Gyeongju UNESCO Sites Tour by KTX train; The Museum Without walls
Description
Discover Gyeongju, a Korean gem, via a swift KTX express train journey at 300 km/h. In just two hours, you'll arrive at Gyeongju station. Dive into the city's rich history with a day trip through its cultural wonders. Gyeongju, the former capital of the ancient Korean Kingdom of Silla (57 BCE – 935), boasts a wealth of heritage sites reflecting its remarkable cultural achievements. Guided by our experts, witness traditional art and culture, immersing yourself in Korea's vibrant history. Join us for a day filled with the essence of Gyeongju's past and present.
Tour Options
Itinerary
It has more than 20 large and small tombs from the Shilla period. The tombs are presumed to be those of kings and court officials. Most of them are earthen and mound-shaped. Some double gourd-shaped ones are for the joint burial of a husband and wife. As those excavated were all found to be stone-pilled wood-lined chamber type, most of the tombs here are presumed to be of the same type. During the excavations of chenmachong and Hwangnamchong , numerous artifacts (including a gold crown, gold girdles, gold and silver personal ornaments, horse fittings, and weapons) were uncovered.
Arguably the best history museum in Korea, the Gyeongju National Museum is where you can appreciate the significance of this ancient city in one fell swoop. The main archaeological hall has dazzling displays of jewellery, weaponry and other ceremonial items from the Shilla dynasty, including a 5th-century gold crown.
Cheomseongdae means "Star Gazing Tower." Built during the reign of Queen Seonduk (27th ruler of the Shilla dynasty) in 634, it is the oldest existing observatory in the Far East. It has 27 levels of stones in a round shape with four sets of parallel bars to make a square-shaped structure on its top. The 12 rectangular base stones are positioned in a square, three on each side, representing the four seasons and twelve months of each year. For over two thousand years, astronomers studied the movements of stars and planets and charted them. Court astrologers reported and interpreted their findings to the King who would then act according to their predictions.
The Anapji Pond was built in 674 after the unification of the Korean Peninsula. Small mountains were created inside the palace walls, beautiful trees and flowers, as well as rare birds and animals, were brought from all over to the islands and hills surrounding the pond. Also, a number of pavilions were constructed around it and used for state festivals and banquets and as a prince’s palace.
The nearby Bulguksa Temple is the most famous Buddhist temple in Korea and the home to a number of important relics from the Silla period, including most obviously the two stone pagodas Dabotap and Soekgatap. It also dates from the 8th century but has been rebuilt on a number of occasions.
Seokguram Grotto is a hermitage that is part of the Bulguksa temple complex. The grotto overlooks the East Sea and rests 750 meters above sea level. It holds some of the best Buddhist sculptures in the world, including the main Buddha. Construction lasted from 742 to 774. Inside the round-shaped main hall are the Bonjon Statue, Bodhi-sattva, and his disciples. The Bonjon figure wearing a generous smile is seated on the stage engraved with a lotus flower design. As the sunrise from this spot is quite beautiful, many people climb the mountain at daybreak.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We pick up from your hotel and AirBnb in central Seoul area. Please let us know your accommodation address so that we can pick you up at your place. The itinerary is subject to change depending on local traffic conditions
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(11)
It was a long day, but absolutely worth it. We started early with Andrew picking us up from our Airbnb and driving us to the train station. He even waited with us and walked us onto the train when it was time to board. Two hours later, we arrived in Gyeongju, where our guide, Dongmin “Domingo,” was waiting right outside our train car. Domingo took us to several shrines and archaeological sites throughout the day, impressing us with his deep knowledge and personable nature. His decades of experience and local perspective on Gyeongju’s history and culture really stood out. The highlight of the day was lunch—Korean BBQ is a must when visiting Korea, and Domingo treated us to a restaurant his family frequents, making it feel extra special. After a few more stops, Domingo brought us back to the train station and made sure we were on our way to Seoul. For our first day in Korea, it was an incredible experience. Back in Seoul, you’ll need to arrange transportation back to where you are staying; having your address written in Korean helps avoid stress, as taxi drivers are unlikely to speak or read English.
John was great. He knew many stories about the city and its history. It was informative and Interesting. He also took us to the cutest little restaurant for lunch. The food was a large portion so we didn't eat it all but it was tasty. If we ever come back this way we would book this tour for friends.
