Gwangmyeong Day Trip: Gold-Mine Cave, Market & KTX Hub

On an August afternoon, one of the coolest places near Seoul is a hole in a hill in Gwangmyeong. Inside, it stays around 12°C all year. For about sixty years miners dug gold, silver, copper and zinc out of it; a flood shut it in 1972, and for the next three decades it was used to store salted shrimp. In 2011 the city bought it, and since it began charging admission in 2015 it has drawn more than six million visitors.

That is Gwangmyeong in one story: a working city of about 300,000 people just across the Anyang Stream from Seoul’s Guro and Geumcheon districts, with a handful of oddities. It has a KTX station one stop from Seoul, the first IKEA in Korea, a market the city ranks seventh-largest in the country, and a 183-metre “mountain” with a suspension bridge over an artificial waterfall. None of it needs more than a day.

How do you get to Gwangmyeong from Seoul?

Use Line 7 for the market and Dodeoksan, and the KTX or bus 77 for the cave. The cave is in the far south of the city, away from the subway, so most people combine a train with a local bus. These are the routes Gwangmyeong city itself publishes.

🚆 Seoul to Gwangmyeong by public transport (Gwangmyeong city; KTX time from the Korail timetable, Nov 2026)

Route	Start in Seoul	Line / bus	Ride	Best for
KTX + bus 77	Seoul Station	KTX to Gwangmyeong Station, then bus 77 from Exit 8	KTX about 20 min, then bus to the cave’s last stop	Cave, IKEA, outlet
Line 7 + bus 17	Gasan Digital Complex (Line 1/7)	Line 7 to Cheolsan, Exit 2, bus 17	1 subway stop, then bus to the cave’s last stop	Cave, Dodeoksan
Line 7	Gasan Digital Complex (Line 1/7)	Line 7 to Gwangmyeong Sageori	2 subway stops	Market, food alley
Bus 8507 + 77	Sadang Station Exit 4	Bus 8507 to KTX Gwangmyeong Station, then bus 77	Two buses	Cave, from Sadang

The KTX times on the November 2026 timetable run from about 18 to 30 minutes, with most trains taking about 19. A normal T-money card does not work on the KTX; buy a ticket on the Korail app or at the station.

What is Gwangmyeong known for?

A mine, a market, a railway station and a poet. Gwangmyeong was part of Siheung County until it became a city in 1981, and most of what visitors come for is either older than the city or much newer.

The second story is the poet Gi Hyeong-do, who grew up here and died in 1989 at 29, before his only collection was published. The city has a museum for him and has put twelve of his poems on panels along the Anyang Stream. The third is Yi Won-ik, pen name Ori, a Joseon chief state councillor remembered as a model of an honest official; his family’s head house is still in Soha-dong.

Then there is the 21st-century Gwangmyeong. The KTX station, a steel-and-glass building the city says covers 48,184 m², pulled Costco (2012), Lotte’s outlet mall and IKEA (both December 2014) into what had been empty land beside the tracks. The city also lists airport bus routes 6770, 6004 and 6014 at the station, which makes it a practical base if you are catching an early KTX south.

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What should you see in Gwangmyeong?

Start with the cave, then pick from the market, Dodeoksan and the two museums in the south of the city. Five are on Gwangmyeong’s official list of nine sights; the sixth is the shopping district.

Gwangmyeong Cave (Gahak-ro 85beon-gil 142) — The official route runs from the “wind path” at the entrance past an aquarium, a performance hall cut into the rock, a gilded “golden road” and waterfall, an underground lake and a giant dragon sculpture, and ends at the Wine Cave, where Korean wines are sold and poured. Allow about an hour; there are a lot of stairs. Bring a jacket even in August, and leave strollers at the entrance — they are not allowed inside, and neither are food or pets. Outside, the Lascaux exhibition hall and a VR mine-cart ride cost extra.

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Gwangmyeong Traditional Market (Gwangi-ro 13beon-gil 17-5) — The city calls it the seventh-largest general market in Korea: a maze of alleys that grew up from the early 1970s and now holds about 400 shops, selling produce, fish, rice cakes and cheap cooked food. It is busiest at lunch and on weekends. We cover what to eat there below.

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Dodeoksan Suspension Bridge (Dodeok-ro 86) — Dodeoksan is only 183 m high, but the park at its foot has a wall fountain, an artificial waterfall and, above it, a Y-shaped suspension bridge 20 m high and 82 m long linking two trails. From Cheolsan Station Exits 2 or 3, walk past Gwangmyeong Civic Hall. In spring the summit pavilion is surrounded by azaleas. The waterfall runs 09:00–17:30 and is switched off in winter.

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Gi Hyeong-do Literary Museum (Ori-ro 268) — About 100 of the poet’s belongings, including handwritten diaries and the plaque from the newspaper contest that launched him, on the theme of youth. Admission is free. The poetry park next door is a pleasant 20 minutes even if you don’t read Korean.

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Chunghyeon Museum (Ori-ro 347beon-gil 5-6) — The city calls it Korea’s first museum run by a lineage head family. The real draw is outside: Yi Won-ik’s portrait shrine, the family head house, and Gwangamdang, built in 1630 when King Injo heard that the retired minister’s two-room thatched house was leaking and ordered the provincial governor to build him a new one. Note that it closes for the whole of December–February.

