Festivals
Goheung Yuja Festival 2026: A 1-Night Trip from Seoul to Korea's Citron Country (Nov 12–15)
A 1-Night Trip from Seoul
The Goheung Yuja Festival (고흥유자축제) is the autumn festival of Goheung County (고흥군), at the southern tip of the Korean mainland, and it celebrates yuja (유자), the fragrant yellow citron that Koreans turn into the sweet tea they drink all winter. 2026 is its 6th edition. It runs for four days, from Thursday, November 12 to Sunday, November 15, among the yuja orchards of Handong-ri (한동리) in Pungyang-myeon (풍양면), and entry is free (some hands-on programs charge a fee). This year's slogan is ‘November autumn is yuja heaven’ (11월 가을은 유자천국).
Goheung is far from Seoul: the express bus from Central City terminal (센트럴시티) takes about 4 hours 15 minutes to the Goheung bus terminal, and the festival is a 12-minute taxi ride from there. A day trip is possible but tight, so this guide is built around one night and two days, with the yuja orchards lit up after dark on the first evening and Sorokdo island on the second morning. It covers what yuja is and why Goheung grows most of Korea's crop, the festival program, buses and taxis, both plans, where to eat and stay, and what to see nearby.
At a glance
Dates: Thursday, November 12 – Sunday, November 15, 2026 (4 days)
Hours: 10:00–22:00 (Korea Tourism Organization data)
Venue: Around 701-7 Handong-ri, Pungyang-myeon, Goheung-gun
Admission: Free (some hands-on programs are paid)
From Seoul: Express bus, Central City (Seoul) → Goheung, about 4 hr 15 min, ₩42,800, then a taxi, about 12 minutes
Last bus back: Goheung 17:10 → Central City (Seoul) 21:40
Last checked: October 13, 2026
In this guide
- Venue and contacts
- Why go: yuja and Goheung
- Festival program
- Getting there
- Sample itineraries
- Where to eat · Where to stay
- Tips for foreign visitors
- Nearby · Sources
Venue and Contacts
| Venue | Yuja orchards around 701-7 Handong-ri, Pungyang-myeon, Goheung-gun (고흥군 풍양면 한동리 701-7번지 일원). The organizers put the festival grounds at about 70,400 m², spread over the orchards and the village |
|---|---|
| Nearest terminal | Goheung bus terminal (고흥공용버스정류장) in Goheung-eup (고흥읍), the county town. About 9 km, roughly 12 minutes by taxi, to the festival |
| How long to stay | Half a day for the orchards, food and a show. Stay until dark if you can: the light garden in the orchards is the part people photograph most |
| Parking | The county is adding parking lots and running shuttle buses between Goheung-eup and the festival this year (Goheung County announcement) |
| Organizers | Goheung County and the Goheung County Festival Committee (고흥군축제위원회) |
| Contacts | Phone 061-830-5442 (festival information, Korea Tourism Organization listing) · Goheung Tourist Information Center 061-830-5637 |
| Official pages | VisitKorea festival page (in Korean) · Goheung County tourism (in Korean) |
Why Go: Yuja and Goheung
What is yuja?
Yuja (유자) is the citrus fruit known in English as yuzu (its Japanese name). It is about the size of a mandarin, with a thick, bumpy, intensely fragrant peel and very little juice, so in Korea it is rarely eaten raw. Instead, the whole fruit is sliced and layered with sugar or honey to make yuja-cheong (유자청), a thick citron marmalade-syrup. Stir a spoonful into hot water and you have yuja-cha (유자차), citron tea, the drink Korean families reach for when someone catches a cold. That's where this year's opening event gets its name: ‘Korea Without Colds’ (감기없는 대한민국).
Why Goheung
Goheung is a peninsula county on the south coast, warm and open to sea winds, which yuja trees like. It is the biggest yuja-growing area in Korea: according to Goheung County, about 1,600 farms grow yuja on roughly 660 hectares, and the county's harvest of around 8,770 tonnes in the winter of 2025 was more than 60% of the national crop. The harvest starts in November, so the festival lands right when the orchards are heavy with yellow fruit. In 2025 a makgeolli (rice wine) made with Goheung yuja juice was served as the official toast at the APEC leaders' dinner in Gyeongju.
