Banghak-dong: Yeonsangun's Tomb, Old Ginkgo & Market Eats

Seoul’s Joseon kings mostly lie in grand, UNESCO-listed tombs with long processional paths and stone animals guarding the mounds. One does not. At the foot of Bukhansan, in the far northern district of Banghak-dong in Dobong-gu, the tenth Joseon king lies in a small hillside grave with no admission fee and, on most weekdays, almost no visitors. He is Yeonsangun, the tyrant whose reign ended in a coup in 1506, and the grave’s modest size is part of the story of his fall.

A few steps away stands one of the oldest ginkgo trees in Seoul. Behind it is a restored village spring, a museum for one of Korea’s most important modern poets, and the grave of the princess who, according to her family’s genealogy, helped her father King Sejong finish the Korean alphabet. Then you walk downhill to Dokkaebi Market for ₩1,000 donuts, hand-cut noodles and a 40-year-old dumpling house.

Why come all the way to Banghak-dong?

Because few places in Seoul pack this much Joseon history into one quiet corner, and then feed you this cheaply afterwards. Within about 200 meters you get a king’s tomb, a princess’s tomb, a centuries-old tree and a spring that served a village for hundreds of years. The Bukhansan ring trail runs right past them, so you can arrive on foot through the forest.

Banghak-dong is also an ordinary residential neighborhood, which is the point. There are no tour buses and no souvenir stalls, just apartment blocks, a traditional market that Seoul once ranked among its best, and the kind of family restaurants where the owner remembers regulars’ orders.

Even the name is uncertain. The Chinese characters, 放鶴, mean “releasing cranes.” Dobong-gu Office records several legends:

• A Joseon king, choosing a site for the nearby Dobong Seowon academy, saw cranes playing peacefully.
• The landscape looks like a crane sitting on its egg.
• The old native name, 방아골 (Banga-gol, “mill valley”), was later written with similar-sounding characters.
• The area was renamed by a geomancer during the colonial period.

The gu office itself thinks the crane stories were probably added after the name already existed. None of the stories is confirmed, so pick your favorite.

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Why is Yeonsangun's grave a "myo," not a royal tomb?

Because Yeonsangun lost his throne and his title. Joseon kings and queens were buried in a 능 (neung, royal tomb). Yeonsangun was deposed in the 1506 중종반정 (Jungjong Banjeong) coup and demoted to the rank of 군 (gun, prince). His grave was therefore built as a 묘 (myo), the type used for princes. The National Heritage Service notes that its stone figures follow the prince-tomb layout. It is a lantern, a pair of civil officials and a pair of pillars, without the stone animals and guardian generals of a royal tomb.

The grounds are small, about 14,300 square meters, and you can see everything in 20 to 30 minutes. Below the couple’s twin mounds are three more graves. One belongs to Lady Jo, a consort of King Taejong who was buried here first. The other two hold Yeonsangun’s daughter, Princess Hwisun, and her husband, Gu Mun-gyeong.

Inside the ritual hall, a 2026 blog visitor noted records of Kings Yeongjo and Gojong ordering repairs to the damaged grave. Later kings still looked after their disgraced ancestor.

🕰️ Yeonsangun's Tomb: hours and admission (Royal Palaces and Tombs Center)

Season	Hours	Last entry
February–May, September–October	09:00–18:00	17:00
June–August	09:00–18:30	17:30
November–January	09:00–17:30	16:30
Admission	Free	Closed Mondays (if Monday is a holiday, the next weekday)

The address is 46 Banghak-ro 17-gil, and the tomb office number is 02-3494-0370.

Princess Jeongui, Sejong’s second daughter, is buried about 160 meters to the east, with her husband An Maeng-dam (1415–1462). Their twin mounds are a Seoul tangible heritage site. Their memorial stele has a carved turtle base and dragon capstone, and its text was composed by the scholar Jeong In-ji.

According to the An clan genealogy, Sejong struggled to fix how certain sounds should be written in the new alphabet, and the princess solved the problem at once. Treat that as family legend, not settled history. Dobong-gu nonetheless calls her “the hidden flower of Hangul’s creation,” and holds a Hangul Day festival nearby each October.

How old is the Banghak-dong ginkgo?

The official answer is 550 years, give or take 50. That figure comes from the National Heritage Service, citing a core-sample age survey by the National Institute of Forest Science. It makes the tree, planted in the early Joseon period, the second-oldest among Seoul’s heritage-listed trees after the ginkgo at Seonggyungwan’s Confucian shrine.

