Why visit Suwon Hwaseong Fortress

By Ellen – (Updated Oct 2023)

⏱7 min

When visiting South Korea there are grand beautiful royal palaces, ancient temples, and eye-catching high-tech cities to visit. So one might not think that a fortress should be at the top of the list of things to see in South Korea, but I promise you that the Suwon Hwaseong Fortress doesn’t disappoint. It is a World Heritage Site and defence structure that combines the best of both Western and East Asian styles and techniques from those times. Read on to discover why this impressive fortress should be on your itinerary when visiting Seoul and the rest of South Korea.

The tragic story behind Suwon Hwaseong Fortress

The true story behind the Suwon Hwaseong Fortress could be the plot for a period K-drama (in fact, it probably is but I haven’t checked). I’ll try to keep it short for this post, but if you want to read more about the history and all the juicy details of affairs, illegitimate children, violence, and literal madness, there’s tons of information out there.

Prince Sado overtaken by mental illness

In short, during Korea’s Joseon Dynasty there was a king by the name of King Yeongjo. He had a son, Prince Sado, who was heir to the throne and held up to his father’s high expectations. It seemed that no matter what Prince Sado did, he could never please his father. His father reprimanded him publicly and refused to let him visit the ancestral graves of people who died, whom the Prince was close to.

Prince Sado’s mental health deteriorated over the years and he became increasingly violent. He would have outbursts of rage, violently rape women, and beat his servants, wife, and consort. It is recorded that he beat his secondary consort so badly that she was left to die on the floor.

Prince Sado’s death was ordered by his father

By court rules of those times, a royal body could not be defiled (therefore, Sado could not be executed). Sado’s father King Yeongjo couldn’t tolerate anymore of his violent antics and in the hot summer of 1762, King Yeongjo ordered Sado to climb into a small wooden rice chest where he would die (yikes). Sado was locked in the chest and died by the 8th day.

Hwaseong Fortress was constructed in 1794 by Sado’s son

Sado’s son, became the next King after King Yeongjo died. King Jeongjo was his name, and he was only 9 when his father died inside the rice chest. The Suwon Hwaseong Fortress was built from 1794 to 1796 under the order of King Jeongjo, to house and honor the remains of his father whom he believed to be wrongly killed by political opponents. He also wanted to move the capital from Seoul to Suwon due to its strategic position which could connect Seoul with the West Sea and China.

How to get to Hwaseong Fortress

Hwaseong Fortress is in Suwon, South Korea and it is possible to take a dray trip there from Seoul. If you have some more time, you could spend a night in Suwon.

Get to Suwon from Seoul:

• Take the subway line 1 from City Hall Station or Seoul Station
• Several intracity bus options – check a route using Naver Maps

Get to Hwaseong Fortress:

The fortress walls basically surround a central part of Suwon and you can access them from various parts of the city. We recommend starting at Paldalmun Gate, where you can take a bus to from various points in the city. Just use Naver Maps to check your bus route to Paldalmun Gate.

Suwon Hwaseong Fortress Highlights

Walk the walls

The best way to see the fortress is by walking along the walls. There is plenty of signage along the walls so you can learn more about what you are seeing. It also offers views of the city. We recommend taking a few hours to walk along the walls. We didn’t walk the entire length, but instead went from Paldalmun Gate to Hwahongmun Gate and were able to enjoy, learn a lot, and see some of the key highlights of the fortress.

Paldalmun Gate

Paldalmun Gate is one of the main gates of the Suwon fortress, and is disconnected from the walls and surrounded by a roundabout. It is a key landmark in Suwon, and a good place to start your visit.

Getting to the walls

From Paldalmun Gate, head straight west to find an entrance to the walls. Take the road between the Lotteria and the Wesh Wesh Coffee Hotdog store. Google Maps won’t find the trail well, Naver Maps shows the wall trail best.

To reach the walls, you’ll have to walk up a steep incline of stairs to reach the Suwon Hwaseong Fortress Seonam Ammun Gate. If someone is at the ticket booth, you might have to pay 1,000KRW for adults, but a person isn’t always there. You may see other checkpoints along the way where you will have to pay.

From Suwon Hwaseong Fortress Seonam Ammun Gate, walk north (in a clockwise direction).

Suwon Hwaseong Fortress Bell of Hyowon

Hyowon’s Bell is near the summit of Paldalsan Mountain. You can pay to give it a ring – the tradition is to ring the bell three times. The meaning of bell tolling is: the first ring is to show gratitude and respect for one’s parents, the second is to wish for one’s family’s health and harmony, and the third is to wish for the realisation of your own dreams.

Paldalsan Mountain

At the summit of Paldalsan Mountain there is a pavilion where you can see people taking a rest. You will also have wide views of the city below.

Hwaseomun Gate

Hwaseomun Gate is an interesting structure that has a complex entrance system.

Janganmun Gate

Janganmun Gate is another impressive looking gate. It’s in the middle of a main street like Paldalmun Gate, so it’s an impressive view to see the old fortress architecture with the modern city and cars surrounding it.

Hwahongmun Gate

Hwahongmun Gate’s unique characteristic is that it is built over a small river. I think the photos of this gate lit up at night, with reflections in the water are really nice.

Best time to visit

Suwon Hwaseong Fortress can be visited year-round although I’m not sure how enjoyable it would be to walk the walls in the winter (I’m not sure how cold nor how much potential snow there may be). Summer’s in South Korea can also get very hot and humid so arguably the best seasons to walk the walls would be Spring and Autumn. If you can, go in April when the cherry blossoms are in bloom like we did. It’ll be even more eye-catching.

For more places to visit in South Korea, check the posts below!