Top 10 Korea #1 — Busan: KTX 2h20 to the Beach City That Feels Like a Different Country

Two and a half hours on the KTX from Seoul, and you arrive in a city that looks and sounds nothing like the capital. Busan is Korea's second-largest metro, but for foreign visitors it functions more like the perfect day-and-night escape — beaches in the morning, hillside art villages in the afternoon, the country's largest seafood market for dinner. Three places consistently top foreigner trip-report charts. Haeundae Beach (해운대) is the iconic curve of sand wedged against a skyscraper skyline — packed in summer, empty and dramatic in winter. Gamcheon Culture Village (감천문화마을) is the pastel hillside neighborhood once nicknamed Korea's Machu Picchu, with maze alleys, public art, and ocean views from every corner. And Jagalchi Market (자갈치시장) is the largest seafood market in the country — pick a live fish from the first-floor tanks and the second-floor restaurants will cut and serve it within minutes. Getting there: KTX from Seoul Station to Busan Station takes 2h20 and costs around ₩60,000 one way. SRT from Suseo Station is slightly cheaper. Take the first 06:00 train for a full beach day, return on the 21:00 to be back in Seoul before midnight. Two days is the comfortable spread. Practical tips: Busan's subway is in English and T-money cards from Seoul work. The Gwangalli–Millak raw-fish strip is where locals go for sashimi, not Jagalchi — both are worth one meal on a 1N2D trip. Up next on #2: an hour south of Busan, or direct from Seoul, sits Gyeongju — the open-air museum of ancient Korea.