You will see bigger numbers on signs and in the press. Dobong-gu’s tourism page says 600 years, a Seoul city article says “more than 830,” and a 2022 report on a Seoul city announcement called it 884 and the oldest tree in the capital. The tree is about 24–25 meters tall. Its local nickname is the “patriot tree,” because, as the gu office tells it, it caught fire before national disasters. One fire, the story goes, came a year before President Park Chung-hee was assassinated. The tree’s official status has changed over the years. In 1968 it became Seoul’s first designated protected tree. In 2013 it was listed as Seoul Monument No. 33. Under the 2024 heritage law reform it became Seoul Natural Heritage No. 7.

Dobong-gu changed the layout of a nearby apartment complex to give the roots room. It then bought up the houses around the trunk and turned the land into a small park. In autumn the whole crown turns gold. Come in early-to-mid November.

Right beside it is Wondangsaem, the spring of the old 원당마을 (Wondang village). According to Dobong-gu, families of the Papyeong Yun clan settled here roughly 600 years ago and drank from it for centuries. The spring dried up in 2009 and was reconnected to groundwater in 2011. The surrounding Wondangsaem Park (4,671 m²) adds a pond, a pavilion and pine trees. The handsome hanok next to it is a public library.

What's at the Kim Su-young Literature Museum?

It holds the manuscripts and belongings of Kim Su-young (1921–1968), the poet of “Grass” and one of the defining voices of postwar Korean free verse. Dobong-gu built the four-story museum a few minutes’ walk from the spring. It opened in 2013 on the poet’s birthday, 27 November, according to Seoul Shinmun.

Why here? His family home was in Dobong. According to the same paper, he visited his mother at least weekly and wrote in a cottage his sister used, and his remains lie on Dobongsan.

Inside, the ground floor shows handwritten drafts covered in red corrections. A 2026 visitor singled these out as the most moving thing in the building. The second floor has his fountain pen, ashtray and desk. Above are a small library, an auditorium and a rooftop terrace. Exhibits are mostly in Korean, but the manuscripts speak for themselves.

Admission is free. Dobong-gu lists the hours as 09:00–18:00. It is closed on Mondays, 1 January, and Seollal and Chuseok. The address is 80 Haedeung-ro 32-gil, and the phone number is 02-3494-1127.

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Where do locals eat in Banghak-dong?

In and around Dokkaebi Market, about 10–12 minutes’ walk from Banghak Station (Line 1). The market grew up as an alley market in the 1980s and struggled once the big-box stores arrived. According to Dobong-gu, a 2004 modernization turned it around, and it was later named one of Seoul’s eight best traditional markets. Today it is known for low prices, chapssal (glutinous-rice) donuts and handmade dumplings. Up by the tomb, a handful of cafés and grills cater to hikers and families.

Sujeonggung (수정궁): Bloggers call it a 40-year institution. It has a Blue Ribbon sticker on the door, and the YouTuber Tzuyang has eaten here. Order the pan-fried dumplings early, because they sell out. The steamed and boiled dumplings, crisp fried pork and five-spice braised pork (ohyang-jangyuk) are the backups. Hours are Monday–Saturday 16:00–22:00 (last order 21:30), closed Sundays. Expect a line at peak dinner time. It is at 173 Banghak-ro, near the Banghak Elementary School bus stop.

📍 Open in Naver Map

Myeongdong Bunsik (명동분식): The owner told KB Financial’s blog in August 2026 that the shop has been inside Dokkaebi Market for 32 years. The signatures are sundubu-jjigae (soft-tofu stew), ttukbaegi bulgogi and tuna-and-chili gimbap. A 2025 visitor recorded plain gimbap at ₩2,500. Recent visitors put the hours at 06:00–20:00 (last order 19:20), closed Sundays. Use the market’s public car park if you drive.

📍 Open in Naver Map

Sangbeomine Mandu & Doneocheu (상범이네 만두&도너츠): The stall is between the market’s first and second gates. A March 2025 visitor paid ₩1,000 for a red-bean chapssal donut, which is chewy and only lightly sweet. They also sell sugared kkwabaegi (twisted doughnuts) and dumplings. Buy a bag to eat walking.

📍 Open in Naver Map

Winsome35 (윈썸35): Bloggers note it is almost the only café near the tomb, and it would be worth the stop anyway. It has a planted garden, wood-slab tables and its own roaster by the door. Bread is baked each morning. Prices in mid-2025 were ₩4,500 for an Americano, ₩5,500 for a latte, ₩3,000 for salt bread (shio-pan) and ₩4,500 for cheese ciabatta. A late-2025 visitor listed hours of 09:30–21:00. It is at 40 Haedeung-ro 32ga-gil, steps from Wondangsaem Park.

