Danyang
Understand
The modern town of Danyang dates only to 1986, as most of the old city was submerged beneath the waters of the artificial Chungju Lake. Throughout town, you'll see statues, pictures and even lampposts of a guy with huge eyebrows, holding hands with a lady. This is Ondal, a jester in the imperial court, who managed to break through Korea's strict caste system to marry the princess Pyeonggang and become a respected general.
Tourist office
The tourist information office is rather inconveniently located on the far side of the red bridge from the bus terminal. Some English is spoken, and you can pick up a handy town map from here.Get in
By plane
The sizeable international airport at Cheongju is about 30km away by road.By train
Danyang is on the eastern Jungang line from Seoul's Cheongnyangni station through Wonju to Andong. There are mugunghwa services every hour or two (3:15, ₩10,000), and two saemaeul expresses daily (2:45, ₩14,000). The train station is 3 km outside Danyang, but you can take a bus from the stop just outside the station (₩1,000) or a taxi (around ₩5,000).By bus
Danyang's clean and modern bus station, on the northern side of town, has hourly express services to Seoul's Express Bus Terminal (2:30, ₩14,000) and intercity services to Dong-Seoul terminal (over 3 hours). Most buses from Seoul continue onward to Guinsa (30 minutes, ₩2,600). There are also hourly services to Chungju (1:30, ₩6,200) and Jecheon (1 hour), and a few departures daily to Busan and Daejeon.By boat
In season, you can take a very scenic cruise across Chungju Lake to Chungju (2 hours, ₩18,000). The ferry terminal is on the riverside, a few blocks south of the bus terminal.Get around
See
Gosu CaveOne of Korea's most famous caves, 1.7km of twisting, turning limestone caverns have been outfitted with metal walkways and subdued lighting. It's quite a remarkable sight, but claustrophobes and people in need of a diet might want to skip it as some tunnels are quite narrow.
Cheondong CaveThis cave has many ups and downs along with twisty narrow passages. It is perfect for nimble athletic folk. There are some excellent stalactites, stalagmites, fins, and soda straws to be seen.
Ondal FortressThis complex houses the reconstruction of an old fortress and a limestone cave. The admission ticket gets you into both areas. The fortress has dozens of buildings to walk around and through. For an extra fee, you can dress up in traditional formal clothing and have your picture taken. The cave takes about thirty minutes to tour.
Stone Gate of DanyangThis scenic arch is located near the river. There is a large tourist parking and rest area nearby, with plenty of shops for food and drink.
Do
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phone: +82 43-423-4123Paragliding is what this place does, and they do it well. If you look east from town, you can see an observatory on the hilltop. This shop will take you up there and do tandem jump, so it's perfect for people who want to try paragliding but have never done so before. Little English is spoken, but the people leading the jumps all know the important expressions for safely getting you off the ground and landing at the end.
Buy
Eat
YeongyangilbeongaThe speciality here is yeongyangtang dog soup, but the chueotang minced fish soup with potatoes, mushrooms and rice cake is also quite tasty. No English menu.
Jeonwon HwagwanKorean barbeque, offering the full range of beef and pork cuts and some pretty tasty cold noodles (naengmyon) to go with them. Some English and Russian spoken.
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Onnuri
phone: +82 43-423-3311This restaurant serves mostly vegetarian and spice fare. The set menus include a great variety of vegetable dishes, tons of garlic cooked in various ways, and a few meat dishes. Some staff members speak excellent English and can explain details of the food, though no English menu is available.
Drink
Sleep
Sky MotelDon't be put off by the dark hallways, the rooms are some of the nicest and cleanest around. The "family" part means that there's no porn on the TV, but you get a small, fully-equipped kitchen instead. Located in the tall, modern-looking building a block south from the bus terminal, with the entrance on the third floor.
Napoli MotelRun by the owners of Sky Motel.
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phone: +82 43-421-9911Recent and clean Motel with fun room design. Enter through the parking, there are rooms with view on the river and the bridge.
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phone: +82 43-421-5600This is marketed as a hostel, but it should also be thought of as a clean, fairly new, no-frills hotel. Rooms are sparsely furnished, but on the other hand everything is in working order. The staff are friendly, and there's a nice view of the bridge from room windows.