Busan Citizens Park

A short walk from the busy Seomyeon district, a wide green space opens up between the high-rise blocks. For decades, Busan Citizens Park was land that ordinary people could not enter. It passed from racecourse to Japanese army training ground to the US Army's Camp Hialeah, and became a park in 2014. Today a few of the old base buildings stand among the lawns and ponds as reminders of that past.

History: racecourse, army base, park

During the Japanese colonial period the site was a racecourse owned by the Chōsen Racing Association, and during the Second World War it served as a Japanese army training ground. After liberation in 1945, US troops moved in. An American sailor is said to have named the camp after the famous Hialeah racetrack in Florida, and locals turned the name into "Hayaria".

For decades after the Korean War, Camp Hialeah was a key supply base for US forces in Korea. A citizens' campaign for its return began in the mid-1990s, and the base closed on 10 August 2006. Negotiations over environmental clean-up dragged on until the land was handed to Busan on 27 January 2010. Construction started in 2011 and the park officially opened on 1 May 2014.

What to see

• Hialeah Lawn: the largest open space, right in the middle of the park, busy every weekend with families on picnic mats.
• Park History Hall: the building that once received racegoers and later served as the US officers' club now tells the story of the site.
• Traces of the base: the NCO quarters became an arts village, a semi-circular Quonset hut became the Pororo Library for children, and the old cinema site is now a plaza.
• Water and woods: the Bujeoncheon and Jeonpocheon streams run along the edges, with boardwalks over the ponds and woodland paths. Cherry trees bloom in spring and grey herons are often seen by the water.

Good to know

• An American school on the base: in 1960 a US State Department elementary school opened on the base, the first American school in Korea. A high school followed in 1967, housed in a Quonset hut, and at its last graduation in June 2006, eleven students graduated.
• A town within the city: the base had about 180 housing units, a school, a hospital and restaurants. It was once outside the city, but as Busan grew it ended up right next to Seomyeon.
• A first look: before construction, part of the site was briefly opened to the public from 24 April to 30 September 2010.

Tripto tips

• Hours and fees: open 05:00–24:00 every day, free of charge. The park covers about 470,000 m², so allow 1–2 hours for a full loop.
• Getting there: Bujeon Station on Busan Metro Line 1, exits 5 and 7, is closest. You can walk from Seomyeon Station, but it is a fair distance, so a bus or taxi is easier.
• When to go: early April for cherry blossoms and cool autumn evenings are best. On summer afternoons, stick to the shaded woodland paths rather than the open lawn.
• How to use it: an easy break before or after shopping and eating in Seomyeon. With children, head first to the playground area and the Pororo Library.