Gadeokdo is the biggest island in Busan, out at the southern edge of the city in Gangseo-gu. Visit Busan, the city’s official tourism site, says it is no longer an island because it is now connected to the land through the Geogadaegyo Bridge. It is a place of fishing harbors, sea viewpoints and a coast with a painful wartime history. This guide covers what the official sources say about it, how to get there by metro and bus, and what we could not confirm.
Every fact comes from a named source. We checked them on 2 October 2026. Bus times, prices and opening rules can change, so check them before you go.
Where to Go: Gadeokdo (가덕도)
Visit Busan lists Gadeokdo as free and open at all times. The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) gives the same: open all year, open at all hours, with free parking listed. KTO’s Korean listing says the island’s geography is quite varied, with sea cliffs, pebble beaches and many mountains. Its highest peak, Yeondaebong, is given as 459.4 meters.
Daehang Fishing Village (대항마을)
Visit Busan describes Daehang as a quiet fishing harbor in the far south of the island. Small fishing boats huddle around a small port, and if you walk out along the breakwater you can see a tall lighthouse against open sea and small islets. Visit Busan says the lighthouse looks especially good at sunset. KTO says the name Daehang does not mean “big port”. It means “big neck”, from a water gap you can see from the top of Yeondaebong.
Visit Busan also names gray mullet as a specialty of the village. It describes an old method called Yuksomangjang, in which villagers cast a net around a school of mullet and lift it with six boats. KTO lists activities such as trap fishing, fishing from a boat and fishing-boat rides at the village, and says they may change with village conditions, so you should phone first. The listed number is 010-6780-1599. We did not call it.
Daehang Observatory (대항전망대) for sunset
KTO says Daehang Observatory sits on the road between Cheonseong and Daehang village. It has a song monument for “My Hometown Is Gadeokdo” and a poem monument about the sunset seen from here. KTO describes it as a known spot for sunset views. It lists the place as open at all times, with free parking.
Gadeokdo Lighthouse (가덕도 등대)
KTO says the lighthouse began operating in December 1909 and was designated a Busan tangible cultural property on 16 September 2003. It describes a mix of Korean, Japanese and European building styles.
Entry is a conflict in our sources. KTO’s listing says “open at all times”. Visit Busan says the lighthouse is open only to people who have received prior approval. In one place it names the district office as the approver, and in another it names the Navy Headquarters. We would not plan to go inside. Whether it can be seen from a public road, we did not confirm.
Oeyangpo (외양포) and the Daehang caves
Gadeokdo also has a hard history. KTO says Japanese forces took Oeyangpo in February 1904, at the start of the Russo-Japanese War, forced 64 households out and built a military base. Many Japanese-style buildings are still there and are still used by residents as homes. KTO also lists an Oeyangpo observatory with parking, which looks out over the harbor and toward the Geoga Bridge, with a wildflower garden below it that is planted with many hydrangeas. KTO does not say when they bloom.
Visit Busan adds that artificial caves in Saebaji, in Daehang-dong, were dug by Japanese forces using forced Korean labor. It says some 10 caves remain and that one has lighting inside and leads to Mongdong Beach. We did not confirm whether the caves are open or when.
Jeonggeo Village (정거마을)
KTO says Jeonggeo is a quiet fishing village with murals, on the small island of Nulchado. You reach it by crossing Cheongagyo Bridge from Gadeokdo. The murals were painted on the walls of about 60 houses in 2013. People live in the village, and KTO asks visitors to be quiet.
What to Eat
Visit Busan calls cod one of Gadeokdo’s most famous local specialties and gray mullet one of Daehang’s. We could not confirm any specific restaurant that serves them. In KTO’s restaurant data for Gangseo-gu, we found only two eating places on the island, and both are cafes. This is a short list and may be incomplete.
Cafe Brittany (브리타니)
KTO’s data gives only the Korean name, 브리타니. The English spelling here follows the sign visible in KTO’s photo of the cafe, which reads “Café Brittany”.
KTO describes it as a brunch cafe with outdoor tables and a rooftop. It says the cafe makes pizza and sandwiches in house, and that most drinks except coffee come in wine glasses. The photo above shows a brunch plate and drinks, not necessarily items from the listed menu. The signature item is a sand cream latte. The listed hours are 11:00 to 19:30, last order 18:30. It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. KTO lists card payment and parking, and the phone number 0507-1368-4172. The address is 663 Gadeokhaean-ro, Cheonseong-dong.
Good Enough Coffee (구디너프)
KTO describes a glass-walled building with indoor seats, a terrace and a rooftop, all facing the sea. The menu lists a long black first, plus a butter latte (버터리라떼) and other house drinks. KTO also lists decaf drinks, herbal teas and desserts such as scones and cake. The hours are 10:30 to 19:30, last order 19:00, open all year. Card payment and parking are listed, and the phone number is 0507-1378-1465. The address is 28 Gadeokhaean-ro 1169beon-gil, Daehang-dong.
