The largest ski and snowboard resort in South Korea, Yongpyong Ski Resort is located in the country’s north-east Pyeongchang County. It is owned by the Unification Church, and in addition to its ski season from November to early April, it operates as a golfing and recreational complex throughout the year.
Yongpyong Ski Resort nestles within the Baekdudaegan Mountain Range and receives around 250 centimetres of snowfall per season, creating ideal skiing and snowboarding conditions. It sprawls over a 17 million square metre complex that includes a 45-hole golf course, swimming pool, sauna, bowling alley, tennis court, karaoke hall and fitness centre. There are 31 slopes in total, named after different colours, together with 15 different lift facilities and gondolas. It is home to South Korea’s largest ski house at Dragon Plaza which offers a hotel, condominiums and a youth hostel for guests to stay.
Yongpyong Ski Resort was one of three locations which hosted the 1999 Asian Winter Games and has since hosted World Cup slalom events and the IPC Disabled Alpine World Cup. It was also used as a filming location for the Korean Broadcasting System drama “Winter Sonata” which helped escalate the resort’s popularity with domestic tourists.
Express shuttle buses connect Yongpyong Ski Resort to Seoul from numerous locations around the capital. There are also public buses which travel from Seoul Nambu Terminal to Hoenggye village which is around a 10-minutes taxi ride from the resort.