South Korea

Everland Theme Park

Everland, the first and largest theme park in South Korea , opened in 1976 as Yongin Farmland. In the mid-1990s, Samsung bought Yongin Farmland and it was then transformed into Everland, one of the top 10 most popular and highly-acclaimed theme park destinations around the world. In 1996, the total number of guests that visited that year reached to over 9 million people. To be more exact, as of 2006, a total of 145 million tourists have visited Everland. Yongin Everland was also the actual filming site for the Korean comedy show, A Red Bean Lady, starred by Korean actress Zhang Nala.

Everland, strategically located in the mountains about an hour away from Seoul , sprawls across 3,700 acres and contains three distinct themes: the Festival World, Caribbean Bay , and the Speedway .

Festival World has 40 theme attractions, a zoo, and seasonal festivals such as the annual floral festival. Rides you shouldn't miss are the Global Fair, Magic Land , American Adventure, Equatorial Adventure and European Adventure.

Carribbean Bay Water Park is the first of its kind in the country. A variety of fun and exciting indoor and outdoor water facilities are guaranteed for people of all ages. Some of which are the Lazy River , Sandy Pool, Kiddy Pool and the 10-story high Water Bobsled. Its most popular attraction all year round is the Wave Pool, especially during the summer season.

Speedway is also the very first of its kind in Korea . Car racers and enthusiasts will surely go crazy with Everland's racing courses and trainings on automobile culture. With an entire race course of 2.225 kilometers with an average track width of 11 meters, Speedway can accommodate up to 35,000 spectators.

Everland also has its own snow sled, golf club and botanical garden. Another cultural attraction, the Hoam Art Gallery houses about 1200 Korean art pieces portraying the traditional Korean lifestyle, along wth the museum's "Huiwon" a traditional Korean garden.

With all the fun activities happening inside Everland, visitors cannot simply finish everything in a day. It is best to plan ahead and leave early in the morning. This world-class amusement park also has their own accommodations suited for families and large groups. The Homebridge Hillside Hostel caters specifically to families of four, while the Homebridge Cabins on the other hand, can accommodate groups of 20 or more.