This was the best tour if you like history. Well organized were met by a nice lady who took us to subway station and escorted us to our seats. Our guide Jay met us as we walked off subway in Gyeongju. We saw the burial mounds and even able to walk in an excavated one. He took us to several historic areas. Including a drive to the ocean. Last we went to the beautiful mountains to see a grotto with a massive Buddha dated back to 600. Impressive, Beautiful beyond words. Highly Highly recommend this tour. Thru Tagu travel Korea
This was a great tour: it was well organized, stress-free for us, and a great guide. We really want to give 5 stars, but unfortunately we had a hard time with the guide's accent. He was a historian, and knew not just korean history and culture, but was able to relate it to world history and culture also. We were so disappointed we were not able to understand him fully. What we loved about the tour is that it was stress-free. We didn't have to worry about details, so could just enjoy the day. Somebody met us at our hotel lobby, drove us to the train station and put us on the train. He even came into the train car to show us our reserved seats. He handed us the tickets in an envelope, with the train information including car# and seat#s written on the front, and also the return train information. On the back of the envelope was our hotel name and address, so that we can just show it to the taxi driver on the way home. At Gyeongju our guide met us at the platform, and took us around all day. Even at the museum he accompanied us, which was a great boon, because he was able to highlight the more important items, and relate them to what we had learned and seen earlier. He then brought us back to the station, waited with us on the platform and saw us into our train car. Gyeongju is fascinating and well worth the visit. We were afraid it would be too strenuous a day, but it wasn't. The day was full, but the getting there and back by the bullet train was relaxing, thanks to the tour company taking such good care of us.
We wanted to take a day out of the city to explore Gyeongju. It was amazing. Not only were the sights terrific but the tour company and our guide were the best. They took care of every detail and made sure we were comfortable and safe at all times. We could not have asked for a better experience. They even included amazing sites that were not on our itinerary because we had expressed an interest. We would highly recommend this tour and Tagy Travel Company. If we could give them 6 stars we would.
Amazing trip to see something very rare and interesting. To me this was one of the most important sites in S Korea
This was an amazing one day tour, and Tagy Travel Korea has done a great job in making this a very smooth and enjoyable experience for anyone based in Seoul, despite the fact that the destination is at the opposite end of the country. We we picked up at our hotel in Seoul, taken to the train station, and guided to our car and seats on the high speed KTX train. (If you have seen the movie “Train to Busan” this will be an extra treat.) The travel time is little over two hours with a lot of great scenery, and we were met in Gyeongju by Mr. Solomon, who was a very capable tour guide, who not only showed his enthusiasm for the region, but also went out of his way to spare us unnecessary walking when finding parking spaces on what was a pretty busy tourist day. Gyeongju is one of the most important (and enjoyable) tourist destinations in South Korea, with much older sites that you will find around Seoul. It is also a gorgeous destination in the fall (first week of November for us.) The only thing I would do differently for this tour would be to schedule it on a weekday, since so many people were out to see the fall foliage when we went on a Sunday. The first two stops on the tour, (the Seokguram Grotto and the Bulguksa Temple) were simply jaw-dropping when combined with the fall colors. Another highlight of the tour (which was NOT part of the tour description) was Mr. Solomon’s lunch suggestion at a well-known restaurant specializing in “Temple Food”, which was nearly all vegetarian. We had was must have been a 15-course meal with an incredible variety of dishes. Vegetarian restaurants are rare in Korea, but I’d recommend this very strongly. The Tumuli Park not only has a huge collection of funeral mounds, but also a stunning collection of different types of flowers. Mr. Solomon also timed our visit to the Anapji pond as it was getting dark, allowing us to take some incredible photos, and still make the train station in time for the return trip. We we met on the train platform in Seoul as we stepped out of the train car for the return back to our hotel— so there were no moments of uncertainty in getting back. I would STRONGLY recommend this tour for anyone based in Seoul who really wants to see another (and beautiful) side of South Korea.
Too much traveling from Seoul for what it is in the format of a day trip. Tour guide was kind but it heavy rained and that pretty much ruined it for me since everything to see is outdoors. Little improvement needed on english but i recommend the touring agency since they were accommodating when i had to make adjustments to time
We had a fantastic day exploring Gyeongju with Dylan. Was an easy trip on the KTX to and from Seoul and we got to see lots of fascinating Silla history. We would recommend this tour to anyone interested in ancient Korea and would recommend Dylan as a personable and knowledgeable tour guide.
Overall, this tour is definitely worth it to give anyone an overview understanding of Korean history starting from the Silla. For those who have more time, I would propose at least a 2 day visit but for us, we only had 1 day so this is pretty good. We did not have any problem getting to the train station to catch our bullet train and the local guide was waiting for us on the platform when we arrived at Geongju.