Two Korean puns in the program
The opening event has 1,004 people making yuja-cheong together and sharing it. The number isn't random: 1004 is read cheon-sa (천사) in Korean, which sounds exactly like the word for “angel,” so Koreans use 1004 as a playful shorthand for kindness. The festival walk is called ‘Yuyujajeok Yuja Walk’ (유유자적 유자길 걷기). Yuyujajeok (유유자적) is an old four-character expression for living a leisurely, carefree life, and it happens to contain the sound yuja, so the name reads as both “a carefree stroll” and “a yuja stroll.”
Good to know
The first day, Thursday, November 12, is also Goheung County Day (the 52nd 고흥군민의 날). On top of the festival, there is a parade of teams from each town and township, a ceremony and a residents' singing contest. It's a lively, very local day, and busier than the other weekday.
Festival Program
The program below follows the Korea Tourism Organization festival listing and Goheung County's announcements. The festival grounds open 10:00–22:00 every day, and shows run through the afternoon and evening.
Main programs
| Program | What it is |
|---|---|
| Opening ceremony | ‘Korea Without Colds’: 1,004 people make yuja-cheong together and share it, plus an opening performance |
| Yuyujajeok Yuja Walk 유유자적 유자길 걷기 |
A walk along the paths through the yuja orchards |
| Yuja Farmers' Day and farm parade | A day for the growers, with a gilnori (길놀이), a traditional street parade with drums and gongs, by yuja farming households |
| Best yuja contest 우수 유자 품평회 |
Growers show their best fruit, judged for size and quality |
| Asia Yuja Exchange Pavilion | An exhibition with yuja-growing cities from Korea, China and Japan |
| Concerts and shows | A yuja concert on each of the four days, a drone show, busking in the orchards and street performances in the yuja theme park |
| Fire art show ‘The Epic of Fire’ 불의 서사 |
Fire performers from Thailand, Cuba and Mongolia |
Hands-on, food and things to see
| Program | What it is |
|---|---|
| Yuja picking | Pick yuja yourself in the orchards |
| Yuja-cheong making | Make your own jar of yuja-cheong to take home, plus other yuja crafts |
| Yuja therapy | A yuja spa corner to warm your hands and feet with yuja |
| Yuja dining zone | Yuja dishes from local cooks: the county's ‘yuja dinner series’ includes yuja ramyeon, yuja gimbap and yuja eel, plus a hall of Goheung home cooking and the Goheung Food Festival |
| Direct market | Yuja and yuja products sold by growers, and Goheung specialties |
| Light garden at night | After dark, the orchards are lit with luminaries and a ‘Milky Way of light’ display, next to a giant yuja landmark sculpture and a yuja observation deck |
| For kids and families | Family activity booths, a free market, mime shows and a national drawing contest for children (유자천국 전국 사생대회) |
Good to know
Bring a bag for jars. Yuja-cheong is sold in glass jars and is heavy. If you're on the bus, buy on your last afternoon, and ask the seller to wrap the jar well (in Korean, “jal ssa juseyo,” 잘 싸 주세요).
Getting There
There's no train line to Goheung. The easiest way from Seoul is the express bus (고속버스) from Central City terminal (센트럴시티, also called the Honam Line side of the Seoul Express Bus Terminal), at Express Bus Terminal Station on subway lines 3, 7 and 9. There are four buses a day in each direction, all premium-class (우등) with three wide seats per row.
