Boriam Temple

I absolutely loved my visit there. I went with a Korean friend who was able to explain some of the cultural elements. I strongly recommend to queue with the car (we waited for about 15min)in the first parking lot that is by the lake in order to access the road that goes further up to the upper parking lot. If you park in the first one you’ll have to add an extra hour of hiking on top on the 15-20 min it takes from the 2nd parking (where the ticket booth is) to the temple. If you don’t know there’s a little house with an old lady cooking a few dish and has instant ramens you can eat with an amazing view. It’s about a 10-15min walk from the temple, follow the sign “금산산장” and you should find it You might also see some of the few cats that are up there, although they can get a little feisty so I wouldn’t recommend giving them too much food !

What a beautiful view!!! I was positively surprised how beautiful it was. We visited in december, so it was rather quiet (less people). I would recommend to arrive here rather earlier than later, as one has to wait to go from #1 parking place to #2 parking place if there are many cars in #2 parking place. During winter, if it snows, there are chances that they close the trail while they are cleaning up the snow. (It happened to us)

Because of time, I opted for the views from the temple rather than the peak and have no regrets. Quietly shuffling around for shots as people bowed at the shrine was interesting. There's a fee to go inside the temple, but as a tourist, you can see plenty from the outside without kicking your shoes off and going in. The souvenir shop was a bit picked over and dusty, so I didn't feel compelled to get snacks or gifts from there.

Great hike to the top. Very peaceful but if you have been to other temples around Korea this looks pretty similar. The view of Namhae and rock formations however is beautiful. Climb a bit more to the top to the peak for a better view. Great of you want some mediation time to yourself as well. Need to buy tickets to park your car and separately for the hike up the temple and park

Wonderful views of the surrounding landscape. Be mindful of the weather as fog will hamper the views, though. After taking a bus to the main parking area, you'll still have lots of steep uphill (and downhill) walking left to get to the temple - about 1km. Once you arrive at the temple there's several hundred stairs you'll need to navigate as well. Bring appropriate footwear!