Gamcheon Culture Village

Gamcheon began as a refugee settlement during the Korean War, its small houses stacked in terraces up the hillside. In 2009 an arts project began painting the homes in bright colours and filling the alleys with murals and sculptures, and it is now one of Busan’s favourite sights.

Pick up a map at the information centre and follow the stamp trail through the maze of lanes, stopping at viewpoints, small galleries and the statue of the Little Prince and the fox gazing out over the rooftops.

People still live here, so keep noise down. Come in the morning for soft light and fewer crowds, then continue to Jagalchi fish market or Haeundae Beach. Busan is about two and a half hours from Seoul by KTX train.