Nami Island from ‘Winter Sonata’ and 4 other must-visit K-drama TV locations

Start watching a well-made South Korean television drama and you may soon find yourself cancelling weekend plans to indulge in binge-watching sessions. From there, the next step is booking a flight to Seoul, Busan, or Jeju Island to see where the on-screen magic unfolded. Happy birthday Solar – K-pop girl group Mamamoo’s real shining star Given that the Korean entertainment industry has been putting out blockbuster shows for the past 20 years, there’s no shortage of K-drama pilgrimage sites to explore. Check out just a few to get you started. 1. ‘Winter Sonata’ – Nami Island South Korea first caught the world’s attention for its dramas with the 2002 television romantic drama series Winter Sonata, much of which was filmed on Nami Island about 60km (37 miles) northeast of Seoul. Your favourite Chinese and Korean TV dramas from 2018 From Nami Wharf, fans will want to head straight to the spot where the show’s star-crossed lovers, played by Bae Yong-joon and Choi Ji-woo, enjoyed their first kiss. Prepare for further selfies while continuing down Pine Tree Lane and turning onto the iconic Metasequoia Lane to reach the statue of the leading characters. So popular is Nami, even after all these years, that it’s serviced by a shuttle bus with three pick-up points in Seoul. Alternatively, catch the ITX train from Yongsan or Cheongnyangni stations to Gapyeong Station and walk 20 minutes to reach the ferry. 2. ‘My Love from the Star’ – Jangsa Island For fans of Hallyu (the Korean Wave), a special surprise awaits in Hallyeohaesang National Park, a protected zone of about 100 gorgeous islands. One of these is Jangsa Island, of My Love from the Star fame. It is here that the dapper alien Do Min-joon (played by Kim Soo-hyun) teleports the sassy actress Cheon Song-yi ( Jun Ji-hyun) so they can enjoy some quiet time together. The key filming locations include a bower formed from camellia trees and an amphitheatre built into a hillside. Located just off the southern tip of Geoje Island, Jangsa Island can be reached from three harbours on Geoje Island and one in Tongyeong. It’s true: ‘Sky Castle’ actors Kim and Cho are dating 3. ‘Sandglass’ – Jeongdongjin In 1995, about half of all South Koreans were glued to their television sets for each episode of Sandglass, a drama about the nation’s painful transition to democracy. The show lives on in the East Sea town of Jeongdongjin, where souvenir sellers still do a brisk business selling miniature hourglasses. It was Sandglass that put Jeongdongjin on the map – namely the scene in which love-interest Yoon Hye-rin is arrested at its quaint beachfront railway station. Are K-pop stars Song Yun-hyeong of iKON and Momoland’s Daisy a couple? Maybe, maybe not … To experience Jeongdongjin’s charms, do as the locals do and catch the 11.20pm train from Seoul’s Cheongnyangni Station, arriving at 4.42am, just in time for the sunrise. 4. ‘Guardian: The Lonely and Great God’ – Unhyeongung Yanggwan View this post on Instagram - 덥지만 #좋았다 앞에 있었지만 계속 안가다 #마지막날 믿기지 않는 #끝 #꿈같은날 #즐겁게 #마무리 . . . #날이좋아서 #날이좋지않아서 #날이적당해서 #모든날이좋았다 #도깨비 #도깨비촬영지 #도깨비집 #운현궁 #운현궁양관 #문열면 #이동욱 #공유 #육성재 #안나오나요 # A post shared by Yujin♥ (@s.yujin.s) on Jul 27, 2018 at 10:45pm PDT The hit writer Kim Eun-sook did it again with Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, her follow-up television series to Descendants of the Sun. In the series, supernatural beings walk among us without our knowledge. So it’s only natural that the elegant home of the main character, Goblin, is hidden in plain sight in the middle of Seoul. This finely preserved French Renaissance building, Unhyeongung Yanggwan, was completed in 1912 and housed members of the royal family. These days, it’s a part of Duksung Women’s University’s Jongno campus, next to Exit 4 of Anguk Station. Diehard K-drama fans will remember it from Princess Hours (2006). 5. ‘Kingdom’ – Museom Village The new Netflix series Kingdom would be a typical South Korean historical drama, except that it revolves around a gory zombie outbreak. Set during the Joseon Dynasty, Kingdom’s period costumes and backdrops are as jaw-dropping as its special effects. What’s hot in Korea: a round-up of January’s top K-pop, K-drama and cultural news The creaters of the show also highlighted Korea’s natural splendour. By the end of Episode 2, Prince Chang has fled across the country to a stunning village that is meant to be Dongnae, Busan. Backed by hills and tucked within a loop of a river, the traditional village is connected to the other shore by a strikingly narrow footbridge. This is Sudo-ri, aka Museom (“no island”) Village, within the city of Yeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. Although it burns down in the series, the ancient village is still standing in real life. Want more stories like this? Sign up here. Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter

Nami Island from ‘Winter Sonata’ and 4 other must-visit K-drama TV locations

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The place where lovers in the 2002 series had their first kiss is just one of tourist hot spots made famous by hit South Korean shows

The place where lovers in the 2002 series had their first kiss is just one of tourist hot spots made famous by hit South Korean shows