Busan Sights

Seokbulsa Temple

#1 of 68 things to do in Busan

#82 of 21668 things to do in Asia

3 reviews | Write a review

Good for: everyone, Mountain Goats/exper. hikers

Not good for: extremly weak people., Inadequate equipment & fitness

  • Address
    • Dongnae
  • Hours
    • 07:00-19:00

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Lonely Planet review for Seokbulsa Temple

Hard to find but a wonder to behold, Seokbulsa Temple is a hermitage carved into rock. Massive boulders stretching 40m in height jut out from the mountainside to form a U-shaped enclave with three rock facings that is now a place of worship. Inside the enclave enormous Buddhist images have been meticulously etched into stone. Visually powerful in scale and impact, it's the kind of work that moves first-time visitors to exclaim 'Wow' as they step back and arch their necks to get the full picture.

Quietly walk past the women bowing on the shoes-off platform and step into the small caves for a close-up look at the Buddha glowing in soft candlelight.Getting to Seokbulsa is a worthwhile challenge for anyone with a desire to explore out-of-the-way places. The most interesting - and strenuous - route is to add this stop to your Geumjeongsan Mountain hike. From the South Gate (남문), the path indicated by the Mandeokchon (만덕촌) sign leads to a collection of restaurants and foot-volleyball courts in Namman Village (남만 마을). At one point, the path stops at a court; walk right and pick up the trail on the other side. About 500m down the trail look for a sign that reads in Korean 석불사 입구 (Seokbulsa entrance). Turn right and walk down the steep hill to the road sign pointing the way to a 600m uphill hump to the temple. On the way back, there's no need to return to Namman Village. Take the trail to the top of the mountain and ride the cable car down. Bottom line: add 4km and 1½ hours to the Geumjeongsan Mountain hike to experience one of the most unique temples in Busan.

 

Traveller reviews for Seokbulsa Temple (3)

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    Easy to reach and truly amazing!

    ilovechicken recommends this,

    This was an amazing temple but I was disappointed that it was so easy to reach! I was looking forward to a day long hike that was very diffucult. If you take the cable car up it should not even be considered exercise. In the village many people point you in the right direction and thier are signs posted. the whole trip takes 3 hours without the cable car. Take time to try some of the traditional foods and drink in the Namum village. The directions posted are excellent and i appreciate yous posting them. Many people were making the hike with little more than a bottle of water...

    Good for: everyone

    Not good for: extremly weak people.

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    Best site in my 3 weeks Korea trip

    wanwen recommends this,

    We got to the site by keeping asking local people "Seokbulsa". The trail is long and strenuous. But when we finally reached the temple, the first several words were "WOWWWWW". On our way back, we tried to find the shortcut Lonely Planet mentioned but went to a totally different direction which took us ~2 hrs or more to come back. So my sincere suggestion is: asking the local people when you are not sure. This site is so awesome and worth to visit that you will take all the curse you muttered back when you finally see it.

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    A breathtaking sight to behold with some caution!

    jbkramer recommends this,

    We diligently followed the Lonely Planet Guide to Seokbulsa Temple, although it was initially a struggle down the steep rocky hill before attacking the 600m hump to get there. Once we had experienced this amazing site we thought twice about returning the way we came and decided not to return to Namman Village as the Lonely Planet suggested. A big mistake.....!!! 2 hours later we were still climbing rocky outcrops with no clear trails nor signage and no well-worn paths. We eventually reached the top of the mountain at the Watchtower and had to rely on a local to bring us back to the East Gate (Nammun) - this took yet another hour of fast walking up and down mountains on treacherous trails. (no other people in sight) Our local turned out to be TaeKwonDo instructor who had little sympathy with us old Westerners who couldn't keep up, but we were still very grateful and still lived to tell the tale! Fotunately, it was a fine day.

    Good for: Mountain Goats/exper. hikers

    Not good for: Inadequate equipment & fitness

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