Koreans are very proud to tell everyone that Korea has 4 seasons. It’s technically true but in my opinion, Korea has long summers and long winters with a very short spring and fall. While golf is played year round in the lower altitudes such as the golf courses in Incheon, Pocheon, and the rest of Gyeonggi-do and down south, the mountain golf courses close for the winter.
In addition, the winter can get very cold in Korea with frozen greens so your ball just bounces (similar to hitting the cart path). It’s not really a lot of fun in my opinion to play while you’re freezing cold and although I do play a few rounds in the winter some years, it’s not really the most enjoyable for me. I have a whole set of winter golf gear such as thicker gloves, warmer shoes, heating pads, thick lining golf pants, etc. But nah, not really worth it.
So I generally play golf until early December and then transition to skiing! The ski season in Korea generally starts at the end of the November / early December and runs until late February / early March. Early March is when I start playing golf again in Korea so this combination of Golf from March-December and skiing from December-March is great!
Skiing in Korea is ok. It’s not as good as Japan (Niseko, etc.) or the big resorts in North America (Whistler, Heavenly, Aspen, Park City, Killington, etc.) or Europe. I have skied mostly in the USA and Canada and I would say that the best resorts in Korea are on par with the decent local resorts in the USA. So I would say that the best Korean resorts are on par with resorts in the west such as Boreal (near Tahoe), Steven’s Pass (Washington State), Boyne (Michigan), etc. Koreans resorts are better than the crappy resorts such as Homewood (Tahoe), Snowqualmie (Washington), Brighton (Michigan).
Korean skiing is still relatively affordable. Skiing in the USA and Canada has gone crazy with daily lift tickets exceeding $200, etc. In the USA, you pretty much need to get a season pass for $1500 or so because it’s just so cost prohibitive to go for a few days per season. In Korea, it’s still reasonable with daily lift tickets at under 100k krw (~$70).
I ski quite often in Korea so I get a season pass. A season pass in Korea is typically under 600k krw (~$450) and includes access to 5 or 6 resorts including a couple of the top resorts. In addition, an adult season pass includes a free(*) child pass so if you are a family with children it’s a great deal! So for our skiing family of 4 (2 adults, 2 kids), we have 4 season passes for about 1.2m krw (~$900).
I’m mostly a skier these days. I used to snowboard as well and I spent about 10 years only snowboarding but the last 10 years was spent just skiing. I tried to go back to the snowboard a few times but it was just way too tiring for me as I have gotten older. I was never a great snowboarder or skier and there was a time when I was snowboarding better than I was skiing but my skiing these days have overtaken my snowboarding skills. I think I’ll stick with skiing.
The best ski resorts in Korea are (in this order):
- Yongpyong. This was one of the major locations for the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games. It is the largest ski resort in Korea with one of the longest runs in Korea (Rainbow Paradise at 5.6 km (3.5 mi)). There is a nice cable car that takes you up to the top. The lines can be long on weekends and holidays though. There is a terrain park next to Mega Green but the line is usually long because this lift is very popular. Yongpyong isn’t really known for the terrain park and it’s mostly skiers. If you are an advanced skier / snowboarder, the back of the mountain where Rainbow lift is located is my favorite area to ski in Korea because the lines are always short and the runs are nice! In addition, the mogul runs at New Red is fun and the steep part of Red is nice. The left side is Gold and always a lot of fun there. Night skiing is also nice at Yongpyong. This area of pyeongchang is also very nice with many restaurants, etc. I usually stay at Bliss Hillstay which is just a big room with blankets (no beds) so easy to fit a lot of people or Yongpyong Dragon Valley Hotel which is like a regular hotel but it’s slopeside. The Ramada Hotel is in the city and a short drive.
- High1. Many will argue that High1 deserves the #1 spot over Yongpyong. There is a casino next to the ski resort. It is actually the only casino in Korea where local Koreans are allowed to gamble so there are rumors of a lot of degenerates in the area (gambling addicts, etc.). The ski runs are very nice though and the apollo and victoria runs are fun and steep if you are an advanced skier/snowboarder. There are a lot of good skiers here. The condos are old but nice and there are some pretty big ones as well (with an upper level).
- Muju. Muju is a little more out of the way if you live in Seoul. I used to go to Muju every year as a kid growing up in Korea because my uncle owned a condo timeshare there. If you live down south such as Daegu or Busan, then Muju is probably a good option for you. The longest run in Korea is called “Silk Road” and it’s even longer than Rainbow Paradise at Yongpyong. But I haven’t been to Muju in over 20 years.
After the top 3, the order goes downhill (heh) very fast. Starting #4 it’s a big distance between #3 and #4.
4. Phoenix. I went there a few years ago and it was ok but I don’t remember it being anywhere near as good as Yongpyong so you may as well drive an extra 20 min or so and go to Yongpyong. However, I believe they have a decent terrain park here so if you are into jumps and rails and things like that, Phoenix is a good option.
5. Welli Hilli. This ski resort is about 40 min from Yongpyong so it’s closer but again, probably just worth it to make the drive to Yongpyong. However, similar to Phoenix, if you are into the terrain park, it’s not a bad option.
6. Elysian Gangchon / Jisan. Both are similar in terms of quality and they are both pretty bad. But they are about an hour from Seoul so convenient for a day trip just to get your fix of skiing.
7. Alpensia. It’s near Yongpyong so there’s almost no reason to go to this resort except that Yongpyong can be crowded and Alpensia is rarely crowded. There are only like 2 lifts or something like that (and like 6 runs).
Some other ski resorts that I have not been to but heard are ok include O2 (it’s near High1 so you may as well go to High1 except for when it’s crowded), Gonjiam (near Seoul and heard it’s pretty good and the best ski resort near Seoul), and Vivaldi Park (not too far from Seoul but assuming it’s similar in quality to Alpensia and Elysian Gangchon).
As for rental, lodging, etc.? Ski / snowboard rental is available at all of these resorts. Lessons are also available. If you don’t speak Korean, most of the resorts also have foreigner instructors as well (but you should book in advance if possible). Lodging can be difficult as most resorts have timeshare condos but you need to be a timeshare member to reserve. Sometimes the rooms left over are open to the public. There are also some hotels near the ski resorts as well.
If you want to do a day trip, you can book a bus through a travel agency (maybe even klook, viator, etc.) that will take you there, equipment rental, lift ticket, etc. You can even rent ski clothing if you don’t have ski gear. There are always a lot of cute kids wearing turtles on their butts and elbows to help cushion their falls, etc.
Like most hobbies, many Koreans take skiing and fashion seriously so it’s very common to see Koreans wearing high end ski clothing from European brands such as Fusalp, Moncler, etc. Everyone wears a helmet these days and many use walkie talkies for communication. Ski goggles tend to be high end. Skis are also very nice and new.