Iksan offers cheap bus tours

This year may be the best time to tour around Iksan, an UNESCO World Heritage city, as the city presents an affordable bus tour service starting from February.

Celebrating the Visit Iksan 2024 campaign, the city -- some 190 kilometers south of Seoul in North Jeolla Province -- offers three different bus tours for 2,000 won.

The circular type bus tour operates on weekends and holidays, from 9:50 a.m. to 4:20 p.m.

Departing from Iksan Station, the bus visits the city’s popular tourist destinations in the order of the Won Buddhism Central Office, Korean pot park Gosrak, Iksan’s prison set, the Stone Pagoda of Iksan Mireuksan, the Iksan National Museum, the archaeological site in Wanggung-ri and the Iksan Jewelry Museum.

The bus returns to a cultural street nearby Iksan Station, where tourists can tour around the old city’s center, meandering between different shops, cafes and restaurants.

The themed bus tours offer the chance to enjoy the city with three unique purposes.

Travelers can either choose to take “Iksan’s hidden jewel course,” “cultural heritage course” or “customized course,” in which they can explore popular tourist spots, historical sites and their own personal travel destinations, respectively.

The cultural heritage course is available only on Saturdays at 1 p.m., driving from Iksan Station to Baekje Historic Areas, the archaeological site in Wanggung-ri, Stone Pagoda of Iksan Mireuksan and more.

The customized course is available with at least 15 tourists grouped together. Reservations are required via Iksan’s culture and tourism department at (063) 859-5809 or online at www.iksan.go.kr/reserve/index.iksan.

Meanwhile, Iksan offers the new “Go, Back” bus tour this year as well, hoping for travel lovers to return to the city after enjoying their first experience of Iksan.

The tour highlights the cultural and religious sides of the city, offering a special meditation program at the Won Buddhism Central Office, lunch at Nabawi Shrine and vouchers to be used at Iksan Central Market.

The “Go, Back” bus tour is available when more than 15 visitors apply for the program. Tickets are 15,000 won.

Iksan decided to move up the original schedule before the Lunar New Year's holiday, hoping to draw more family travelers and young tourists to enjoy the winter vacation, according to a city official.