| Route | Times · duration · fare |
|---|---|
| Express bus Seoul → Goheung |
08:00 → 12:15 · 09:30 → 13:45 · 14:40 → 18:55 · 17:30 → 21:45 About 4 hr 15 min · Premium class ₩42,800 Book on the Tmoney GO (티머니GO) app or the KOBUS website. In English, the terminal is ‘Central City (Seoul)’ and the destination is ‘Goheung’ |
| Express bus Goheung → Seoul |
08:30 → 13:00 · 10:30 → 15:00 · 15:10 → 19:40 · 17:10 → 21:40 (last bus) About 4 hr 30 min · Premium class ₩42,800 |
| Goheung terminal → festival (taxi) |
From the taxi stand at Goheung bus terminal to Handong-ri, Pungyang-myeon About 9 km · around 12 minutes (OpenStreetMap route). Show the driver ‘풍양면 한동리 고흥유자축제장’ |
| Goheung-eup → festival (shuttle) |
Goheung County runs festival shuttle buses between Goheung-eup and the festival grounds |
| From other cities | Sorokdo and Nokdong (녹동) are reached by direct buses from Gwangju (about 2 hr 40 min) and Suncheon (about 1 hr 30 min), and there are express buses from Seoul to Nokdong (about 5 hours) (National Sorokdo Hospital) |
Our pick
Take the 08:00 bus from Central City, arrive in Goheung at 12:15 and take a taxi straight to the festival. If you're staying the night, come back on the 15:10 bus the next day; on a day trip, the 17:10 bus is the last one to Seoul, so leave the festival by taxi around 16:40.
Good to know
Buses on Saturdays and around the festival weekend fill up. Book your seats on both legs as soon as you know your dates, and check the arrival time on the app: the trip can run longer when the expressway is busy.
Sample Itineraries
Bus times are from the timetables checked on October 13. Taxi times are approximate.
Tip
The orchards look their best in late afternoon light, and the light garden only switches on after dark. That's the main reason to stay the night: on a day trip you have to leave before sunset.
One night, two days (Saturday, November 14 – Sunday, November 15)
Day 1 (Saturday)
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 08:00 | Express bus departs Central City (Seoul) → arrives Goheung 12:15 |
| 12:30 | Taxi to the festival (about 12 minutes). Lunch in the yuja dining zone: try yuja ramyeon or yuja gimbap |
| 13:30 | Walk the orchard paths, see the best yuja contest and the Asia Yuja Exchange Pavilion |
| 15:00 | Yuja picking and yuja-cheong making; climb the yuja observation deck |
| 17:00 | Sunset over the orchards. Busking and street performances |
| 18:00 | Dinner at the festival, then the light garden and the evening yuja concert |
| 20:00 | Taxi to your hotel: Sun Valley Resort about 17 minutes, Victoria Hotel about 25 minutes (Where to stay) |
Day 2 (Sunday)
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 09:00 | Breakfast at the hotel, check out |
| 09:30 | Taxi to Sorokdo (about 26 minutes from Sun Valley Resort) |
| 10:00 | Sorokdo Central Park and the Hansen's Disease Museum (Nearby) |
| 12:00 | Taxi to Goheung-eup (about 30 minutes). Lunch: grilled fish set meal at Somunnan Sikdang (Where to eat) |
| 13:30 | Walk to Jonsimdang, the old county office, then a yuja ade at Yujadang |
| 15:10 | Express bus departs Goheung → arrives Central City (Seoul) 19:40 To go back to the festival instead: festival until 16:30, taxi to the terminal, last bus 17:10 → 21:40 |
Day trip (Saturday, November 14)
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 08:00 | Express bus departs Central City (Seoul) → arrives Goheung 12:15 |
| 12:30 | Taxi to the festival. Lunch in the yuja dining zone |
| 13:30 | Orchard walk, the best yuja contest and the exchange pavilion |
| 15:00 | Yuja picking or yuja-cheong making; buy your yuja products |
| 16:40 | Taxi back to Goheung bus terminal (about 12 minutes) |
| 17:10 | Last express bus departs Goheung → arrives Central City (Seoul) 21:40 |
Where to Eat
At the festival itself, the yuja dining zone and the Goheung Food Festival are the obvious choice for lunch and dinner. For a sit-down meal before or after the bus, Goheung-eup is known for saengseon-gui (생선구이), fish grilled over charcoal, which the old town around the bus terminal does well. All three places below are a few minutes' walk from the terminal.
Tip
Fish set meals in Korea come with rice, soup and a spread of side dishes (banchan, 반찬), which are refilled for free. Just ask, pointing at the empty dish: “deo juseyo” (더 주세요, “more, please”).
Somunnan Sikdang (소문난식당), ‘charcoal-grilled fish by the terminal’
The name means “the famous restaurant,” and it is one of the grilled-fish places the Korea Tourism Organization recommends in Goheung-eup. The set meal brings several kinds of fish grilled over charcoal with rice and side dishes; the other local favorite here is seodae-hoe-muchim (서대회무침), raw sole tossed in a sweet, spicy chili dressing.
