Donghae Mureung Health Forest, a wellness paradise hidden deep in a valley surrounded by mountains

The word “mureung” refers to a utopian space outside the world. The utopian character of this concept is connected to the idea of paradise. Donghae Mureung Health Forest, hidden within the otherworldly “mureung” valley surrounded by high and beautiful mountains and fed by clear water, thus can be seen as a paradise inhabited by spirits.

In order to access this “mureung”, you have to go around the mountains and follow the water into the valley. The journey is not a boring one, however, as the journey is the way to face what may be ailing you. Donghae Mureung Health Forest, the place for your wellness, lies at the entrance of the Mureunggyegok Valley. Eco-friendly accommodations, wellness programs, thematic experience centers, and natural and healthy food return the lost power of natural cure to those who have been tarnished in the pollution of the city.

Live like a mountain god in the forests of mureung

Donghae Mureung Health Forest first opened as a center for preventive healthcare for environmental and lifestyle diseases. Now, it has become a wellness tourist site where everyone can enjoy the nature of Mureunggyegok Valley and restore their connection to health and happiness. Time spent here is a time of withdrawal from the world for the purposes of restoration and return to the world. That is a form of wisdom or generosity in life.

There are two types of wellness experience programs that can recharge the visitor’s energy here, one-day program and healing accommodations. One-day wellness experience program includes making eco-friendly products like hinoki pillows, eco bags, and natural soap, as well as programs offered in the Thematic Experience Rooms. Programs take about 1 hour 30 minutes to complete and are not so difficult, so everyone from children to adults can take part.

Thematic Experience Rooms are essentially spa and sauna rooms that are made up of the Red Clay Sauna, Salt Cave, and White Sericite Sauna. Sweating in a sauna can help detoxify your body. After the sauna experience, you can relax in massage chairs and vibration therapy machines in the Oxygen Healing Room. The Foot Massage Rest Area, which leads to the inner courtyard, and sound therapy with foot bath help to boost your immune system.

Health consultation services, which are offered to visitors who opt for thermotherapy sessions, deliver a fruitful experience. This service is accompanied by stress, body fat, and blood pressure measurements by nurses. It is popular for its utilization of the Sasang body constitutional medicine, where you can learn what Sasang body constitution you belong to, along with food, exercises, seongjeong (mindfulness) therapy recommendations. You can also apply for Chahun meditation, where you breathe in the steam of hot tea. Chahun meditation requires a reservation and more than five guests taking part in each session.

Just by staying in peace

The accommodations are named after Mureunggyegok Valley’s natural sights and are built with eco-friendly materials. The walls at Duta are made with red clay, Yongchu has hinoki walls, and Mureung and Cheongok have white sericite walls for user’s health and natural environment.

All the dishes served here are natural and healthy meals. The meals are prepared with eco-friendly ingredients that are grown without pesticide and without using any chemical flavoring or additives. Rice here is made with brown rice, turmeric, and red yeast rice. The menu changes slightly every day. Eco-friendly accommodations and healthy meals deliver wellness experiences to everyone who stay for more than a day.

Healing accommodations program makes use of these strengths. It can be divided into the free healing accommodations experience and group healing workshops. The former emphasizes autonomy of the guests: Participation in programs is optional, so guests can sit back and rejuvenate in the natural environment of Donghae Mureung Health Forest. This is the reason why guests flock to Donghae Mureung Health Forest, despite some programs in Donghae Mureung Health Forest being limited to groups of more than ten.

Wellness Program

Donghae Mureung Health Forest is a place where you can take part in self-wellness experiences. Mureunggyegok Valley Moonlight Hoamso Trail and the city of Donghae’s Healing Sound Curation programs are especially recommended. Moonlight Hoamso Trail is a 1.82 km-long trail and connects Donghae Mureung Health Forest with a parking lot in the commercial district. It is an easy trail with a great view of the Hoamso Pond and the surrounding areas. The Healing Sound Curation program is a thematic music service that delivers “healing sounds that wake up your morning” and “healing sounds that you can listen to while walking or exercising.” It can be accessed via the official YouTube page of the city of Donghae and QR codes. Moonlight Hoamso Trail takes you along the Mureunggyegok Valley Tourist District’s restaurant areas. If you find it difficult to access the healthy meals served in the Health Forest, you can opt to get some food while walking.

NOTE

▪ Address: 455 Samhwa-ro, Donghae-si, Gangwon-do
▪ Inquiries: +82-33-530-2391
▪ Operating Hours: Accommodations open all year round / Thematic Experience Room (sauna) 07:00-23:00 (may be subject to change, closed on Mondays)
▪ Website: www.dh.go.kr/forest
▪ Experience Fees: Reservation on the website
① Accommodations Weekdays KRW 60,000-200,000 / Weekends KRW 80,000-260,000 / High-season KRW 100,000-300,000
② Thematic Experience Rooms KRW 7,000 for elementary schoolers and above / KRW 5,000 for accommodation guests and preschoolers / KRW 3,000 for preschoolers staying in the accommodation
③ Chahun meditation program KRW 10,000 (offered when the number of reservations exceed 5) / thermotherapy experience KRW 10,000
④ Experience programs Eco pouch-making KRW 5,000 / Eco bag or mug cup-making KRW 7,000 / Eco T-shirt or candle-making KRW 8,000 / Natural soap or natural shampoo or aroma bath bomb-making KRW 10,000 / Hinoki pillow-making KRW 20,000-25,000

Transportation
• [KTX] Seoul - Donghae, 4 to 8 departures from Seoul Station or Cheongnyangni Station (07:01-20:15), takes between 1 hour 10 minutes - 2 hour 10 minutes

Recommended Tourist Sites

Heal with seawater and Jijangsu mineral water at Donghae Boyang Hot-spring Convention Hotel

If Donghae Mureung Health Forest represents the mountains and valleys of Donghae, Donghae Boyang Hot-spring Convention Hotel represents the sea of Donghae. The view of the Mangsanghaebyeon Beach just outside is enough to help you relax. Another benefit of the hotel is the hot springs, which are designated as national hot springs by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety of Korea. Its seawater pools and the Jijangsu mineral water, clear mineral water naturally filtered through a red clay strata, deliver special experiences to the visitor. Wellness programs offered here also take advantage of the high-quality water, such as aqua fitness programs and Jijangsu contrast baths. Other programs include the Pilates foam roller program and mental health measurement programs.

NOTE

▪ Address: 6285 Donghae-daero, Donghae-si, Gangwon-do
▪ Inquiries: +82-33-530-0700
▪ Website: www.msgh.kr
▪ Wellness Programs: Aqua fitness, flow walking, Jijangsu contrast bath, Pilates foam roller etc.

Use the forest’s energy to heal your five senses at Samcheok Vibrant Healing Forest

Samcheok Vibrant Healing Forest is organized around the idea of an “ever-young village.” The program likewise is centered around the vitality of nature and forests of Miro-myeon in Samcheok. Its programs are based on forest healing and are supplemented by tea ceremony, foot bath, singing bowl meditation, and other activities that stimulate the five senses. Other notable facilities include treehouses that you can find on the trail, healing halls, tea ceremony rooms, and healing centers with contrast treatment facilities.

NOTE

▪ Address: 651-230 Jungyeong-gil, Miro-myeon, Samcheok-si, Gangwon-do
▪ Inquiries: +82-33-571-2600
▪ Website: www.samcheok.go.kr/healinglife
▪ Wellness Programs: Forest therapy, foot bath therapy, contrast treatment, healing tea ceremony