To order a long black, say 롱블랙 한 잔 주세요 (longblack han jan juseyo). We did not find prices for either cafe. If you have an allergy, ask staff about ingredients.
The two cafes are about 3 km apart in a straight line, which we estimated from the coordinates in KTO’s data. Good Enough is about 0.7 km from Daehang Pier by the same method. We did not check walking routes.
Plan Your Visit
How to get there
Visit Busan gives these public transport routes:
- Daehang village: Busan Metro Line 1 to Hadan Station (하단역), transfer to Bus 520, get off at the Daehang Village stop and walk about 4 minutes.
- Gadeokdo page: the same Metro-to-Bus 520 route, but it names the Dongjung Village stop. We could not tell which stop is closer to which place.
- Coastal trail: Hadan Station Exit 3, then Bus 58 to the Seonchang stop, then walk toward Dongseon Saebaji.
- Jeonggeo Village: from the Hadan Station Transfer Center stop, take Bus Gangseo 20 to the Cheonga Nonghyup stop, then walk about 30 minutes.
We could not confirm bus times or the last bus. Look up the current timetable in a Busan bus app before you leave, and do not plan a tight return.
Visit Busan lists the Daehang Public Parking Lot at San 13-26, Daehang-dong, for drivers.
The Gadeokdo Coastal Trail
Visit Busan describes a 6 km trail from Dongseon Saebaji to Daehang Saebaji, with sea views and rock formations. We did not find a walking time, so we cannot say how long it takes.
A simple plan
This is our suggestion, not a sourced route. It uses only places in this guide.
- Take the metro and Bus 520 to Daehang village.
- Walk the harbor and the breakwater.
- Stop at Good Enough Coffee, about 0.7 km from the pier.
- Walk to Daehang Observatory, about 0.5 km from the village by our coordinate estimate, if you want a sunset view.
- Leave early enough to catch the last bus, once you have checked its time.
Because we could not check the bus timetable, we do not give a total time for the day.
First-Timer Tips
- Treat this as a quiet residential area. Visit Busan asks visitors to keep their voices low.
- Check the bus timetable the day before. We could not confirm how often the buses run.
- Cafe Brittany is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so choose Good Enough on those days.
- Bring water and snacks, since we found few eating places. This is general advice, not from our sources.
- Do not expect to enter the lighthouse.
FAQ
Is Gadeokdo still an island? Visit Busan says it is no longer an island because it is now connected to the land through the Geogadaegyo Bridge.
Is it free? Visit Busan lists it as free and open at all times. Cafes and village experiences charge their own prices, which we did not find.
How do I get there without a car? Take Metro Line 1 to Hadan Station and then a bus. Visit Busan names Bus 520 for Daehang village.
Can I visit the lighthouse? Visit Busan says entry needs prior approval. We could not confirm who gives it.
Where can I eat? We found two cafes in KTO’s data. We could not confirm a restaurant serving the local fish.
What We Could Not Confirm
- Bus timetables, frequency and the last bus.
- Which bus stop is closest to each place.
- Any restaurant serving cod or gray mullet.
- Prices at the cafes and for village experiences.
- Whether the lighthouse, the Saebaji caves and the village experiences are open to visitors now.
- Walking times on the coastal trail and between sights.
- Hydrangea bloom times at Oeyangpo.
Related guides
- Gimhae Airport to Busan: How to Get Into the City
- Busan Metro for Visitors
- Amnam Park and Songdo, Busan: Walk and Route
- Best Time to Visit Busan
We post short first-timer guides on Instagram too: @rolo.koreaguide.
Sources
Checked on 2 Oct 2026.
- Korea Tourism Organization, TourAPI (Korean service): Gadeokdo (2715601), Gadeokdo Lighthouse (129156), Gadeokdo Oeyangpo Observatory (3015365), Daehang Observatory (2744553), Daehang Pier (2785960), Daehang Fishing Village (128564), Oeyangpo Gun Positions (2605602), Oeyangpo Port (2788826), Jeonggeo Village Culture Street (3015202), Good Enough Coffee (2832700) and Brittany (브리타니, 2847969). Photographs from these listings are KOGL Type 3 and are used unaltered.
- Visit Busan (official Busan tourism site), “Gadeokdo Island offers the joy of exploration!”: https://visitbusan.net/index.do?lang_cd=en&menuCd=DOM_000000301001001000&uc_seq=334 . Read 2 Oct 2026.
- Visit Busan, “Take a walk on Gadeokdo Island, the southernmost island of Busan”: https://visitbusan.net/index.do?lang_cd=en&menuCd=DOM_000000302002001000&uc_seq=475 . Read 2 Oct 2026.
- Visit Busan, “Fishing Villages: Best Relaxing Getaways in Busan”: https://visitbusan.net/index.do?lang_cd=en&menuCd=DOM_000000302002001000&uc_seq=1014 . Read 2 Oct 2026.