Type: Korean (grilled fish, seafood)
Signature dishes: grilled fish set meal (생선구이백반) · seodae-hoe-muchim (raw sole salad)
Hours: 11:00–22:00, open every day (Korea Tourism Organization data)
Tip for foreign visitors: Parking available. Open late, so it works for dinner after the festival too
Getting there: About a 2-minute walk from Goheung bus terminal, in the old-town lanes
Address · phone: 7 Honggyodangchon-gil, Goheung-eup (고흥군 고흥읍 홍교당촌길 7) · 061-833-7787
Eobu Hoetjip (어부횟집), ‘raw fish and spicy fish stew’
A raw-fish restaurant (the name means “fisherman's sashimi house”) on the same lane. Besides sliced raw fish, it serves mulhoe (물회), a cold soup of raw fish in an icy chili broth, and maeuntang (매운탕), a spicy fish stew, which is a warmer choice on a November evening.
Type: Korean (raw fish, seafood)
Signature dishes: sliced raw fish · mulhoe · maeuntang
Getting there: About a 3-minute walk from Goheung bus terminal
Address · phone: 21 Honggyodangchon-gil, Goheung-eup (고흥군 고흥읍 홍교당촌길 21) · 061-835-8147
Yujadang (유자당), ‘yuja drinks in the county town’
A small café in a converted house that makes drinks from its own yuja-cheong. The yuja smoothie and the fizzy yuja ade are the ones to order, and a good way to taste Goheung yuja if you missed the festival food.
Type: Café (yuja drinks)
Signature dishes: Goheung yuja smoothie · Goheung yuja ade
Getting there: About a 10-minute walk from Goheung bus terminal
Address · phone: 50-1 Yeosandangchon-gil, Goheung-eup (고흥군 고흥읍 여산당촌길 50-1) · 0507-1304-2945
Where to Stay
Goheung has few big hotels, and the two below are both by the sea, outside the county town, so plan on a taxi from the festival. Book early for the festival weekend.
Sun Valley Resort Goheung (고흥 썬밸리리조트), ‘every room faces the sea’
The largest resort in Goheung County, on the shore of Goheung Bay in Dodeok-myeon (도덕면). According to the resort, every room has a sea view, and room types run from standard units with a small kitchen to two-bedroom “village” units for families. There is a restaurant serving a breakfast buffet, and a convenience store.
Type: Resort (condo-style rooms with kitchen)
Tip for foreign visitors: Kitchen-type rooms are handy for families. Breakfast is a buffet in the resort restaurant (extra charge)
To the festival: About 17 minutes by taxi (about 11 km); about 16 minutes to Goheung bus terminal
Address · phone: 1134 Goheungman-ro, Dodeok-myeon, Goheung-gun (고흥군 도덕면 고흥만로 1134) · 061-830-2900
Booking: Sun Valley Resort official website
Victoria Hotel (빅토리아호텔), ‘on the hill above Balpo Beach’
A 55-room hotel on a hill above Balpo Beach (발포해수욕장) in Dohwa-myeon (도화면), inside Dadohaehaesang National Park. It has Korean-style ondol rooms and Western rooms, from doubles up to large rooms for 12, plus an ocean-view restaurant and a Korean restaurant. Choose it for a quiet beach morning on day 2.
Type: Hotel
Tip for foreign visitors: In an ondol room you sleep on padded mattresses on a heated floor; ask for a Western (양실) room if you prefer a bed. Booking inquiries by email: [email protected]
To the festival: About 25 minutes by taxi (about 22 km); about 21 minutes to Goheung bus terminal
Address · phone: 89 Balpo-ri, Dohwa-myeon, Goheung-gun (고흥군 도화면 발포리 89) · 061-832-0100
Booking: Victoria Hotel official website
Tips for Foreign Visitors
- Book the bus first: With only four buses a day each way, seats are what decide your trip. Book both legs on the Tmoney GO app.
- Taxis: Taxis are the quickest link between Goheung bus terminal, the festival and the hotels. On the way back, leave a good margin before the 17:10 last bus.
