HeySeorakIn partnership with Sokcho City
Sokcho is that rare port where the real town starts at the gangway: a fish market, a hand-pulled ferry, a Korean-War-era village, and the sea — all on foot. Browse here before you disembark; walk with the offline walking map once you're ashore.
Next call · Sokcho Port
Westerdam
Oct 17 · 10:00–20:00 · 10 h ashore
Schedule from Sokcho City; times are local (KST) and can shift with the ship — your onboard program is final.
Everything below filters to what honestly fits your window.
Getting around
Sokcho City's market shuttle serves independent cruise passengers. No booking: find the banner in the terminal parking lot and check the day's operating hours.
No Seoraksan shuttle will operate during The World's September 15–17, 2026 call.
Cruise terminal parking lot
크루즈터미널 주차장 · Look for the shuttle banner
Tourist & Fishery Market stop
속초관광수산시장 정류소 · Opposite the market's main parking lot, at the village-bus stop
With six hours or more, take the market shuttle or walk downtown. For Seoraksan, arrange a taxi both ways and leave plenty of time to return before all-aboard.
On the ground
Curated with Sokcho City — the list grows as operators join. Anything beyond walking range says so on the card; we introduce, you deal directly with the operator.
아트플랫폼 갯배
A small artist-led culture space where the refugee settlement's story meets today's Sokcho — the right 30 minutes between the ferry and lunch.
Tue–Sun 09:00–18:00 per official listings — exhibitions rotate, so check the name in a map app before making it your only timed stop
No booking — just show up.
갯배 건너기
Sokcho's hand-pulled ferry has crossed this channel since the Korean War — hop on, and if the boatman offers you the hook, pull the cable yourself.
Adult 500 KRW · child 300 KRW · card kiosk or cash, on the Abai Village side — from downtown, board first and pay when you land
Daily — roughly 05:00–23:00 in summer, 05:30–22:30 in winter; can pause in rough seas (call to check)
No booking — just show up.
Read on the ship
Thirteen minutes on deck, and the ferry, the market and the village start making sense.
Journal · 13 min
Why does a fishing town on the South's east coast eat like North Korea's Hamgyeong Province? Why is there a ferry you pull by hand? This piece reads Sokcho through the dishes you'll pass on foot — Seoraksan's temples, the East Sea trade, the Korean War refugees who built Abai Village on sand — and ends with a route whose second half, market to ferry to village, is the walk on your map.
Read the storyOn foot
Each route is a colored line on the map — tap one to open it there.
Before you step off
Money
Cards work in most restaurants and cafes, and the Gaetbae ferry (500 KRW) takes cards at its kiosk — which sits on the Abai Village side, so from the market you board first and pay when you land. Keep a little cash for small market stalls. On past calls the city has opened a temporary exchange booth at the terminal — confirm on board.
What the city sets up
On recent calls: a welcome performance as you step off, hospitality booths inside the terminal (local souvenirs, hanbok try-on with English-speaking helpers, your name in Hangul calligraphy), a tourist info desk with interpreters, and a small cruise flea market at the terminal entrance. Details vary by call. Taxis take cards everywhere.
No data, no problem
Open the walking map once on ship wifi — it saves itself for offline: basemap, routes, spots, and GPS all work without roaming. GPS needs no data, only permission: while you still have wifi, tap the locate button once and choose Allow — or on iPhone, Settings → Apps → Safari → Location → Ask. That one tap saves digging through settings on the quay.
Getting back
Set your all-aboard time in the map's cruise mode for a pinned countdown and a one-tap route to the terminal. Guidance only — your ship's instructions always win.
No Seoraksan shuttle will operate during The World's September 15–17, 2026 call. Visit only with a long call and a taxi both ways. Arrange your return ride in advance and allow time for traffic and cable-car queues before your ship's all-aboard time. For a shorter call, explore the market, Gaetbae ferry, Abai Village, harbor and beach on foot.
Open the walking map once on the ship's wifi — it saves itself for offline and then works in Sokcho with zero data: basemap, routes, spots, and your GPS position included.
Cards are widely accepted, and the Gaetbae ferry now takes cards at a kiosk — on the Abai Village side only. Crossing from the market you simply board and pay when you land; crossing back from the village you pay before boarding. Keep a little cash for the smallest market stalls. English menus are marked on our map spot by spot, and pointing works everywhere else.
Set your all-aboard time in the walking map's cruise mode — it keeps a countdown on screen and a one-tap route back to the terminal. Guidance only: always follow your ship's instructions.
Something specific? Ask our local AI.
Trained on every spot, menu, and route on this site.
