Course 4 is Gamnaetgil at its most “greatest hits” — Haeundae Beach, the APEC summit house, a yacht harbor, and one of Busan’s most photographed bridges, all inside a single ten-kilometer walk. My friend Doyoon, still deep in marathon training after our long double-course day back in January, wanted something flatter for a recovery walk, and this one delivered exactly that.
We started near Mipo, where a large sign for the 2022 Korea Tourism Awards marks the entrance to the Blueline Park area — the green railway and beach train line that now runs along part of the old Donghae Nambu rail corridor. It felt like a fitting place to start, since this entire course threads together some of the neighborhood’s most-visited landmarks.
The Blueline Park sign near Mipo, marking the start of the walk.
Route order
Along Haeundae Beach
From Mipo the trail runs the full length of Haeundae Beach — Busan’s most famous stretch of sand, and busy even on an ordinary April weekday. We passed sand sculptors mid-project, working on something ambitious that wasn’t finished yet, and stopped at the old pine grove near the beach’s western end, a quieter pocket that most beach visitors walk straight past.
A rock inscribed with “Haeundae” in the handwriting of the Silla-dynasty scholar Choi Chi-won marks a spot locals consider the unofficial namesake of the whole neighborhood — according to the story, he passed through, fell for the view, and carved his pen name into the stone.
Nurimaru APEC House
The trail climbs slightly toward Dongbaekseom (Dongbaek Island), home to Nurimaru APEC House, built for the 2005 APEC summit and now open to visitors as a small museum and event space. We walked the loop trail around the building, past a display of participating nations’ flags, before continuing on.
Yacht harbor and the walk to Millak
From Dongbaekseom the path runs along Marine City’s promenade — past the “Movie Street” area, its stretch of star-shaped plaques — then continues to Suyeong Bay Yacht Harbor, still carrying some of the infrastructure and atmosphere from its Olympic sailing venue days in 1988. Yachts were racing the day we passed, which made for a nice mid-walk distraction.
The final stretch runs along the water toward Millak Bridge and the edge of Gwangalli, with Gwangan Bridge visible the entire way — one of Busan’s iconic views, and a satisfying finish to a walk that had already shown us most of the city’s postcard landmarks in a single morning.
Trail info at a glance
- Distance: approx. 10 km
- Walking time: 3 hours at an easy pace
- Difficulty: Easy — flat beach and promenade walking throughout
- Start: Mipo, near Haeundae Blueline Park
- Finish: Millak Bridge / Namcheon
- Highlights: Haeundae Beach, Nurimaru APEC House, Suyeong Bay Yacht Harbor, Gwangan Bridge views
Map of the route
The route at a glance
A few practical notes
This is one of the most accessible Gamnaetgil sections for visitors with limited time — nearly every part of it is reachable by subway or bus, and the whole route is flat pavement or boardwalk, doable in regular shoes. Weekends and holidays get crowded along Haeundae Beach itself, so if you want a quieter walk, go on a weekday morning like we did.
For subway routes to Haeundae and Gwangalli, see our guide to getting around Busan.
Walked on a clear late-April day, warm enough for short sleeves for the first time this year.
More walks nearby
Other walks in Gijang and the east coast on this site:
- Walking Haenuri-gil Course 2: Songjeong to Haeri-dan-gil
- Walking Haenuri-gil Course 3: From BEXCO to Jangsan and Chorok Park
- Walking Haenuri-gil Course 4: Chorok Park to Damangol Park
For the sights along this route, see our Haeundae Beach Busan Guide: Explore Korea’s Famous.