Cheomseongdae Observatory
첨성대
Small, free and always open. It takes ten minutes, so plan it as the link between Daereungwon and Donggung rather than a destination of its own.
Language
Place information
- Korean name
- 첨성대
- Address
- 839-1 Inwang-dong, Gyeongju-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do
- Getting there
- Bus Bus 10 / 11 · Wolseong-dong Community Centre stop (월성동주민센터, ID 01-280, Bus 10 and 11)
- Opening hours
- Otherwise 09:00–22:00 Winter 09:00–21:00
- Hours notes
- Open every day of the year. The operator writes the shorter closing time as 동절기 ("the winter season") and does not name the months it covers, so the winter row here says exactly what the source says and no more.
- Time needed
- 30 min
- Admission
- Free
- Operated by
- Gyeongju City
Prices
| Admission | FreeFree. There is no dedicated car park; the Cheonmachong street parking or the free Jjoksaem temporary lot is used instead. |
|---|
Source: Gyeongju Culture & Tourism — historic-site admission table ·
History
Gyeongju City puts Cheomseongdae's construction in the reign of Queen Seondeok, Silla's twenty-seventh ruler, and describes it as the oldest astronomical observatory in East Asia.
Gyeongju Culture & Tourism — Cheomseongdae hours and admission ·
Nearby
Gyeongju Wonjo Kongguk
A sixty-year-old shop near the front gate of Daereungwon, serving warm soybean soup topped with black sesame, honey and a glutinous-rice doughnut.
Woljeonggyo Bridge
Free and open late, which makes it the easiest night stop in Gyeongju. The exhibition inside the gate towers covers the restoration itself.
Daereungwon Tomb Complex
Walking the grounds is free; only Cheonmachong, the one mound you can go inside, charges. Ticketing closes at 21:30, so an evening walk is a real option.
Donggung Palace and Wolji Pond
The best-known night view in Gyeongju, and the only one of the central sites that charges. The city warns that arriving near the 21:30 ticket cut-off may not get you in.
Frequently asked questions
Can you go inside Cheomseongdae?
No. It is viewed from outside. The shaft is hollow above the south-east window and packed with rubble below it, but there is no public access.
Is it worth seeing at night?
The site stays open to 22:00 and the tower is lit, so yes if you are already doing the Donggung and Woljeonggyo night walk. The stonework detail, though, only reads in daylight.
Stories about this place
- Gyeongju in a Day on Foot: Daereungwon to Woljeonggyo
A walking day that starts at the Daereungwon tomb park, crosses to Gyeongju National Museum and Donggung and Wolji, and ends at the lit Woljeonggyo bridge. The seven stops add up to 5.1 km in a straight line, and one time decides the whole order: the museum stops admitting at 17:30.
- Five Places to Visit Around Hwangnidan-gil, Gyeongju: Daereungwon, Cheomseongdae, Donggung and Wolji, Woljeonggyo
Five sites a few minutes' walk from Hwangnidan-gil. All five stay open into the night, and only the two that sell tickets have a deadline.
Nearby Food
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- The Jinju Namgang Lantern Festival
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Where these facts come from
- Gyeongju Culture & Tourism — Cheomseongdae hours and admission ·
- Gyeongju Culture & Tourism — historic-site admission table ·
- Korea Heritage Service — heritage record ·
- Gyeongju Culture and Tourism — the 「Bus 10 버스타GO」 route guide. It gives Bus 10's first departure at 06:00 and last at 21:40 from the express/intercity bus terminal, a headway of about 20 minutes, and 35–45 minutes from the terminal to Bulguksa, the turning point, when the bus does not stop in between. For each attraction it publishes the name of the stop to get off at, the stop's ID and the walk from it. Bus 11 runs the same route in the opposite direction, and Bus 10-1 turns back at Gyeongju World rather than reaching Bulguksa. A city bus fare is 1,300 won for an adult, 1,000 for a youth and 700 for a child, 50 won less with a transit card; one transfer is allowed within 30 minutes of alighting and only onto a different route. ·