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KTX Gwangmyeong Station district (Ilji-ro 17) — IKEA and the Lotte outlet share the Ilji-ro 17 address across the road from the station, with Costco nearby. This is where Seoul families drive for flat-pack furniture and discounted brands; for a visitor it is mainly useful as a rainy-day add-on or a meal near the station before a train.

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🎫 Visitor information (Gwangmyeong city official pages, accessed 2026-10)

Place	Hours	Closed	Admission
Gwangmyeong Cave	09:00–18:00, last entry 17:00 (July–Aug hours vary)	Mondays	Adults 10,000 / youth 5,000 / children & 65+ 3,000 won
Gi Hyeong-do Literary Museum	Mar–Oct 09:00–18:00; Nov–Feb 09:00–17:00	Mondays	Free
Chunghyeon Museum (Gwangamdang)	10:00–17:00, last entry 16:00	Mondays, Seollal & Chuseok holidays, Dec–Feb	Adults 10,000 / youth 5,000 won
Dodeoksan waterfall	09:00–17:30	Off in winter and below 0°C	Free (bridge always open)

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Where do locals eat in Gwangmyeong?

In and around Gwangmyeong Traditional Market. The market is where the city does its cheap eating, and the noodle and pancake shops below were all written up by local bloggers in October 2026. Prices quoted come from those posts or from news reports, as noted.

Hongdukkae Kalguksu (Ori-ro 964beon-gil 17, inside the market) — Named after the long rolling pin used for hand-cut noodles, this is the stall with the cauldrons boiling at the front and the queue outside. Order the son-kalguksu (hand-cut noodles in anchovy broth, thick and slightly starchy) or the lighter janchi-guksu, which an October 2026 blog post still listed at 2,000 won. There is more seating upstairs and the line moves fast; the same post said sujebi and kal-jebi were not served on weekends.

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Wonjo Gwangmyeong Halmeoni Bindaetteok (Gwangmyeong-ro 918beon-gil 14-1) — “The original grandma’s bindaetteok.” The owner fries pancakes at the front, and the room behind goes back further than it looks. The nokdu bindaetteok (ground mung-bean pancake, crisp at the edges) is the one to order; a regular’s October 2026 post put the large seafood pajeon at 16,000 won and called the makgeolli cheap. It was featured on KBS’s Dongne Hanbakwi in July 2026.

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Yetjinmi Kalguksu (Ori-ro 932) — A sit-down noodle house on Ori-ro, near the market, whose listing says it has served since 1985. The menu is short: kalguksu, dumpling kalguksu, mandu-guk, steamed dumplings, and in summer cold soy-milk noodles and young-radish noodles. KBS2’s Saengsaeng Jeongbo paired it with Gwangmyeong Cave in a January 2026 segment on winter trips by public transport.

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Market snack row — At the main entrance alley, the longest queues are usually for bungeoppang (fish-shaped buns with red-bean filling) and kkwabaegi (twisted doughnuts). Hankyung reported in January 2025 that bungeoppang were three for 1,000 won and hotteok 500 won, with 20-minute waits at the most popular stall.

Gwangmyeong Sageori Food Alley (Exit 5) — For dinner, the city’s first designated food-culture street is five minutes from Gwangmyeong Sageori Station Exit 5: about 40 restaurants, from old pubs to new cafés, designated in October 2021.

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🍜 Where to eat in Gwangmyeong at a glance (Naver blog posts, accessed 2026-10; Hankyung, Jan 2025)

Place	Area	Order	Why locals go
Hongdukkae Kalguksu	Inside the market	Son-kalguksu, janchi-guksu	Hand-cut noodles at market prices; janchi-guksu 2,000 won
Wonjo Gwangmyeong Halmeoni Bindaetteok	Market	Nokdu bindaetteok, haemul pajeon	Big pancakes and cheap makgeolli
Yetjinmi Kalguksu	Ori-ro, near the market	Dumpling kalguksu, mandu-guk	A sit-down noodle house listed as open since 1985
Snack stalls	Main market alley	Bungeoppang, kkwabaegi, hotteok	Street snacks for 500–1,000 won
Gwangmyeong Sageori Food Alley	Exit 5, Line 7	Varies	About 40 restaurants and pubs for dinner

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What is a good one-day route in Gwangmyeong?

Cave in the morning, market at lunch, Dodeoksan in the afternoon. This order puts the bus ride first and the subway at the end.

• 09:00 — KTX from Seoul Station to Gwangmyeong, then bus 77 from Exit 8 to the cave. Or Line 7 to Cheolsan and bus 17.
• 10:00 — Gwangmyeong Cave. About an hour inside; add the Wine Cave tasting if you like.
• 11:30 — Gi Hyeong-do Literary Museum (free) or Chunghyeon Museum (Mar–Nov), both on the bus routes back north.
• 13:00 — Lunch in Gwangmyeong Traditional Market. Kalguksu at Hongdukkae, then a bindaetteok to share and a bag of bungeoppang.
• 15:00 — Dodeoksan. From Cheolsan Station, walk up to the suspension bridge and the waterfall (stops at 17:30).
• 17:00 — Back to Seoul on Line 7, or dinner in the Gwangmyeong Sageori food alley first.