World Cup Park

Every autumn the hill of Haneul Park in Seoul's Mapo District ripples with silvery eulalia grass, yet underneath it is a mountain of rubbish. The park was created by capping and stabilising the Nanjido landfill, where Seoul dumped its waste from 1978 to 1993. On 1 May 2002, just before the Korea–Japan World Cup kicked off, the whole area opened as World Cup Park, a group of five parks.

From orchid island to rubbish mountain to park

Nanjido, meaning 'island of orchids and irises', was a sandbar island in the Han River where peanuts and millet were once grown. An embankment joined it to the mainland in 1977, and the following year it became the city's landfill. Fifteen years of waste piled up into two hills more than 90 m high.

Once dumping stopped, engineers built barriers to contain leachate, collected the methane given off by the waste to burn for heating, and covered the mounds with soil before planting grasses and trees. When Seoul World Cup Stadium was built next door, the eco-park plan grew into a large project tied to the stadium and the development of Sangam-dong. Work started in January 2001 and the park opened just before the tournament. Today close to ten million people visit every year.

Five parks in one

• Haneul Park (Sky Park): On top of the second landfill mound, at about 98 m, the highest point. Its broad hilltop is covered with eulalia and wildflowers, and around 30,000 butterflies were released to help restore the ecosystem. Wind turbines help power the lights. From the viewpoints around the edge you can see the Han River, Bukhansan and central Seoul around Namsan.
• Pyeonghwa Park (Peace Park): Opposite the stadium, covering about 449,000 m², with the large Nanji Pond at its centre. Close to housing and easy to reach, it is the busiest of the five.
• More in Peace Park: UNICEF Plaza, the Forest of Hope and the World Cup Park exhibition hall tell the story of the park's World Cup origins.
• Noeul Park (Sunset Park): On the first landfill mound. It opened in 2005 as a nine-hole golf course, but public pressure to make it a family park led the city to close the course in 2008. True to its name, sunsets over the Han River are lovely from here. Its lawns host a sculpture park, and deer, leopard cats and raccoon dogs live in its woods.
• Nanjicheon Park: The Nanji Stream, once polluted by landfill runoff, has been restored as a natural waterway with walking and cycling paths.
• Nanji Hangang Park: Along the riverbank, with a campsite, sports facilities and a river cruise pier.

Tripto tips

• Eulalia season: The grass on Haneul Park peaks from mid-October to early November. The Seoul Eulalia Festival runs for a week in mid-October each year; the 25th festival in 2026 is held on 17–23 October, 10:00–21:00, with free entry. During the festival you can stroll the fields until 21:00.
• Haneul Stairs: The wooden staircase that climbs straight up to Haneul Park has 291 steps. If that sounds like too much, take the paid Maengkkongi electric shuttle from the car park below to the top.
• Opening hours: Haneul Park and Noeul Park close at different times depending on the season. If you go up for sunset, leave plenty of time to come down.
• Getting there: World Cup Stadium Station on Line 6 leads straight into Peace Park; walking to the top of Haneul Park takes 30–40 minutes. Car parks get very crowded during the festival, so use public transport.
• Time needed: Peace Park and Haneul Park alone take 2–3 hours; add Noeul Park and it becomes half a day.
• What to bring: There is little shade on the Haneul Park hilltop, so bring a hat and water in summer.