Best markets in Jeju — Top +13 best Jeju traditional markets & Jeju 5 day markets

Not only the beautiful sea, the lovely Teddy Bear museum, the unique love park, or tasty black pork specialty only found here, etc., the traditional markets in Jeju are also impressive places that you must definitely visit. So, are you looking for best markets in Jeju (Jeju market) for hanging out and tasting delectable foods, learning traditional culture as well as buy souvenirs on Jeju Island? Let’s check out our suggested top +13 Jeju traditional markets (traditional market Jeju) including Jeju five day market (Jeju traditional 5 day market, Jeju five day folk market) and night market in Jeju below!

Best markets in Jeju: Overview of Jeju traditional markets and Jeju five day folk market (Jeju traditional 5 day market)

The vibrant and bustling Jeju traditional markets hold a special place in the island’s culture. If you are curious about the lives of the locals, visit any of the traditional markets found throughout Jeju island. They are the place where Jeju’s past and present intersect. You’ll find locals selling their fresh vegetables, crops, and seafood, which will captivate anyone with the flavor and scenery of Jeju.

One of the most interesting ways to learn about the lifestyle and culture of the native is to visit the traditional markets. On Jeju Island, those markets have a very important place in the hearts of residents here. Most markets last only five days called Jeju five day market (Jeju traditional 5 day market, Jeju five day folk market) – a cultural characteristic rooted in a long history. Today, these markets are an attraction for people of all ages from young to old to visit and shop. In today’s post, let’s take a look at some of the most unique markets on this beautiful Jeju island with us.

Jeju has many five-day markets (Jeju traditional 5 day market), as the name suggests it is held every five days. As their dates change, many sellers go from market to market in the area. Historically, this change was an important way to pass information across the region. Today, the bustling and vibrant markets are still visited by locals from young to old, making it one of the tourist spots in Jeju Island that visitors are eager to try out specialty street foods.

Minsok (Jeju traditional 5 day market)

Address: 1204-1 Doduil-dong, Jeju-do Jeju-si
Hours: 6AM–8PM on the 2nd, 7th, 12th, 17th, 22nd, and 27th of every month
Phone: +82-64-743-5985
Url: jeju5.market.jeju.kr

On the island of Jeju, Minsok is the largest market established in 1905 and is located at 26 Oiljangseo-gil, Jeju-si, Jeju-do, South Korea. This location is extremely convenient for you to move to many other tourist attractions such as Yongduam Rock, Halla Arboretum and Iho Tewoo beach.

Here, visitors have the opportunity to visit, shop and eat at more than 1,000 stalls across the market with a variety of goods on an area of ​​more than 40,000 square meters. To participate in the Minsok market sessions, you have to “watch the calendar” and come on the 2nd, 7th, 12th, 17th, 22nd, and 27th of every month.

Various items in Minsok market from agricultural products grown on the island, varieties of plants, to livestock. Products can be mentioned such as garlic, hwanggeumhyang tangerines, tomatoes, vegetables,… And pets include quick-witted parrots, cute rabbits or guinea pigs. In addition, if you pay close attention, you will see stalls with no goods of any kind, those fortune tellers! Similar to other places, people here are also extremely curious about their future and destiny. Therefore, the form of fortune telling at the market is common in Minsok.

Moreover, Minsok market is also one of the places to bring extremely delectable street food. Just seeing from afar, you can already hear the aroma of these dishes. Here, do not forget to try the traditional rice snack made from rice called Ppeongtwigi (Popped rice). The making method is similar to Vietnamese scalds because they also use a blasting machine with high heat and high pressure. Every once in a while, you hear a loud, thunderous explosion that resounds throughout the area. That’s when people just made a new batch of snow-white puffed rice. You’ll also smell a familiar burn scent. Try coming here to feel if this dish has the same taste as our childhood dish!?

The black pork dishes at Minsok bring you many interesting experiences about the lifestyle and culture of the local people. Did you know that: during difficult times, Koreans in Jeju can only enjoy the delicious taste of meat on special occasions? However, when life has improved, this source of the ingredient is no longer so luxurious. You absolutely have the opportunity to enjoy the traditional dishes made from specialty black pork here in the crowded restaurants. The most special dishes can be mentioned such as: Momguk seaweed pork soup, gogiguksu pork noodles, sundae gukbap pork sausage soup (Korean Blood Sausage Soup)…

Besides these remarkable dishes, try the Bomal Kalguksu (Noodle Soup with Top Shells). To be able to harvest this snail, female divers known as Jeju’s lovely mermaid have to dive tens of meters deep into the sea floor. Therefore, the food has a very high value.

You can find everything a local market has to offer here, from locally grown produce like garlic and hwanggeum hyang (a tangerine found only on Jeju Island), to crops, livestock and even… fortune tellers. It’s a good place to try street food but don’t go too late as the market closes at 8pm and explore many stalls.

One of the things that makes this market different from others on Jeju Island is Halmang Jangteo – Grandma’s market. The old women selling goods over the age of 65 in Minsok will not have to pay space fees for their stalls. Therefore, you will have many opportunities to meet, buy and chat with gentle and healthy old women.

