Abai Village아바이마을

At a glance

Abai Village grew up in Cheongho-dong after 1951, when people from Hamgyeong Province in the North came south with the South Korean army and settled together, waiting for the day they could go home. 'Abai' is Hamgyeong dialect for a kindly older man, much like 'grandpa'. Much of the old village is gone, but a few shacks without gates still stand, and murals about the lost hometowns line the walls. The drama Autumn in My Heart was filmed here and made it one of Sokcho's best-known stops, and the lanes nearby are full of places serving northern dishes such as Hamheung-style cold noodles, squid sundae and abai sundae soup.

Book ahead

Paid links · These are affiliate links: when you book through them, K for All earns a commission at no extra cost to you. Booking, payment, cancellations and refunds are handled by the booking site — check its final terms before you pay.

Abai Village · 3 tours & tickets

1. KKdaySokcho day tour from SeoulA shared 13-hour day tour from Seoul to Yeonggeumjeong Pavilion, the Sokcho Tourist & Fishery Market, the Abai Village ferry and village, the Sokcho Eye and beach, and Naksansa Temple.Book
2. KlookSokcho 3-hour taxi tourA private car with driver for three hours around Sokcho, with four set itineraries that cover spots such as Sokcho Beach, Seoraksan, Abai Village and local markets.Book
3. Trip.comSokcho sightseeing taxi with Seoul transferA 3-hour sightseeing taxi in Sokcho for up to four people with a round-trip transfer from Seoul; one route runs the Abai Village ferry, Sokcho Central Market and Sokcho Beach.Book

Places to stay nearby

Paid links · Expedia links are affiliate links: when you book through them, K for All earns a commission at no extra cost to you. Distances are rough straight-line figures. Pick your dates on Expedia for live prices, and check each property's cancellation policy before you book.

Map

Numbers match the list. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

KakaoMapNaver MapGoogle Maps

Tips

• 01
  To see what the first refugee homes looked like, visit the displaced people's village at the Sokcho Municipal Museum, where early houses from Abai Village have been rebuilt.

Nearby

Sokcho BeachSokcho's city beach, a short walk from the express bus terminal, with shallow water, a pine grove and seaside photo sculptures.Sokcho Lighthouse ObservatoryA working lighthouse first lit in 1957, with a lookout over the East Sea, Cheongchoho Lake and the Seoraksan ridges.Seoraksan National ParkKorea's signature mountain park, where trails from the Sogongwon entrance in Sokcho lead to Ulsanbawi, Biryong Falls and Cheonbuldong Valley.Naksansa TempleA seaside temple founded in 671, with a 16 m statue of the bodhisattva of compassion facing the East Sea and a clifftop pavilion known for sunrise.