Travel Blog ✈️ by. Alinta

Hi guys!😊 This was my second time traveling Korea, and I was able to spend almost 2 weeks down in Busan while I attended the Busan International Film Festival! I love Korea and hope to come back again for the festival next year and explore some new places at the same time!

🌊 Ta-da!I stayed in the Haeundae Beach area, so taking a walk on the beach was very easy for me. During the evening, there are some food stalls where you can eat fresh seafood and drink soju or beer.

Last time I came to Busan, I tried the fresh octopus that squirms in your mouth when you eat it, but I didn’t get a chance to try it again this trip.🥺 Apart from the beach itself, Haeundae area also has a lot of nightlife with great places to enjoy a meal and fantastic hotels, some with gorgeous views of the ocean!

I planned to do a walk from the coastal trail all the way down to Oryukdo Skywalk, but I only had enough time to do part of the Igidae Coastal Trail instead. However it was well worth visiting!✨ The walk was very peaceful and the views were fantastic! Plus it’s always great to get some exercise after sitting in cinemas for too long!

The village is very cute with it’s colourful houses and has a lot of hidden artwork. It’s very fun to explore the streets and I wish I could have spent more time here.

I visited this village during the day time and the evening. As I often travel solo, it’s great to be able to attend a photo tour and get some high quality photos of myself in these destinations- otherwise I just have to rely on selfies!

We were lucky to have perfect, sunny weather when visiting here!🙌🏻 The area has a picturesque bridge leading to a lookout, with a cable car running overhead. I wasn’t able to ride the cable car but it looked like it would have had a nice view and been a lot of fun.

This cultural village is also a great spot to visit! Unlike Gamcheon Village, Huinnyeoul is along the seaside, and the blue and white colour scheme of the village matches the seaside vibes.🩵 Plenty of cute cafes to sit and have a coffee with a view here too, and if you’re okay with stairs, you can walk down to have a stroll along the oceanside path and visit the iconic tunnel for an instagram-worthy photo.

Coming here at night, we had a stunning view over the whole of Busan City. It was quite cold and windy when we came, but there was also a cute café with a great view that you could sit in to escape the wind. The spot seemed to be super popular romantic date spot, as there were lots of couples visiting alongside our photo tour group.

I wasn’t able to visit on this trip, but the last time I came to Busan, I was able to visit here, and I think it’s a must visit on your Busan travel list! It’s such a beautiful temple nestled into the side of the cliffs above the ocean, and it’s well worth spending time here exploring.

Spaland is a must visit if you’re going to Busan! First you can relax in the single gender spas, I even got a full body scrub and massage in the massage room! The scrub can be a little confronting, especially if you’re not used to lying naked in a communal massage room, but I felt so thoroughly clean and scrubbed afterwards. After the spa, you can visit the mixed gender saunas and foot spa area (fully clothed in Spaland attire of course!). There are also plenty of places to eat here - you can either enjoy a full meal, or you can get some snacks and delicious drinks. I also spent 15 minutes getting a massage in the massage chairs - super relaxing! Give yourself plenty of time to visit here as there are so many things to enjoy!

I attended the festival as part of their Asian Contents and Film Market Industry program, so my experience of the festivals is different to a normal cinema goer. The films are screened in the cinemas surrounding BIFF Hill, near Haeundae Beach area in Busan.

It’s a very busy time with lots of visitors attending the festival and the vibes are great! There are so many amazing films in the festival, and many pop up stalls, events and talks during the festival time. I was also able to attend the closing party with the red carpet event!