Haeundae Beach

Haeundae Beach is a 1.5 km stretch of sand on the eastern side of Busan. It opened as a swimming beach in 1965, and according to a Haeundae-gu Office notice (based on big-data figures), 9,994,915 people visited during the 2025 season (June 21–September 14). Dongbaekseom Island and Nurimaru APEC House sit at the western end; at the eastern end, in Mipo, the Beach Train and Sky Capsule set off along the old railway. Beyond summer swimming, the calendar runs from the Sand Festival in May to the Light Festival and the Polar Bear Festival in winter.

Opening season and hours — they change each year

The figures below are from Haeundae-gu Office's beach guide page. In 2026 the season ran for 82 days, from Friday, June 26 to Tuesday, September 15, with opening hours of 09:00–18:00. Songjeong Beach, managed by the same district office, closed 15 days earlier on August 31. The 2025 season was June 21–September 14 and the 2024 season June 1–August 31, so the dates change each year.

Water-quality results and visitor counts are posted under 'Beach > Notices' on the Haeundae-gu tourism site; season dates are in the 'Beach guide' section. In 2026 the office published a pre-season test in June (posted June 22) and the July test (posted August 12).

Some things are not tied to the swimming season: the district office says the beachfront lighting stays on year-round (see 'Haeundae after dark' below), and Dongbaekseom Island is open 24 hours and free, according to the Korea Tourism Organization.

Beach gear fees, safety and accessibility

Gear rental at Haeundae ran July 1–August 31. The fees below are from the district office's 2026 beach guide.

During the 2026 season, lifeguards worked 09:00–18:00 from 10 towers, with 2 patrol teams of 6; the safety equipment was 7 rescue-equipment boxes and 1 automated external defibrillator (AED). As an accessible tourist site, the beach has gentle ramps, tactile signboards with audio guidance for visually impaired visitors, accessible parking and restrooms, and the tourist information center lends wheelchairs (accessible-tourism inquiries: Culture and Tourism Division, +82-51-749-1612).

Dongbaekseom Island and Nurimaru APEC House

Dongbaekseom, behind the Westin Josun hotel at the western end of the sand, was joined to the mainland by long-term sediment buildup but is still called an island. The loop trail passes the 'Haeundae' inscription carved in rock and attributed to the scholar Choe Chi-won, along with his statue and poem monument, and the mermaid statue from the legend of Princess Hwangok. Across the water you see the Mipo shoreline, Dalmaji Hill, Gwangandaegyo Bridge and the Oryukdo islets. True to its name (dongbaek means camellia), the island blooms red from winter into spring.

Nurimaru APEC House on the island hosted the APEC leaders' meeting on November 19, 2005. The building is a modern take on a traditional Korean pavilion: the roof follows the ridgeline of Dongbaekseom, and the 12 slanted outer columns stand for Busan's dynamism. On the third floor, the summit hall is kept as it was, down to the leaders' desks, chairs, microphones and name plates, and the same floor houses the APEC Memorial Hall.

Blueline Park — Beach Train and Sky Capsule

The 4.8 km from Mipo at the eastern end of the beach through Cheongsapo to Songjeong was once the Donghae Nambu railway line. Blueline Park is a redevelopment of that old railway, running the Beach Train and the Sky Capsule (its official site names Haeundae Blueline Co. as the operator). The Beach Train serves seven stops: three main stations (Mipo, Cheongsapo, Songjeong) and four minor stations (Dalmaji Tunnel, Haewol Skywalk, Daritdol Skywalk, Gudeokpo); the Sky Capsule runs only between Mipo and Cheongsapo. The Beach Train runs at 15 km/h, about 25 minutes one way; the Sky Capsule covers the 2 km from Mipo to Cheongsapo on a rail 7–10 m above the ground at 4 km/h, about 30 minutes one way.

Fares below are the revised rates in effect since May 1, 2026 (by payment date). Children (36 months through elementary school) pay ₩7,000 for one Beach Train ride (₩5,600 from Cheongsapo), ₩11,000 for two rides and ₩13,000 for all stations. National merit holders, people with disabilities and visitors aged 65 or over pay ₩8,000 (₩6,400 from Cheongsapo), ₩12,000 and ₩14,000 for the same Beach Train tickets; on the Beach Train the discount also covers one companion of a person with a severe disability. For the same groups a 2-, 3- or 4-seat Sky Capsule costs ₩48,000 / ₩53,000 / ₩58,000 per capsule, with the discount for the holder only. Children under 36 months ride both the Beach Train and the Sky Capsule free. Discount tickets are sold only at the on-site ticket office, where you must show ID (digital ID accepted); they are same-day tickets and seats may have run out. Discounts cannot be combined, and packages get no further discount. The park's Chinese page says discounts other than the child fare are for Korean nationals, while the Korean page has no such line, so foreign visitors should check at the ticket office.

