Nami Island

남이섬 · Gyeonggi & Incheon  ✓ Verified August 2026

Still operatingOpen daily. Admission is ₩19,000 for adults — higher than most English guides still say.

The tree-lined lanes of Nami Island
Photo: ⓒ Korea Tourism Organization (한국관광공사) · KOGL Type 1

The half-moon island of tree-lined lanes that started K-drama tourism with Winter Sonata — still drawing about 3.3 million visitors a year, two decades on.

Address
1 Namisum-gil, Namsan-myeon, Chuncheon-si, Gangwon (ferry from Gapyeong wharf)
Getting there
ITX-Cheongchun train from Yongsan/Cheongnyangni to Gapyeong (about 1 hour), then shuttle or taxi to the wharf; enter by short ferry or zipwire.
Hours
The island closes at 21:00; ferries run from early morning until the last crossing.
Admission
₩19,000 adults · ₩16,000 middle and high school · ₩13,000 ages 3–12 · under 3 free — all including the return ferry. Zipwire ₩55,000. Parking ₩4,000–10,000.

What Korean visitors report

🔎 Last checked · August 2026

Korean-language visitor reports carry details that English guides do not — what is still standing, what closed, and what the walk from the car park is actually like. We read them and summarise the facts here.

Admission has gone up
Adults are ₩19,000, middle and high school students ₩16,000, ages 3 to 12 ₩13,000, under 3 free. The return ferry is included in all of them. English guides — this page included until August 2026 — have been quoting ₩16,000, which is now the student rate rather than the adult one.
The zipwire is a separate, serious price
₩55,000. It replaces the ferry on the way in, not the admission, and it is priced as an attraction rather than as transport.
Driving costs more than you expect
Parking at the wharf runs ₩4,000–10,000 depending on how long you stay. With the ITX from Seoul taking about an hour to Gapyeong, the train plus a short shuttle is usually both cheaper and simpler.
Plan around the closing time, not the ferry
The island shuts at 21:00. The constraint on an evening visit is the last crossing back, so check it on arrival rather than assuming the posted island hours are the whole story.

Based on: Naver Place business listing and Korean travel guides published in 2026

Sources checked:
  • Naver Place business listing — hours and admissionRegistry
  • Korean travel guides, 2026 — fares and accessVisitor report

Dramas filmed at Nami Island

Winter Sonata

The metasequoia lane and first-kiss bench — the original K-drama pilgrimage site.

Why it’s still the benchmark

Winter Sonata aired in 2002, yet Nami Island remains the single most visited drama location in Korea — proof of how long a filming site can keep earning. The island leans into it: statues of the leads, photo frames along the metasequoia lane, and signage in Japanese, Chinese, Thai and English for the fans who never stopped coming.

Practical notes

Most visitors do Nami as a day trip from Seoul, often bundled with the Garden of Morning Calm or Petite France (itself a My Love from the Star and Bon Appétit, Your Majesty location) on a combo tour — the bundled tours are usually cheaper than doing two spots separately by public transport.

Autumn (late October–early November) for the ginkgo and metasequoia colors, or snowfall days in January, match the drama’s look best.