One day Escape to Heyri Art Valley, Paju

If you are looking for a place to escape from Seoul’s (서울) hustle and bustle without going too far, I suggest visiting Paju-si (파주시), where fairy tales come alive. It is about an hour away from Seoul, and is home to dreamy art villages filled with artistic cafes, creative restaurants, and attractive stores.

Are you looking for somewhere to escape from the city’s hustle and bustle without going too far? Of course, there are plenty of coffee shops and museums or even shopping to do in Seoul. But, if you are like me and love discovering places with artistic and cultural elements, then I would suggest a day trip to Paju-si, where fairy tales come true. It is about an hour away from Seoul, and is home to the Heyri Art Valley (헤이리 예술마을), and the Provence Village (프로방스 마을) where you can find dreamy art villages filled with artistic cafes, creative restaurants, and attractive stores.

Heyri Art Valley (헤이리 예술마을)

The Heyri Art Valley (헤이리 예술마을) is a hidden gem where you can appreciate all kinds of exhibitions such as traditional Korean art, musical instruments, world culture, and themed art museums all in one place. Moreover, there are a variety of experiential activities you can do to help you discover your own artistic talents with the help of experts such as the toy museum, the trick art museum, Korean cooking workshops, Korean rice wine making, and many more. In fact, Korean artists from different specialties such as writing, painting, acting, architecture, and music built the Heyri Art Valley. Within this little town, you can find the artists residences, workrooms, art galleries, and exhibitions. As you walk around the town, you will be able to admire the town’s artistry as every building was built with its unique characteristics. [1]

Address: 70-21 Heyrimaeul-gil, Tanhyeon-myeon, Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do (경기도 파주시 탄현면 헤이리마을길 70-21)

How To get there: Get off at Hapjeong Station (합정역) (Line 2, Exit 1). Then, take the bus number 2200 (it runs every 15 minutes). It takes about 40 minutes to get there and announcements for bus stops are in English.

Opening hours: Most of the galleries and museums open around 11-noon and close around 7 pm. Most are closed on Mondays.

Map of Heyri Art Valley

There are around 30 small-medium sized museums, such as the museum of international folk instruments, toys, butterflies, magazines, traditional foods, Buddhist art, figure paintings, etc. There are also here are six galleries, a number of concert halls, memorial halls, drama theaters, cinema houses, seminar rooms, guesthouses, bookstores, art shops, workshops, and antique shops.[2]

Below are some of the examples of attractions to visit:

Foresta Book Café (북하우스 포레스타), a book house filled with thousands of books where you can sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee while reading your favorite book.

Vintage Ice Cream Bus

Museum of Modern History of Korea

Erotic Art Museum

Coffee Museum

Food:

Restaurant serving Cutlet, Pasta, Pizza, and Fried Rice

Italian style restaurant

European style restaurant making homemade burgers

European style restaurant making homemade burgers

2. Provence Village (프로방스 마을)

The Provence Village is often referred to as “The Village” due to the unique environment that almost resembles Provence in France. It is also a popular filming location for Korean dramas such as The Master’s Sun (2013), My Love from the Star (2013), and The Girl Who Sees Smells (2015).

Address: 77, Saeori-ro, Tanhyeon-myeon, Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do (경기도 파주시 탄현면 새오리로 77)

You can take the bus 036 to go there from Heyri Art Valley Gate 1 or 4, or walk for about 25 minutes.