• Everyone must get off the Beach Train at the terminal stations, Mipo and Songjeong. Two-ride and all-station tickets can be used for a round trip.
• Beach Train: your reservation time is your first boarding time, and boarding closes 10 minutes before departure. Sky Capsule: your reservation time is the entry window. For both, arriving 30 minutes or more after your reservation time may mean no boarding and no refund, and the last departure of the day must be taken on time.
• A Sky Capsule seats at most 4. A party of 5 that includes one child aged 7 or under (born in 2020, as the park puts it) may use a 4-seater. Children under 36 months ride free but still count toward the capsule's headcount.
• Refunds: full refund if you cancel 3 days before boarding; 20% is deducted 2 days before, 30% the day before and 50% on the day of boarding, before departure.
• Strollers must be folded. Manual wheelchairs board the train as they are but must be folded for the Sky Capsule; electric wheelchairs cannot board.
• Service runs in the rain but may stop for heavy rain, typhoons and similar conditions. Hours may also change in peak season, on weekends and holidays, or for safety.

Mipo Station is about a 15-minute walk from Jung-dong Station (Line 2) Exit 7, or about 10 minutes from the 'Mipo / Moontan Road entrance' bus stop (buses 39, 100, 139, 141, 200 and express 1003). Official ticket outlets are the Blueline Park website, the on-site ticket offices and the partner booking sites listed in the park's notice.

Festival calendar — from the Sand Festival to the Polar Bear Festival

The Sand Festival began in June 2005 as an 'APEC D-150' event ahead of the summit, and fills Gunam-ro and the sand with a world sand-sculpture exhibition, hands-on activities and performances; the 2026 theme was 'A Busan time trip through sand'. The district office also lists the Daeboreum full-moon festival, a sunrise festival and the Sea Festival among Haeundae's events, and Gunam-ro has a busking zone for street performances (performers book it through the district's tourism site). Check the 'Festivals' menu of the Haeundae-gu tourism site and each organizer for the next edition.

Haeundae after dark — lighting and the fountain

Landscape lighting installed in 2005 covers the 1.6 km from the Westin Josun hotel to the Korea Condo (the district office calls this the full beachfront), plus the Dalmaji-gil area, and stays on every night of the year from sunset until midnight (until 02:00 in the summer season). The Goun Badagil Fountain on Gunam-ro, the street linking Haeundae Station to the sand, is a musical fountain built into the roadway (built May 2018, jets up to 10 m). During its season the 20-minute musical show runs 3–4 times a day and rests on Mondays for maintenance. Shows are at 14:00, 19:30 and 21:00, with a 17:00 show added from May to August (subject to weather and events).

Getting there

• From Haeundae Station (Busan Metro Line 2) Exit 5, walk down Gunam-ro to the sand — about 8 minutes by the district office's guide, 15 minutes by the city's Visit Busan site.
• By bus, take 139, 307 or express 1003 to the 'Haeundae Beach' stop.
• Use Dongbaek Station Exit 1 for Dongbaekseom and Nurimaru; Blueline Park's Mipo Station is about a 15-minute walk from Jung-dong Station Exit 7.
• The Haeundae tourist information center and Busan Aquarium stand at the beach entrance.

The address is 264 Haeundaehaebyeon-ro, Haeundae-gu, Busan (as listed by VisitKorea). For beach operations, contact the Haeundae-gu Tourism Facilities Office at +82-51-749-7611.

Nearby

Dalmaji-gil

The cherry- and pine-lined road over the shoulder of Wausan toward Songjeong. It bends 15 or more times — hence the nickname '15 curves' — along an 8 km driving route, and is one of the Eight Scenic Views of Busan. The Haewoljeong pavilion (built February 1997) stands at the summit, Dalmaji-dongsan. The Millennium Clock Tower, put up in January 2000, is another well-known sight here.

Cheongsapo

A small harbor below Dalmaji Hill known for its miyeok (wakame seaweed) and sunrises — one of three small ports, with Mipo and Gudeokpo, strung between Haeundae and Songjeong.

Haeundae Hot Springs

The district office describes it as Korea's only seaside hot-spring district, where you can combine a swim with a soak. The water is a simple saline spring at 40–62 °C.

Busan X the Sky

An observatory on floors 98–100 of the LCT Landmark Tower (411.6 m), a 30-second walk from the sand.