Ulsan was my second spontaneous destination this month. It's another Thursday, so I escape from the big city (Seoul) and my plan was to explore, work, eat, and explore some more. My job allows me to have flexible hours and if there's a good internet connection, I'm good. This actually means I can work from anywhere in Korea, as internet coverage and speed are phenomenal.

Early morning trips can be a bit frustrating as you have to wake up early, properly calculate your commute time, get a bottle of water, and wake up with hot coffee. Luckily, I was super efficient that morning and arrived 40 minutes early at Seoul Station. Another spontaneous decision was to use the extra time to explore the station - there's always some exciting new pop-up store or delicious bakery with fresh pastries. My find of the morning was actually the KTX Lounge on the second level. The lounge is accessible to all KTX ticket holders and is super cozy. After 20 minutes of reading some newspapers, it was time to board the train.

My favorite part of the trip is utilizing time on the KTX train for work. It's amazing what two hours (Seoul to Ulsan) of concentration can do to your mailbox. Time in the train passed by so fast that I almost missed the Ulsan KTX Station. Getting off the train, I felt so accomplished, so I was ready to go directly explore the city. But you need to get to it first. It turned out the Ulsan KTX station is a 30 minute bus ride from the city (there are 3 express buses that cover most of the city, so you have to check which one will take you closer to your final destination).

Ilsan Beach in Ulsan-dong

My accommodation was in East (Dong) Ulsan, which is the industrial part of the city. This is where the biggest car factory in the world is located (Hyundai Motors Ulsan Plant is the world's largest single factory) and one of the biggest shipyards as well (Hyundai Heavy Industries Ulsan Factory). You can book a visit to these facilities but my goal for this trip was different. Kyeongwon Bizmotel is a small business hotel that I chose due to its proximity to Ilsan Beach (Ulsan). That's where I planned to spend the rest of the day, working from a nice coffee shop and enjoying the great views. Luggage dropped off, and equipped with my laptop, drone, and camera, I was ready to spend the rest of the day out and about.

Cherry blossom attracts visitors and makes the stay at the park pleasant

My lovely hotel offered free bikes, so I decided to grab a bike and not just work, eat, explore but also work out. Using the bike was the best choice of the day. I was actually surprised to see that spring had come earlier in Ulsan. There were so many cherry blossom trees on the way to the beach. The most industrial part of the city looked very pretty.

Pine trees surround the wooden stairs from Ilsan Beach

Daewangam Park

Ulsan Beach far surpassed my expectations. The beach has nice, fine sand and is good for families, as it has shallow water and no steep slopes. Since I had the bike I decided to go a bit further and explore Daewangam Park instead of nailing myself down in front of my laptop in a coffee shop.

Ilsan Beach (Ulsan)

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Daewangam Park

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Ulgi Lighthouse - old and new, view from above

Part of Daewangam Park (address: 140, Deungdae-ro, Dong-gu, Ulsan) is pine forest with trees that are over 100 years old. The park is up on a hill and views of the East Sea are breathtaking. Moving out of the pine tree I discovered a beautiful alley with cherry blossom trees in full bloom. At the end, there was not one, but two lighthouses.

Ulgi Lighthouse - built in 1906, new lighthouse in the back

Daewangam - bird view of the rocky island and Ulgi Lighthouse

Daewangam bridge

Ulgi Lighthouse is one of the oldest lighthouses in Korea, built in 1906 during the Japanese Occupation. The taller lighthouse was built in 1987. Pine trees, cherry blossoms, lighthouses, and all that surrounded by the beautiful East seashore. There was no way I could go back to work. It was drone time and the view from above revealed yet another beautiful site - and cliffs of Daewangam Island looked like they were being cut into slices by Poseidon's trident.

Going down to explore the area around the cliffs, I found out there's a kind of open-air restaurant where a couple of ladies prepare freshly caught seafood. There was even a haenyeo ("sea women" - Korean female diver) selling what she had just gotten out of the freezing cold sea waters. It was my first time seeing haenyeo with my own eyes and that made my day even more special. I ended up ordering seafood - it tastes amazing when you eat it out in the open, right by the sea. That's what Ulsan had for me in just a day.

Daewangam Island

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Front view of the hotel

A hotel is good enough if it's location is good. If you travel on a budget and need a comfortable place close to Ilsan Beach Gyeongwon Bizmotel should definitely be on your list. If you are doing an industrial t our of Ulsan (and you should, as it's the industrial capital of South Korea), the neighborhood around the hotel is a must-see.

Gyeongwon Bizmotel has been there for a while, so don't expect to see the latest trends in hotel furnishing. Reception is on the fifth floor, and there are many brochures for tourist attractions in Ulsan and the region. You can also use a bike free of charge, which I did, and I recommend it if you don't want to use public transport. The staff is super friendly and they will be there to help no matter what your need is. I was even offered free of charge pick-up service from the Ulsan city center.

Bedding arrangement

The rooms are cozy, clean and very well-maintained. I was upgraded (always good no matter why and where) to a bigger room that had a small table and kitchen area with fridge, microwave, toaster and hot pot. Mattresses are medium hard but very comfortable. Bedding arrangement was Korean style with a soft colorful topper. Pillows were on the harder side and a bit high, exactly as I like it. If you prefer softer pillows, you can always ask for them at the reception. A big flat-screen TV is placed at a convenient height to be watched from the bed. There was a small handwritten note with the numbers for international channels (there are so many TV channels in Korea and usually takes up to 20 minutes to find the channel you want to watch).

kitchen

The restroom area featured a bathtub, which is not very common these days for budget hotels in Korea. All toiletries are available in nicely branded packaging. Booking is available on major booking sites such as agoda.com. Prices may vary between 50,000 won to 100,000 won per night. The location of the hotel is in close proximity to main attraction as Hyundai Motors Ulsan Plant, Hyundai Heavy Industries Ulsan Factory, Ilsan Beach (Ulsan), Daewangam Park, and Seuldo Island.