Pyeongchang travel guide: Olympic ski resorts or Bongpyeong buckwheat

Winter or September: choosing your Pyeongchang trip

The two famous images of Pyeongchang — Olympic ski slopes and white buckwheat fields — belong to different seasons and different corners of the county. The ski resorts sit in Daegwallyeong-myeon and, in Phoenix's case, in Bongpyeong-myeon, on a plateau around 700 metres up; VisitKorea gives Yongpyong an average of 250 cm of snow a season and says winter in Daegwallyeong lasts longer than elsewhere. The buckwheat belongs to Bongpyeong, the setting of Lee Hyo-seok's story *When the Buckwheat Flowers Bloom*, where VisitKorea says the Hyoseok Cultural Festival has been held around September since 1999.

If you ski, come between December and February and plan everything around one resort. If you don't, September gives you the flowers plus mild weather for the Daegwallyeong highlands. Summer works for a cool break and the Music in PyeongChang festival at Alpensia (23 July to 2 August in 2026, per VisitKorea's listing), and the ranches are green. Late autumn and early spring are the weakest times: the slopes are closed and the fields are bare.

Pyeongchang is easy to reach from Seoul by KTX, but it is not a good day trip. The sights are spread over a large county, and the best parts — first lifts, the first cable car up Balwangsan on a clear morning, an evening in a buckwheat village — need you to be there overnight.

Skiing at the Olympic resorts

Mona Yongpyong, at 715 Olympic-ro, opened in 1975 as Korea's first ski resort. VisitKorea's ski guide calls it the country's largest, with 28 slopes and 14 lifts, and notes that its Rainbow Slope held the alpine skiing at the 2018 Games. It suits skiers who want variety and the shortest walk from room to rental to lift.

Alpensia, at 325 Solbong-ro, is smaller: VisitKorea lists six slopes with runs of up to 1.4 km, and an area for advanced snowboarders. Its draw is the resort around it — the former Olympic ski jump, where a monorail runs up the jumping hill, the Ocean 700 indoor water park and several hotels. Choose it for a mixed group in which not everyone skis.

Phoenix Snow Park, at 174 Taegi-ro in Bongpyeong-myeon, served as an Olympic snow-sports venue in 2018. VisitKorea describes 21 slopes, a 2.4 km gentle Panorama run that beginners can ski from the top, an Extreme Park with a half-pipe for freestyle, and a sledding area and the Blue Canyon water park for families.

VisitKorea points out that opening dates and which slopes are open depend on the weather and snow-making, so check the resort's own site before you book lessons or passes.

• Mona Yongpyong: the most slopes and the Balwangsan cable car on site; free shuttles from Jinbu (Odaesan) Station.
• Alpensia: Olympic ski jump, water park and hotels in one complex; fewer slopes.
• Phoenix Snow Park: beginner-friendly Panorama run and a freestyle park; also the closest resort to Bongpyeong.

Bongpyeong and the buckwheat fields

Lee Hyo-seok Culture Village in Bongpyeong is where the writer (pen name Gasan) was born and raised, and it was named Korea's first national cultural village in 1990. VisitKorea lists the author's birthplace, a water mill, Gasan Park, the memorial hall, a buckwheat museum and restaurants serving buckwheat food. When the fields bloom, VisitKorea says, they look as if they have been dusted with salt.

The Hyoseok Cultural Festival is the time to see that. VisitKorea's listing for 2026 gave 4 to 13 September, 10:00 to 17:00, in the Hyoseok Culture Village area, with free entry, a madanggeuk performance of the story, a writing contest and a food market. The 2026 edition has finished; check www.hyoseok.com for next year's dates. If you would rather have the village quiet, VisitKorea suggests avoiding September — the buckwheat dishes are served all year.

When we checked on 2026-10-03, VisitKorea listed the Lee Hyo-seok Memorial Hall as open 09:00–18:30 from May to September and 09:00–17:30 from October to April, closed on Mondays, with adult admission at 2,000 won. Bongpyeong Market is a five-day market held on dates ending in 2 and 7, and buckwheat is its main product. Time a visit for a market day if you can. Herbnara Farm, in the Heungjeong valley nearby, has ten themed herb gardens. VisitKorea notes it is closed on Tuesdays from November to April.

Daegwallyeong highlands: cable car, ranches and Olympic sites

The Balwangsan Cable Car runs 7.4 km from Dragon Plaza at Yongpyong to the 1,458 m summit of Balwangsan in about 18 minutes. VisitKorea calls it the longest cable car ride in Korea. At the top is the Balwangsan Ki Skywalk, a viewing deck at 1,458 m above sea level. When we checked on 2026-10-03, VisitKorea listed hours of 09:00–17:00 and an adult round trip at 27,000 won. It warns that the cable car can stop in bad weather, so go early on a clear day.

Of the ranches, Daegwallyeong Yangtte Ranch is the classic sheep farm, at 920 m, with a walking loop around the grazing fields that VisitKorea puts at about 40 minutes; the sheep are out except in winter. Samyang Roundhill, a ranch with sheep, cows and ostriches that opened to the public in 2007, adds a sheepdog show. Daegwallyeong Sky Ranch runs tractor rides round the ranch. Pick one: they are similar experiences, and each takes half a day with the drive. Fees and seasonal hours are on VisitKorea's listings and change, so check before you go.

Without a car, the county's Pyeongchang Sightseeing Taxi starts at KTX Jinbu (Odaesan) Station. VisitKorea says the packages cover sights such as Herbnara Farm, Hyoseok Moonlight Hill, the sheep farm, Odaesan and the Balwangsan cable car, and include the round-trip KTX fare, entrance fees and the taxi. Woljeongsa temple and its fir forest trail, on Odaesan in the north of the county, are covered in our Odaesan guide.

Getting there and getting around

The KTX Gangneung Line runs from Seoul Station and Cheongnyangni towards Gangneung, and VisitKorea lists Pyeongchang among its major stops. For the ski resorts, VisitKorea's ski guide lists free shuttle buses from Jinbu (Odaesan) Station to Mona Yongpyong and to Alpensia. The departures it gives are only a couple a day and change each season, so confirm them on the resort's site and book in peak season.

Intercity buses to Pyeongchang leave from Dong Seoul Terminal and Seoul Nambu Terminal, according to VisitKorea's bus guide. Inside the county, distances between Bongpyeong, the Daegwallyeong resorts and Jinbu are long enough that a rental car or taxi saves a lot of waiting.

Pyeongchang links naturally with Gangneung on the coast, which is further along the same rail line, and with Odaesan, Jeongseon and Yeongwol for a longer Gangwon loop.