- Warm layers: The light garden and evening concerts are outdoors, so bring a jacket for after dark.
- Yuja tea at home: Yuja-cheong keeps for months in the fridge. A spoonful in hot water makes yuja-cha; in sparkling water it makes yuja ade.
- Sorokdo etiquette: Sorokdo is a working hospital, not a theme park. Stay within the visitor area, keep your voice down and take your rubbish with you.
Good to know
Weekdays vs. weekend: Thursday is both the opening day and Goheung County Day, with the parade and ceremony. On Saturday and Sunday, expect the fullest buses, so book early.
Nearby
The festival sits between Goheung-eup, the county town, and the port of Nokdong (녹동) at the southwest tip, where a bridge leads to Sorokdo. Both fit easily into the second day of an overnight trip.
Sorokdo (소록도), ‘the island of the Hansen's disease hospital’
A small island about 600 m off Nokdong Port, linked by bridge. The whole island belongs to the National Sorokdo Hospital (국립소록도병원), founded for people with Hansen's disease (leprosy), and patients still live here. Visitors can walk from the information center to Central Park (중앙공원), a landscaped garden laid out in 1940 with tall trees and sea views, and visit the Hansen's Disease Museum, which tells the island's often painful history. Going is a quiet, moving experience rather than a sightseeing stop.
Getting there: About 16 minutes by taxi from the festival to Nokdong, then across the bridge; about 30 minutes by taxi from Goheung bus terminal. Cars are stopped at the information center
Hours: Central Park 08:30–17:30 · Hansen's Disease Museum 09:00–17:00, closed Mondays, January 1, Seollal and Chuseok (Goheung County, National Sorokdo Hospital)
Price: Free
How long: About 1.5–2 hours
Tip for foreign visitors: Visitors may only enter the area from the information center to Central Park, and the hospital asks everyone to leave the island by 17:00
Jonsimdang (존심당), ‘the old county office in town’
The government hall of Heungyang-hyeon (흥양현), as Goheung was called in the Joseon era, built in 1739, with its gate (아문, amun) from around 1765. It is one of the few county offices of the period still standing and is a provincial cultural heritage. The surrounding Jonsimdang History and Culture Park also holds Namhwiru (남휘루), the old gate tower where a drum announced the opening and closing of the office. You can take off your shoes and sit on the wooden floor of the main hall.
Getting there: About 900 m from Goheung bus terminal, around a 12-minute walk. 40 Heungyang-gil, Goheung-eup (고흥군 고흥읍 흥양길 40)
How long: About 30 minutes
Goheung Traditional Market (고흥전통시장), ‘a market since 1915’
Goheung's main market, open since 1915, is about a 10-minute walk from the bus terminal area. Besides farm produce, it sells charcoal-grilled fish, the local specialty, and it's a good place to look for yuja products to take home if you skipped the festival market.
Getting there: About a 10-minute walk from the Honggyodangchon-gil restaurants near the bus terminal
How long: 30 minutes to 1 hour
Sources
- Festival: VisitKorea festival page (dates, venue, program, poster, photos) / VISITKOREA (English listing) / Hours: Korea Tourism Organization data (festival listing)
- Goheung County announcements: Bigta News (county release, 2026-09-22), Newspim, Fair News (Goheung County Day, yuja dinner series), Pressna (grounds, shuttle, parking), Balpum News
- Yuja in Goheung: Nongmin Shinmun (Goheung County figures), Newsro (2025 harvest, APEC toast)
- Buses: Central City (Seoul) → Goheung timetable, Goheung → Central City (Seoul) timetable, KOBUS
- Where to eat: Korea Tourism Organization, “Goheung Stay” travel article (restaurants, market, Jonsimdang, buses) / Somunnan Sikdang hours: Korea Tourism Organization data (Tripinfo)
- Where to stay: Sun Valley Resort official website, WAUG (breakfast, facilities) / Victoria Hotel official website
- Nearby: Sorokdo National Sorokdo Hospital, directions and visitor rules, Hansen's Disease Museum, Goheung County tourism, opening hours / Jonsimdang Encyclopedia of Korean Culture
- Distances and taxi times: OpenStreetMap routes
Last checked: October 13, 2026