Sejong Central Park

In the middle of Sejong, Korea's purpose-built administrative capital, this city park occupies the Jangnam Plain, a broad stretch of farmland north of the Geumgang River. It is planned to cover about 1.38 million m², and the first phase of about 520,000 m² opened in November 2020. With wide lawns, pine-shaded paths, ponds, a musical fountain and facilities for 12 different sports, it works as Sejong's shared front garden.

A park on the paddies

Before the city was built, the Jangnam Plain was a landscape of rice fields. A 2011 survey found a large breeding population of the endangered gold-spotted pond frog here, and an ecological wetland zone was written into the park's plans as a result. The design is based on a scheme called "Old Future", chosen in an international competition. The park is not yet finished: the remaining 860,000 m² or so are due to be developed in a second phase.

What to see

• Jangnamdeul Plaza: a huge lawn used for festivals and events, and a good place to spread out a picnic mat under an open sky.
• Family Leisure Forest and Family Art Forest: shaded benches and picnic spots, with small cultural events.
• Barefoot trail: a path planted with pines and lilyturf where you can take your shoes off and walk on bare earth.
• Water features: the Summer Pond, Cloud Pond and Water-light Pond, plus a musical fountain and cooling mist sprays.
• City observatory: a viewing tower over the park and the skyline of the new city.
• Facilities: a Park Centre and a sports support building, plus toilets and a kiosk.
• Play and sport: a large children's playground designed like an outdoor play café, a rose garden and 12 types of sports facilities, including baseball, football and basketball; bikes can be rented too. The park also contains the National Veterans Plaza, marked by 12 pillars.

Combine it with

Sejong, launched in 2012 as Korea's administrative city, is a planned new town that houses many government ministries. The Central Park was designed, as its name suggests, as the green spine running through the middle of it. It is one of the few places between the tower blocks and government buildings where the sky opens up, and at weekends the lawns fill with families who come with picnic mats and small tents.

Sejong Lake Park lies right next door and the Sejong National Arboretum is close by. Walking between the three is the classic Sejong itinerary: the arboretum's glasshouses in the morning, then an afternoon stroll through the Central Park and around the lake.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: 05:00–23:00, every day; free entry. There is a car park.
• Time needed: 1–2 hours for a walk; a full day if you add the arboretum and the lake park.
• Best time: late spring, when the rose garden is in bloom, and summer evenings, when the fountain and mist sprays are running. Fountain times vary by season.
• Watch out for: large parts of the lawn have no shade, so bring a hat and water on summer afternoons. The park is big; if a full loop on foot sounds too much, rent a bike.
• Information: Sejong Facilities Management Corporation, +82 44-850-4370. Event and fountain schedules are posted in its notices.