You may know that Korea’s Incheon is famous for Chinatown and possibly Wolmido Island. However, did you also know that many tourists flock to this fairy tale village in Songwol-dong?
Just a short distance away from Chinatown is a gorgeous neighbourhood known as Songwol-dong Fairy Tale Village. It is easy to recognise from afar, thanks to the bright and colourful signage.
What to see & do at Songwol-dong Fairy Tale Village
Similar to Gamcheon Cultural Village in Busan and Jaman Mural Village in Jeonju, Songwol-dong Fairy Tale Village is a concerted attempt to revitalise a dying neighbourhood.
As you may have figured out, Incheon is home to many foreigners, particularly the Chinese. This was due to the opening of Incheon Port in 1883, which encouraged many foreigners to settle down. Before long, Songwol-dong turned into a rich village.
However, young people gradually moved out into bigger cities like Seoul. This left the village in a state of stagnation. In an attempt to attract life back into the neighbourhood, the village underwent a renovation project. Buildings were painted with murals and sculptures of classic fairy tales.
If you are a huge fan of fairy tales or generally just pretty buildings, you’ll be instantly charmed by the neighbourhood.
Almost every building is painted in a bright pink shade, reminiscent of the cosmetics brand Etude. I’m not sure if that’s where they got their inspiration from, but it’s quite a sight to behold.
Frankly I don’t recognise most of the characters depicted around the area. I’m guessing this might be because they’ve gone beyond just ‘fairy tales’ and started adding in other local cartoon characters.
Do note that the slopes can be rather steep, as Songwol-dong Fairy Tale Village is built on a hill!
You can’t miss out on taking lots of photos in the village – that’s half the fun! The other half is really trying to figure out what fairy tale character you’re staring at.
Most of the buildings around the neighbourhood are occupied by businesses. There are tons of cafés and dessert places for you to take shelter from. Shops selling souvenirs and other cute knick-knacks are also plentiful.
However, there are a select few residences still scattered around the area. I’m sure they love their pretty house, but I have no idea how they deal with the noise and visitors going around everyday.
This wall art below reminded me of the one at Busan’s Gamcheon Cultural Village. I suppose they either took inspiration from each other, or were put up by the same organisation.
Some of the decorations may look a little flimsy – not sure if made of cardboard or some other material. I did think that they were very creative though! I’m assuming budget can be pretty tight for a poor and abandoned village, but they made the best out of it.
I’m not very sure which Korean fairy tale this is, but I vaguely remember it might be something related to a forbidden romance? It should be something along the lines of lovers being separated.
I’m also quite impressed that they encouraged visitors to write and leave messages. After all, such displays can be rather passive, where people just take photos and go. Instead, they’ve kindly left the visitors’ various wishes intact.
As you can tell, most of the visitors here are Koreans. There are a few smatterings of Chinese and English too!
Similar to the love locks at Namsan Tower, you can also leave behind a padlock here. It serves as a wish, much less a declaration of love haha.
Don’t have a padlock with you? Not to worry, as there are shops nearby ready to capitalise on this opportunity and sell you some locks & keys.
Of course, you can always prepare one of your own in advance, if you’re pretty sure you want to do this!
Translation: I wish that there are no wars and cheaters/scammers in this world. I wish that people can get along peacefully.
Is Songwol-dong Fairy Tale Village worth visiting?
I’ve actually been to Songwol-dong Fairy Tale Village twice. The first time was in the summer of 2017, and the second time in the winter of 2018.
The village didn’t change much during the period of time, and remains a bright & colourful sightseeing spot. I do enjoy the refreshing contrast to the other duller buildings in the area.
It is also a good break from all the red and yellow Chinese buildings in Chinatown. I have no idea why all the Chinese architecture must look that way, but it is quite overwhelming.
The groups I’ve been here with have mixed feelings about this village. Granted, cute pink buildings splashed with fairy tale characters are not everyone’s cup of tea. There’s also nothing particularly exciting to do, other than taking photos and doing some casual shopping.
I do think it’s still worth checking out though, especially if you already travelled to Incheon to visit Chinatown. Not somewhere I would stay very long for, perhaps maximum of 2 hours.
I can ensure you though, that young children will love this place!
DIRECTIONS
Address: 38 Donghwamaeul-gil, Jung-gu, Incheon
Related Posts:
- Jjajangmyeon Museum: a look into Chinese cuisine in Korea
- Korean-Chinese Cultural Center: Chinese museum in Incheon
- Lucky China (幸運大飯店): Chinese Food in Incheon
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