trail | Cycle Traveller

Best to go before all hell breaks loose on the peninsula.

That DMZ bike path looks fun right about now.

I wouldn't worry about the political situation at all, IMO just a lot of posturing by both sides. Interesting recent article about the bike path network: https://apnews.com/a98a22fec49b465cb88fd3836bcfc99d

While South Korea is quite prosperous I was surprised to read that <2% of Koreans use bicycles as transport. But South Korea has put a lot of effort into the path network & it's helping boost both domestic & int'l tourist cycling.

BTW during 1988 Seoul Olympics the US TV network had a touching commercial featuring an elderly rural Korean gentleman who set out on his trusty commuter bike on a bike-packing tour to Seoul to see the velodrome races.

I wouldn't worry about the security situation. All too often my family and friends back "home" contact me freaking out that Chubby Boy Kim, with his cute little chipmunk cheeks, is about to start WW3, while South Koreans worry about the price of cabbage.

As far as personal safety goes, it is a complete non-issue. I feel much safer in Korea than I do in most other countries, my "home" countries included.

While some things are challenging here, cycle touring is really not one of them. It's a perfect beginner's destination that has enough to keep even the most jaded old tourer interested.

I'm glad this thread popped up, i'm headed to Gunsan City in a week, for a year of work and riding. Looking forward to trying out some of the trails mentioned above.

Thanks!
I've bookmarked the site for a bike rental shop near the Jeju airport and think I'll rent one of their road bikes for 4 days to tour around the island. I'm hoping they can add a rear rack and SPD pedals (or will install my pedals if I bring them). Not sure whether I'll have enough time to ride from Seoul to Busan, so I may look into taking a train from Mokpo to Busan and look for a bike to rent for a day trip around Busan.

I'm just back from my month in Asia.
Unfortunately, there was a typhoon heading to Japan and the edge of that was impacting Korea. I let the daily rain kill my idea of cycling around Jeju Island but was able to check out the bike rental shop and explore around Jeju City on wheels for one clear afternoon. The shop, named Biketrip, is just outside of the Jeju airport and has nice carbon fiber road and mountain bikes for daily rental (about $30 US per day) that you can add on panniers, Look or SPD pedals for a few extra bucks per day. They also have a shop that I didn't visit in Seoul. On Jeju, a decent but low end hotel room was about $34 US per day including a Korean breakfast.

Jeju seems to be "the Hawaii" for Korean and Chinese tourists, you're sharing the road with tons of cars and I saw lots of cyclists on the roads when the sun was out. In the rain though, the roads have wide painted stripes across the entire lane that can get a bit slippery for a road bike descending in the hills. Instead of riding around the island in the rain, I hiked up Mount Hallasan, which I think is the tallest point in South Korea. It was about 15 miles and 8 hours round trip, 1950 meters elevation, a fairly tough hike and somewhat miserable in the rain.

I also got to experience just a bit of the very nice Han River trail in Seoul, near the Ttukseom Resort subway station. The trail is similar to the Santa Ana River Trail near where I live, but with a much nicer view. There was a guy renting decent lower end bikes at the Ttukseom Resort park for just a few bucks and it seemed that lots of Koreans were enjoying the river trail. If the trail from Seoul to Busan is like that the entire way, it would be an awesome 3 day ride.

I did a bunch of day tours around Seoul this summer. It was hot but there are water fountains, vending machines, and convenience stores every few km.

Asiana takes bikes for free.

I attached a pic of the bike trail along the Han River in Seoul and one from the summit of Mount Hallasan.

Thanks for posting. I enjoyed watching several of the videos and I especially enjoy family outings with their children. I have a very good friend who is from Korea. She is a wonderful person and I would love to see the country she came from.

Hmm, anyone has links/contacts for a multi-day rental bike (preferably a 700c touring road bike) for touring around Jeju island? If the shop provides rental for racks and panniers even better!