Korea's biggest theme park: Everland

The first time I went to Everland was in 2008, five years after I first came to Korea! I’ve been a fan of Korea’s biggest theme park from that time. From that time on, we go there at least once a year. We missed a visit in 2011 though, but I went there twice this year. In late October, I enjoyed the autumn scenery on the way to the theme park. In mid-November, we had an early Christmas celebration. My husband even said that it was the best Christmas he’d ever had by far. I had to remind him that the holiday is on December 25th!
Everland is located in Yong-in. To get there, you can catch bus 5002 from Gangnam Station or bus 5700 from Jamsil station. There is also a shuttle bus that runs from Seoul City Hall. Visit the transportation page of Everland’s website for more information.
The admission fee is 40,000 won for adults but foreigners can get a 20% discount on site. Discounted tickets are as follows: adults, 32,000; teenager, 27,000 won and children and seniors, 25,000 won. When I toured a family of 14 from the Philippines last October, I told the ticket clerk that they are from the Philippines. Everyone in the group got a 20% discount. I got a 50% discount through my card. Last November, my credit card company offered the 10,000 won ticket to its cardholders. Since I got three cards from them, I only paid a total of 30,000 won for me, my husband and my son.
We didn’t spend much during our last visit. Aside from the 30,000 won entrance fee, we spent 32,000 won for our late lunch, 3,000 won for the churros, 12,000 won for the popcorn and container, 7,000 won for a souvenir, 10,000 won for photo souvenir and 12,000 won spent at Weeny Beeny. That’s just 106,000 won for a whole day of fun and memories.
Some of the most popular rides are the T-Express (the world’s steepest wooden coaster), the Amazon Express, Flume Ride and Rolling X-Train. Everland is not only just about thrilling rides. The Zootopia section is where visitors can see animals. The “Safari World” is one of the most popular attractions where visitors take the 10-minute bus ride and get close to animals roaming freely inside the secured area.
There are also lively and exciting shows. The Madagascar Live Circus is a show featuring the characters of the hit movie series. Be sure to secure a ticket (free) for the show. We didn’t have tickets but we were lucky that a stranger gave us his extra five tickets just a few minutes before the show started. There are various parades happening throughout the day.
Another favorite attraction is the “Magic Garden”. When I visited last October, they had Halloween decorations. In November, they had numerous Christmas trees! We were at the site at around 5 PM, but we went back at 7:30 for the light show. It was truly magical that we had a group hug after watching it.
We had a happy early Christmas at Everland last November. It was cold but the warmth of the Christmas carols and the fun time we had truly warm the heart.