Seongsan Ilchulbong

Seongsan Ilchulbong is a 182 m volcano rising from the sea at the eastern tip of Jeju, in Seongsan-eup, Seogwipo. Jagged rocks ring a huge bowl-shaped crater like the walls of a fortress, so you can recognise it from far away. In 2007, together with Hallasan and the Geomunoreum lava tube system, it became part of the UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site "Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes".

Geology: a volcano born in the sea

Unlike Jeju's other volcanic cones, Seongsan Ilchulbong is a tuff cone formed by hydrovolcanic eruptions in shallow seawater. Hot magma exploded on contact with the sea, the ash built up layer by layer, and waves cut the seaward side into steep cliffs. It started out as an island separate from Jeju, but sand and gravel gradually joined it to the mainland.

The summit crater is about 600 m across, with silver grass and other plants growing inside. A 2011 survey recorded 240 plant taxa on the cone. A 2021 study found that an older crater about 600 m wide, from an eruption before Ilchulbong formed, partly overlaps the site to the east. The first eruptions took place about 600 m east of today's crater; when magma could no longer rise there, it broke out where the peak now stands. The sea cliffs expose cross-sections of the ash layers cut by the waves, and volcanologists continue to study them. The rocks around the crater look like a castle, hence Seongsan ("castle mountain"), and the sunrise from the top gave it the name Ilchulbong ("sunrise peak").

What to see

• Summit trail: the paid section climbs by stairs and slopes and usually takes 30–40 minutes to the top. From there you look over the wide crater, Udo island, Seongsan village and the sea.
• Umutgae coast: a gently sloping free trail with close-up views of the cliffs and the sea.
• Sunrise: "Sunrise at Seongsan" has long been one of the Ten Scenic Views of Jeju (Yeongju Sipgyeong). Around New Year's Day the Seongsan Sunrise Festival is held.
• Boat trips: boats from around Seongsan port show you the cliffs of Ilchulbong and Udo from the water.

People and the sea

The cone was once also called Cheongsan ("green mountain"), a name some older residents reportedly still use. During the 13th and 14th centuries, when Goryeo was under Mongol influence, horse ranches were set up nearby. In the 20th century people even grew bamboo, raised horses and lived inside the crater, but that ended when it became a protected area in the late 20th century.

The sea within 1 km of the cone is clean, with a wide intertidal zone of rock, gravel and sand. 127 species of seaweed and 177 species of marine animals have been recorded here, many of them new records for Korea. Sunrise from the peak is especially popular on New Year's Day, when the Seongsan Sunrise Festival counts down together to the moment the sun appears.

Did you know

• Around the cone some 18 caves dug by the Japanese military at the end of the colonial period to hide boats loaded with explosives survive; they are now registered cultural heritage.
• UNESCO describes the fortress-like cone, its walls rising out of the ocean, as a dramatic feature of the Jeju landscape.
• The Teojinmok area between Ilchulbong and Jeju is a site linked to the painful history of the Jeju April 3rd incident.
• Ilchulbong drew about 2.45 million visitors in 2011 and about 1.43 million in 2022.
• The cone and the sea within 1 km were designated the Seongsan Ilchulbong Tuff Cone Natural Reserve, a Natural Monument, on 18 July 2000, and it is a key site of the Jeju UNESCO Global Geopark.

Combine with

• Udo: an "island off the island" reached by boat from Seongsan port. You can see it right across the water from the summit.
• Gwangchigi Beach: a nearby beach with views back to Ilchulbong.
• Seopjikoji: a headland jutting into the sea in Seongsan-eup.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: winter (November–February) 06:00–18:00 (tickets until 17:00), spring and autumn (March–April, September–October) 05:00–19:00 (tickets until 18:00), summer (May–August) 04:30–20:00 (tickets until 19:00).
• Closing day: closed on the first Monday of every month; if that day is a public holiday, it closes the following day.
• Admission: adults KRW 5,000, children KRW 2,500.
• Sunrise tip: to see the sunrise, arrive when ticket sales open and head straight up. Sunrise times vary through the year, so check the day before.
• Good to know: food may not be taken onto the trail. There are many steps, so wear comfortable shoes.
• Time needed: 1–2 hours for the summit and a coastal walk. Many visitors combine it with nearby Gwangchigi Beach and Seopjikoji.