The 10 Best Nature & Parks in Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do

Reviewed By SQKrisflyer - Singapore, null

I first visited the Garden of Morning Calm in 2018 about 2 weeks before the peak autumn foliage. So this time I timed the visit perfectly in first week of November and came with my family where we spent a wonderful 2.5 hours on a clear sunny Thursday morning. Getting there and entrance fees: The Garden of Morning Calm is located in Gapyeong, about 30 km northeast of Seoul. We took a Indiway tour that covers Garden of Morning Calm in the late morning followed by Nami Island in the afternoon. Alternatively, if you would want to go from Seoul to the Garden but not on a tour package, you could first take the subway to Cheongnyangni Station or Yongsan Station (both on Subway Line 1), followed by the ITX express train on the ITX-Cheongchun Line of about 50 minutes (from Yongsan) or about 35 minutes (from Cheongnyangni) to Cheongpyeong Station (do book the ITX train ticket online and arrive early at the station to find the ITX-Cheongchun Line station). Upon coming out of Exit 1, take the Gapyeong City Tour Bus from the bus station right outside to the Garden of Morning Calm. A one day pass for the Gapyeong City Tour Bus costs ₩6000 per person (excludes entrance fees to attractions) and has to be bought from the bus driver. The departure schedule is at the bus stop and among the stops include Gapyeong Rail Bike, Nami Island, Petitie France and of course Garden of Morning Calm. The entrance fees for the Garden is ₩9,500 (adults), ₩7,000 (youth) and ₩6,000 (child). The attraction: The Garden of Morning Calm is the oldest private garden in Korea, founded by Professor Han Sang-kyung who had his vision to create a world-class garden that embraces the beauty of Korea as the “Land of Morning Calm”. I think one testament to its success is that several Korean dramas had been filmed at this Garden. However, upon entering the Garden, most visitors started queuing for a photo, selfie or wefie at the wooden board with the “Garden of Morning Calm” inscription. For my family and I, we just moved on quickly because there are several walking trials and so much autumn vibrancy to enjoy in this 330,000 square metres Garden with over 5,000 fauna species and 27 theme gardens. Using the map (do get one), we took the following “best” walking route covering the major attractions: Dropping Tree Garden -> Eden Garden -> Millennium Juniper Garden (see the iconic 1000 year-old juniper tree which is the representative tree of the Garden) -> Sunken Garden (this is Garden of Morning Calm’s representative garden) -> J’s Cottage Garden (with a lovely English cottage) -> Pond Garden (the pavilion is the site of the hit Korean drama “Love in the Moonlight” or “Moonlight Drawn by Clouds” starring Park Bo-Gum and Kim Yoo-Jung) -> Stream Garden -> Road to Heaven (beautiful blooming flowers lining the winding road) -> Moonlight Garden (mainly white flowers and plants that symbolise moonlight) -> Conifer Garden -> Wild Flower Garden -> Bonsai Garden -> Cloud Bridge. After the Wild Flower Garden, I could not resist making a dash past the Rose of Sharon Garden and up to the stairways to the Alpine Rock Garden. This is where you could catch a birds-eye view of the Garden. Not to worry if you go hungry at the Garden. There’s a Good Morning Coffee Café and a Morning Spring Bakery next to each other as well as a Korean Food Garden restaurant serving healthy Korean dishes. What I enjoyed: (1) True to its name, the Garden, with its aesthetic greenery, is so peaceful and gives me the calming effect. The relaxed picturesque setting at the foot of Chungnyeongsan Mountain and the fresh countryside air so ever contrasts with the hustle and bustle and pollution of city life (2) Of the so many theme gardens, my favourite is the Pond Garden because the surrounding beautiful and dramatic autumn landscape was reflected on the still water of the pond. My other favourite theme garden is the Moonlight Garden where there is a dainty white church building surrounded by lovely flowers. (3) Everywhere you look, there were leaves painted in scarlet red, golden yellow, royal purple and burning orange hues from the hazel, gingko, katsura and maple trees that showcased the autumn beauty and created such a romantic atmosphere. (4) Being autumn, there were yellow, pink, violet, red, maroon, orange and white chrysanthemums in full bloom (particularly at the Road to Heaven), adding further enchanting beauty to the Garden (5) There are several wide paths and lots of narrow paths such that there was room for everyone, and we never encountered overcrowding or having others unkowingly standing next to us in our photographs. But that’s on a weekday and I am not sure about the situation on a weekend. Nevertheless, do go early in the morning as hordes of tourists typically come in the late morning. My family and I would want to come back on our own next time. But this is definitely one garden that you would not want to miss, even though you are not a lover of Nature – just enjoy the walk and the calmness at this attraction which is one of the “2019-2020 100 Must Visit Tourist Spots in Korea”!