Hallasan Hike: Summit Trails, Reservations and Cut-off Times

Distances and times are from Hallasan National Park's trail guide. The three non-summit trails end at the South Wall junction below the crater.

Which trails reach the summit of Hallasan?

Only Seongpanak and Gwaneumsa. They are the two routes to Baengnokdam, the crater at the top of the mountain, which the park gives as 1,950m.

Seongpanak climbs the east side. At 9.6km it is the longest trail on the mountain, and the park describes it as mostly gentle until the final stretch above Jindallaebat shelter. The round trip is 19.2km, about 9 hours.

Gwaneumsa climbs the north side, 8.7km through Tamna Valley and past Samgakbong shelter. It is steeper and has more height to gain, and the park puts a round trip at about 10 hours. Its upper section reopened on 24 September 2026 after repairs to rockfall barriers and decking.

Our pick for a first ascent is up Seongpanak and down Gwaneumsa. The park lets you descend a different trail on the same booking: you book the trail you start on.

Which trails do not reach the summit?

Eorimok, Yeongsil and Donnaeko. They climb high, but none reaches the crater, and none needs a booking.

Eorimok and Yeongsil meet at Witse-oreum shelter, about 1,700m, then continue along the South Wall loop to the South Wall junction. Yeongsil is the shortest way above the tree line: the park gives about 1½ hours from the Yeongsil rest area to Witse-oreum. Donnaeko climbs 7km from the Seogwipo side to the same junction and has no water sources on the way.

The park itself recommends Eorimok and Yeongsil to anyone without recent hiking experience, because the air thins towards the summit. They make a full, less rushed day without a booking or a summit deadline.

How do you book a Hallasan summit trail?

Online, on the Hallasan reservation system at visithalla.jeju.go.kr, which has an English version. Bookings for a month open at 9am on the first working day of the month before. October dates have been open since September; November dates open at 9am on Monday 2 November 2026.

• Daily limit: 1,000 hikers on Seongpanak and 500 on Gwaneumsa, according to Jeju Province as reported by Kyunghyang Shinmun and News1.
• Group size: one booking covers up to four people.
• Login: Kakao, Naver, phone (SMS) or email verification. Email is the practical option without a Korean number.
• QR codes: the system sends an entry and exit QR code to each hiker's phone number or email. Companions' contacts and an emergency contact go into the booking.

A booking left without hikers' details stays "incomplete" and is cancelled automatically after a day. There is no waiting list, so if a date is full, check back for cancellations.

The reservation only covers the upper section. Since May 2025 anyone can walk Seongpanak as far as Jindallaebat, and Gwaneumsa as far as Samgakbong, without one.

What is the no-show penalty?

Three months without bookings for the first no-show, a year for the second. The park counts a booking as a no-show when nobody scans the QR code and it is not cancelled before the booked time slot ends.

Cancel on the reservation site under "Reservation inquiry", logging in the same way you booked: a booking made with email verification only shows up under email verification. If you cancel for part of a group, do it before the slot ends too.

What are the cut-off times in October?

11:30am at the upper checkpoint, and 1:30pm at the summit. October is in the park's winter schedule, which runs from October to March, so the times are an hour earlier than in September.

From Hallasan National Park's permitted hiking hours.

Work backwards from the checkpoint. Jindallaebat is 7.3km and about 3 hours up Seongpanak, so an October hiker who is not at the trailhead by about 8:30am will be turned back halfway. Aim to start closer to 7am.

The non-summit trails have their own cut-offs. From October to March the Eorimok and Yeongsil entrances close at noon, the path from Witse-oreum towards the South Wall closes at 1pm, and you must leave Witse-oreum by 3pm. The Donnaeko entrance closes at 10am.

How do you get to each trailhead by bus from Jeju City?

All five trailheads are on the bus network, which matters because the park asks hikers to use public transport and the Seongpanak car park often fills before the trail opens.

Seongpanak: bus 281 from Jeju Bus Terminal towards Seogwipo, about 45 minutes. The park lists the first bus at 6am and one every 10 to 14 minutes. Bus 181 from Jeju International Airport takes about 35 minutes.

Gwaneumsa: no bus goes direct. Take bus 281 for about 28 minutes to Sancheondan, then change at the Korea Polytechnic stop to bus 475 for 7 minutes. Bus 475 runs from 6:20am to 7:45pm, every 45 to 90 minutes, which makes it the awkward end of a Seongpanak-to-Gwaneumsa traverse.

Eorimok and Yeongsil: bus 240 from Jeju Bus Terminal. On the Jeju Bus Information System timetable the 6:30am bus reaches Eorimok at 7:07am and the Yeongsil office at 7:22am; that first departure does not run from November to March. From the Eorimok stop it is a 15-minute walk to the trailhead. From the Yeongsil office it is 2.5km up the road to the rest area where the trail starts, about 45 minutes on foot.

Bus 240 runs roughly hourly. In October the last buses back towards Jeju City pass Yeongsil at 7:16pm and Eorimok at 7:33pm. From November to March the two latest runs are dropped, and the last bus passes Eorimok at 5:43pm.

Related guideJeju Without a Car: What the Island Still Gives YouJeju is a ring and its sights sit around the edge, so going car-free is not a smaller version of the same trip. It is a different one. Here is what it contains.

What should you carry?

Everything, because there are no shops on the trails. The park lists crampons, plenty of water, rain gear, snacks and basic hiking kit, plus emergency food such as sweets, chocolate and salt and a spare layer, because the weather on the mountain changes fast.

• Food: single-use lunch boxes are banned. The park allows gimbap and hamburgers.
• Banned: alcohol, smoking and anything that makes fire, with fines under the Natural Parks Act.
• Rubbish: take all of it back down.
• Water: carry extra on Donnaeko, which has no springs.

The park also advises against hiking the summit trails alone, because exhaustion on the long descent is a common cause of accidents.

When is Hallasan closed?

Whenever the Korea Meteorological Administration issues an advisory or warning for heavy rain, typhoon or heavy snow. The park then closes some or all trails, and it messages everyone with a booking.

Check the Hallasan National Park website on the morning of your hike. If a closure message arrives, cancel the booking before its time slot ends, so the closure does not count as a no-show, then look for another date.

Is October a good time to climb Hallasan?

Yes, if you plan for the shorter days. October is the start of the winter cut-off schedule, so the window to reach the summit closes at 11:30am, an hour earlier than in September.

The colour comes late on Jeju. Weatheri's 2026 forecast, published by the Korea Tourism Organization, puts first colour on Hallasan around 31 October and peak colour around 13 November, the last of Korea's major mountains.

Related guideAutumn Leaves in Korea 2026: Peak Dates and Where to GoThe 2026 foliage forecast runs late: Seoraksan peaks around 25 October, Seoul's Bukhansan around 4 November and Jeju's Hallasan around 13 November.

Where should you stay for an early start?

Jeju City, near the bus terminal. Bus 281 to Seongpanak and bus 240 to Eorimok and Yeongsil both start there, and a 7am start on the trail means catching one of the first buses. For a longer stay, where to stay in Jeju weighs Jeju City against the south and east coasts.

A car-free trip that also covers the east coast can keep the same base: a coach tour handles the far side of the island in a day, which leaves the bus routes for the mountain.

For flights, the UNESCO listing and when to go, see the Jeju travel guide.