Haedong Yonggungsa Temple해동용궁사

At a glance

Haedong Yonggungsa was founded in 1376 by the monk Naong, royal teacher to King Gongmin of Goryeo, and sits right above the sea, where waves, dragon imagery and a large statue of Gwaneum (the bodhisattva of compassion) come together. It burned during the Japanese invasions of the 1590s and was rebuilt in the early 1930s. Its present name dates from 1974, when the abbot Jeongam dreamed of Gwaneum in white robes rising to the sky on a dragon. Look for the cave hall beside the main hall, home to a stone Maitreya Buddha that couples pray to for a son, and the four-lion stone pagoda in front.

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Haedong Yonggungsa Temple · 4 tours & tickets

1. KlookYonggungsa & Blueline Park Beach Train tourA guided day tour to Haedong Yonggungsa Temple with a ride on the Blueline Park Beach Train; one package adds BUSAN X the SKY.Book
2. GetYourGuideGamcheon Village & Yonggungsa tour with lunchA full-day group tour of Haedong Yonggungsa Temple and Gamcheon Culture Village, with lunch included.Book
3. GetYourGuideYonggungsa highlights tour with local lunchAn about 9-hour tour to Haedong Yonggungsa Temple with a haenyeo (woman diver) seafood lunch in a fishing village.Book
4. KKdayBusan day tour with route optionsA group day tour where you choose a route; stops include Haedong Yonggungsa, Taejongdae, Gamcheon, Huinnyeoul, Songdo Skywalk, the Sky Capsule or a yacht.Book

Places to stay nearby

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Map

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Tips

• 01
  The temple opens at 04:30, so an early visit lets you arrive well before the day tours.
• 02
  It's an active temple: keep voices low near the halls and avoid photographing people at prayer.

Nearby

Skyline Luge BusanRide a chairlift up, then roll down 2.4 km of tracks in a gravity-powered luge cart, with the sea in view, in east Busan's Osiria resort area.Lotte World Adventure BusanA fairy-tale theme park in east Busan's Osiria area, with six themed zones, a talking tree, parades and rides from gentle to wild.Cheongsapo Daritdol SkywalkA U-shaped sea walkway 20 m above the water at Cheongsapo, on Haeundae's old-railway walking path, with a glass floor at its tip.Haeundae Blueline ParkAn old coastal railway turned into a seaside ride: a slow beach train to Songjeong and little sky capsules gliding above the shore.