Seogwipo Rural Five-Day Market (Seogwipo Hyangto Five-Day Market)

Address: 142 Topyeongseo-ro11beon-gil, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do, South Korea
Open days: 4th, 9th, 14th, 19th, 24th, and 29th of every month!
Phone: (+82) 064-763-0965
Url: https://blog.naver.com/sgpmarket7

This market is located in the new center of Seogwipo city. Like other Jeju five day folk markets, you can expect lots of street food and fun stuff. But what sets Hyangto Market apart from others is its emphasis on culture, stalls with a traditional atmosphere, and frequent musical performances.

Seogwipo Hyangto Market is located in Seogwipo art space at 142 Topyeongseo-ro11beon-gil, Jeju-do Seogwipo-si. Come to this fair on the 4th, 9th, 14th, 19th, 24th, and 29th of every month!

Similar to the Jeju traditional five-day markets on the island, this is a gathering place for many products grown on the island. Therefore, you will have the opportunity to visit and shop for the freshest ingredients, enjoy the culinary flavors as well as interesting items. This is a great opportunity for you to learn about local produce as well as how people exchange, trading goods.

In particular, one of the things that makes Seogwipo Hyangto stand out more is the way the people here keep their traditional culture. The stalls here are designed and display like what people have done in history. You will have a chance to see the traditional blacksmith shops here. Stop for a moment to discover the hard and delicate work of the blacksmith: The fiery embers are burning evenly to heat the red hot steel. The strong and powerful worker will use a hammer and ax to forge farm tools that are used every day. Next to them were finished works that were sold like picks and sickles.

Going deep inside the market, you will see the Teumeong Jangteo flea market bustling with people with a series of savory dishes. That market is extremely famous for specialties made from the region’s black pork and horse meat. If you’re lucky, you can also enjoy fun music here. Some bands will often perform live music right on the market premises. In the bustling atmosphere of buyers, sellers, and musicians will play cheerful and loving music songs. Besides the savory dishes, the sweet dishes at Seogwipo also make it hard for diners to ignore. You should try a piece of traditional cake with bold flavors from the island like Chapssal doughnut (Sweet, chewy, doughnut balls filled with sweet red beans) or red bean fish cake. The prices of food in Seowigpo are extremely reasonable – you only have to pay 5,000 won to enjoy a bowl of gukbap soup serve with rice to firm your stomach. Therefore, do not forget to enjoy this unique taste when you visit this place.

Seomun Five-Day Market (Jeju traditional markets)

Address: 135-9 Yongdamil-dong, Cheju, Jeju-do, South Korea
Phone: +82-64-758-8387
Hours: 9AM-8PM

Just a 15-minute walk or a 5-minute drive from Dongmun Market, Seomun Market is lively 365 days a year. It’s called a ‘meat market’. There are restaurants/butchers where you can buy meat and cook it on the spot. This is the largest meat market on Jeju Island. It is bustling with people of all ages, visitors wanting to try a wide variety of meats.

This place used to be one of the busiest places for tourists in the 1960s. During that time, there was a bus line that went directly to this area so it was very easy to get around. However, after the bus route was moved to another place, the number of visitors here has decreased significantly. There have been many discussions from locals to find a way to revive this market in the 1990s. After many efforts, this market has been renovated and attracts a large number of tourists again.

Seomun is a shopping spot with a wide variety of items from meat, vegetables, clothes and souvenirs. One of the main attractions at the market is the fresh beef and pork. Walking around the stalls, you will find many fresh meat shops (butchers). If you have come here, do not forget to try Jeju black pork – a specialty dish that only this island has. The chunks of meat sold here are processed on the same day, so they keep their original freshness. You will see every fiber of red meat mixed with white fat like beautiful marbles.

Not only are the pieces of fresh meat, the cooked dishes made from this ingredient also make everyone ecstatic. You can choose to enjoy barbecue right at the market with open space. Each piece of meat will be cut into square pieces, skewered with lots of vegetables and grilled on a charcoal grill. Just smelling the smell of the food, you will not be able to control your cravings. In addition, you can also buy fresh meat from butchers and prepare it in the restaurants nearby. For this way, you will be able to cook the best pieces of meat to your liking with standard Korean grilling tools. Remember to ask the vendor to cut the meat into bite-sized pieces before bringing it to the restaurant to grill. Thanks to that, when you come to the restaurant, you will not have to wait too long to enjoy the delicious taste.

You can visit this Jeju traditional market every day as opposed to others five day markets. They sell pork, beef and fruit. There are many shops and the 1st floor is mostly filled with pettitoes restaurants. On the 2nd floor, there are clothing stores selling curtains, evening clothes, hanbok (Korean traditional costumes) lined up neatly with cheap prices to choose from.

Sehwa Folk Five-Day Market (Jeju 5 day market)

Address: 1500-5 Sehwa-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju-si, Jeju-do, South Korea
Days open : 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th, 30th days of every month

If the Jeju five-day markets we introduced above were too popular with all visitors, on the contrary, Sehwa Folk Five-Day Market is usually a destination only for locals. Therefore, this place is a suitable place for those who love to learn and enjoy the pure traditional space and atmosphere. Please find Sehwa at 1500-5 Sehwa-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju-do Jeju-si on the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th, 30th of each month.

Sehwa Folk Five-Day Market is the largest market in the eastern part of Jeju Island. Although it is the largest one in the area, in fact, the area of ​​this place is quite small and somewhat simpler than other markets on the island. The atmosphere that Sehwa brings to you is a friendly and simple look like the people here.

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