Seonyudo Park

Seonyudo is a small island in the middle of the Han River, and the whole of it is a park. It covers just 0.11 km², yet it still holds the huge concrete tanks and columns of the plant that once produced Seoul's tap water. Instead of tearing the industrial site down, the city turned it into a garden, so the park feels nothing like the open lawns of the other Han River parks.

History: from a peak to a water plant to a park

The island once had a small peak called Seonyubong, the "peak where immortals stroll". Its scenery drew painters and poets, but during the Japanese colonial period the rock was quarried for flood defences and road building. When the second Han River bridge, today's Yanghwa Bridge, was built between 1962 and 1965, the peak disappeared completely.

From 1978 to 2000 the island served as the Seonyudo water treatment plant, supplying tap water to south-western Seoul. When the plant closed, the city decided to reuse its structures for a water-themed park rather than demolish them, and Seonyudo Park opened on 26 April 2002.

What to see

• Garden of Green Columns: the roof of the old clean-water reservoir was removed and only its columns were kept. Rows of pillars wrapped in ivy make this the most photographed corner of the park.
• Water purification garden and aquatic plant garden: built in the former sedimentation and filter basins. Water lilies, yellow iris and other aquatic plants show how plants clean water, and the purified water then feeds the rest of the park.
• Garden of Time: the spot where the old structures survive most completely, with small themed gardens of climbers, moss and ferns set inside the concrete tanks.
• Seonyudo Story Hall: the former pumping station, now an exhibition space with photos and films about the island and the Han River.
• Round spaces: a circular thickening tank turned into an open-air theatre with about 200 seats, and a shallow water playground no deeper than 15 cm.

Good to know

Seonyugyo, the footbridge that links the island with Yanghwa Hangang Park on the south bank, was built as a millennium project of the French 2000 committee and the Seoul city government. The bridge offers wide views of the river and the city, and the northern tip of the island touches Yanghwa Bridge.

Tripto tips

• Getting there: about a 10-minute walk from Seonyudo Station (Line 9) or 15 minutes from Dangsan Station (Lines 2 and 9). Blue buses 602, 603, 604 and 761 and green buses 5712, 5714, 6712, 6716 and 7612 also stop nearby.
• Opening hours: daily 06:00–24:00, free of charge. Indoor facilities such as the Story Hall have their own hours and closing days, so check the signs on site.
• Parking: only vehicles of disabled visitors may park inside the park. Drivers should use parking lot 3 of Yanghwa Hangang Park.
• When to go: summer, when the ivy is thick, and autumn are the best seasons. Allow 1–2 hours for a loop, and many visitors finish on Seonyugyo to watch the sunset over the river.