The Hapcheon Image Theme Park became a major tourist attraction after the release of Tae Guk Gi: The Brotherhood of War (2004), and has continued to increase in popularity following the filming of additional movies and dramas within the park. Well-known films and soap operas include Seoul 1945, Fighter in the Wind, Gyeongseong Scandals, Meeting Plaza, Dachimawa Lee, Modern Boy and East of Eden. The park is one of the largest film and television studio sets in Korea.
The theme park is located in Gahori, Yongju-myeon (Hapcheon) and covers an area of over 231,406.00㎡. It is divided into two main sets separately owned by the major broadcasting companies KBS and MBC. The section owned by KBS houses reproductions of Seoul landmarks such as Seoul Station, Chosun Governor-General Office, and the Bando Hotel, as they appeared from the 1930s to the 1960s. MBC’s set focuses mainly on reproductions of streets from Sogong-dong, Seoul from the 1970s and 80s. A walk around this major filming location will transport visitors back into the Seoul of yore, a Seoul vastly different from the one people know and love today.
After a set is used for a film or a soap opera, the City of Hapcheon remodels and displays it as a type of exhibit, chronicling the area’s anthropologic development. In the future, the city plans to expand exhibits to include a facility where visitors can view a collection of historic military pieces. Over here, you can rent a Korean old school uniform and take many photos with the reproductions of the 1930s to 1980s Korea buildings.
Hapcheon Image Theme Park
Address: 757, Hapcheonhosu-ro, Yongju-myeon, Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do
Operating hours: 9am-6pm
Admission Fee
Individuals - Adults 5,000 won / Students & Children 3,000 won / Seniors (ages 65 or more) & People with disabilities (lvl. 4 or higher) 2,500 won
Groups - Adults 3,000 won / Students & Children 2,000 won / Seniors (ages 65 or more) & People with disabilities (lvl. 4 or higher) 1,500 won
* Free admission (proof required): People with disabilities (lvl. 1-3), Children (ages 6 or younger), etc
Getting there:
From the Seoul Nambu Bus Terminal, take a bus towards Hapcheon
(5 buses daily at 10:08, 12:00, 14:00, 15:00, 16:45. Travel time is roughly 4 and a half hour.) and get off at Hapcheon Bus Terminal.
Take a county bus headed towards Hapcheon Image Theme Park.
(The buses are available at 08:10, 08:30, 09:00, 09:30, 10:30, 11:10, 12:30, 13:40, 14:20, 15:00, 16:00, 16:50, 17:20, 18:30, 19:30 and the trip takes about 15 minutes.)
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(Info and Images source: KTO MY FB Page and Visit Korea Site)