If you are looking for a great laidback weekend getaway or just a break from Seoul. You should definitely consider visiting Jeonju. The area is famous for its food, booze, and cultural settings. Jeonju is known as “The Best Taste City in Korea” and is worth the visit just for the Bibimbap alone.

It was definitely one of our favorite highlights, but the activities and charm of the city make it a definite must while in Korea. Especially if you a teaching English and have the whole year, there is more than enough to make this a weekend trip. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights.

Bibimbap

We went to Jun Ang Hoi Kwan – A recommended Bibimbap place by the owner of our hotel.

This place gives you many different side dishes as you can see in the photo. Our favorite was the fried fish and the boiling tofu soup.

• CNN Recommends this place – Gajeok Hwaegwan (가족회관)
  Address – Wansan-gu Joongang-dong 3-ga 30, Jeonju (전주시 완산구 중앙동 3가 80번지)
  Phone +82 63 284 0982

Hanok Village

The Hanok village is unbelievably charming and fun. If you’re not familiar with Hanok villages let us warn you, they begin early and close early so it’s best to get started with your day early if you are trying to fit it all in on a short weekend.

Luckily the town is also renowned for its hangover soup which is called kongnamul gukbap (which literally translates to bean sprout soup rice.) A good option if you tried tons of different magkeolli’s the night before. If you are there during the winter you will think its a ghost town in the morning, but give it a couple hours and you will wonder how so many people got there so quickly.

The Jeonju Hanok village has over 700 traditional hanoks to snap photos of and check out. But one of the coolest ways to visit the area is to stay in one of the charming hanoks. They can be a bit more expensive than some of the other hotels or backpacking places, but it is definitely worth checking visiting a hanok village.

We stayed in the hanok guesthouse Dukmanjae Hanok Hotel.

Magkeolli

Bonus they will keep refilling your sides, and if you order another pot of Magkeolli your sides will change! So settle in and see what you get!

In this town you can’t go wrong getting Magkeolli. If you are hungry stop on in on just about any korean restaraunt and ask for some Magkeolli. You may get anywhere from 10-20 side dishes just for ordering this magical elixir. The crazy thing about Jeonju is that they don’t even consider Magkeolli a drink! Apparently, Magkeolli is rich in amino acids, protein, and vitamin B! What a great perk for a delicious alcoholic drink.

Every place is completely different with what sides you can get just depending on where you are. The best thing is your meal will be cheap and a great cultural experience.

The restaurant we went to was called 주식 백운 on Gyeonggijeon-gil

Deokjin Park

We were here during the winter, so as you can tell some of the park wasn’t as pretty. We were excited to see the lotus flowers after seeing them on other people’s websites but unfortunately, this is all we got. You can pass this if you come during the winter.

We had a great time the quaint time of Jeonju. It is about a 3-4 hour bus ride from Seoul depending on weather and traffic. Find out how to get to Jeonju from Seoul. After our experience we recommend visiting during the summer, as some things won’t be as fun during the winter. (ie: the Deokjin Park)

Don’t have alot of time? You can take a day trip to Jeonju Hanok Village from Seoul with KKday. Purchase your tickets online in advance.

If you have gone to Jeonju or are planning a trip there let us know in the comments below, we’d love to hear where you stayed, ate and what you enjoyed!