📍 Open in Naver Map

🍜 More Banghak-dong spots (prices from 2025–26 visitor reports; check hours before you go)

Place	What to order	Price guide	Hours / closed	Nearest station	Map
Hongdukkae Kalguksu	Old-style hand-cut noodles, beef bean-sprout rice	₩7,000 (large noodles)	Check on Naver	Banghak, 10 min	📍 Naver Map
Boeun Mandu	Handmade dumplings, fruit-sauce bibim-guksu, yeolmu noodles	Bibim-guksu ₩6,000	Closed Mon	Banghak, 12 min	📍 Naver Map
Changdae Naengmyeon	Market-style cold noodles (large costs about the same)	About ₩6,000	11:00–19:00, closes when sold out	Banghak, 10 min	📍 Naver Map
Cheongyang Kalguksu	Spicy kalguksu	Check on Naver	Tue–Sat 11:00–17:00	Banghak, 12 min	📍 Naver Map
Assi Bossam Kalguksu	Garlic bossam (boiled pork), kalguksu	Check on Naver	11:00–21:00, closed Mon	Banghak, 12 min	📍 Naver Map
Ilsim Haejangguk	Seonji (ox-blood) hangover soup, dolsot bibimbap	₩5,500	07:00–22:00 daily	Banghak, near Banghak intersection	📍 Naver Map
Sambo Suje Galbi	Fresh pork galbi, wang-galbitang	Pork galbi 300 g ₩20,000; galbitang ₩14,000	11:00–22:00 daily	Bukhansan Ui, 10+ min	📍 Naver Map
Pine Tree Stump	Vintage-style set course with steak	₩30,000 per person	Last order 20:00; weekday break 15:00–17:00	Bukhansan Ui, 15 min	📍 Naver Map
Mongsangga Crepe	Strawberry mille-feuille, crème-brûlée crêpe	₩7,000–8,000	12:00–20:00	Banghak, 5 min	📍 Naver Map
Wonseong Banjeom	Gan-jjajang, tangsuyuk set	Set for two ₩19,000	Check on Naver	Ssangmun, 10 min	📍 Naver Map

Wonseong Banjeom is the outlier, closer to Ssangmun Station (Line 4) than to Banghak. It is worth the detour if you want an old Chinese restaurant: an August 2026 blog post describes it as a 45-year-old shop run by a second-generation ethnic-Chinese family, where a tangsuyuk order comes with four free dumplings.

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Half-day route: Ui-dong trail to Dokkaebi Market

Go between Tuesday and Saturday. Start late morning, finish with dumplings, and allow about five to six hours. Walking times are approximate.

• 11:00, Bukhansan Ui Station (Ui LRT), Exit 1: follow the Royal Tombs Trail signs. Bloggers put the walk to Yeonsangun's Tomb at about 15 minutes through the woods.
• 11:20, Yeonsangun's Tomb: about 30 minutes for the mounds and the ritual hall.
• 12:00, the ginkgo and Wondangsaem Park, a two-minute walk. Detour 160 meters east to Princess Jeongui's tomb.
• 12:40, lunch near the tomb: pork galbi or galbitang at Sambo Suje Galbi. For something lighter, have coffee and salt bread at Winsome35.
• 14:00, Kim Su-young Literature Museum, a few minutes from the spring park. Allow 40 minutes.
• 15:00, bus downhill: bus 130 runs from the "Yeonsangun·Jeonguigongjumyo" stop toward Ssangmun Station. Get off near Dokkaebi Market.
• 15:30, Dokkaebi Market: chapssal donuts at Sangbeomine, cold noodles at Changdae if they still have them, and a browse of the stalls.
• 16:30, dinner at Sujeonggung when it opens, before the pan-fried dumplings run out. Then walk to Banghak Station (Line 1), about 10 minutes.

Getting there by bus: Dobong-gu lists bus 130 from Ssangmun Station (Line 4) Exit 2, and buses 1144 or 1161 from Changdong Station (Lines 1 and 4) Exit 1. All three stop at “Yeonsangun·Jeonguigongjumyo,” about three minutes from the spring park. Neighborhood bus 6 stops at the Kim Su-young Literature Museum.

Ui-dong is just over the ridge, so you can easily turn this into a two-neighborhood day with our Ui-dong and April 19th Cemetery local guide. If you collect Joseon tombs, compare this one with Uireung in our Seokgwan-dong guide. If you would rather keep climbing, see how Seoul locals hike their mountains.