Cheonan-Asan

Of Interest: access to Chungnam Province (nothing near station)

Lodging: no

Tourist Office: no

ATM: There is an ATM in the station, but it may not take international cards. There is no bank within walking distance.

The Cheonan-Asan station was originally built solely as a KTX station. Since then, Asan Station was also built crossing under the KTX station. Asan Station currently hosts commuter trains from Seoul, line 1 of the Seoul subway, and trains of the Janghang line.

There is nothing in the area, although apartments are being built. The edge of the city of Cheonan is about thirty minutes walk away. Bus service is not very good to either Cheonan or Onyang-oncheon (the main urban area in Asan), the buses are take to long to get anywhere. It is best to change to another train. KTX ridership increased after Asan Station was built, making it possible to get here by train.

KTX trains from both lines stop here. It takes around forty minutes to get to Seoul or Yongsan Stations, twenty minutes to get to Daejeon or Seodaejeon Stations, fifty minutes to get to Dong-Daegu, and two hours and fifteen minutes to get to Busan. If you are going to the southeast, it takes an hour and fifteen minutes to get to Iksan, two and fifteen minutes to get to Gwangju, and two and a half hours to get to Mokpo. Trains along the Seoul-Busan line run frequently, but the Yongsan-Gwangju/Mokpo line only arrives about once every two hours.

Saemaeul and Mugungwha trains take five minutes to get to Cheonan, twenty-five minutes to get to Pyeongtaek, forty-five minutes to get to Suwon, and an hour and fifteen minutes to arrive in Yongsan. Going east, the Janghang line serves the towns of Yesan (thirty minutes), Hongseong (one hour), Daecheon (ninety minutes), Seocheon (two hours), and Gunsan (three hours).

Line 1 of the Seoul Metro continues east through Onyang-oncheon to end at Sinchang which serves SoonCheonHyang University. In the other direction, most trains go through central Seoul before ending at Cheongnyangni. The metro route follows the regular train route from Cheonan to Seoul Station, but with a lot more stops.

Okcheon

Of Interest: Fairly typical small Korean town

Lodging: no

Tourist Office: no

Nearest ATM: go left, then right to get to downtown

Okcheon is part suburb of Daejeon, part small town in North Chungcheon. It is twelve minutes from Daejeon Station by train, half an hour by local bus.

If this was a big city, I would say the station is downtown. However, because the place is so small, and it lacks big, straight roads, I have to say that Okcheon Station is more on the edge of town. To get to downtown, walk left than right for about fifteen minutes. It is not far, it is just not very clear how to get there.

At least two small rivers or streams run through town, and both have paths along their banks.

If you are interested in going into the surrounding mountains (hills), take the 607 bus. This a Daejeon city bus. It passes by a couple of trail heads. Look for signs and stop where hikers get on/off.

Nonsan

Lodging: motels

Tourist Office: No

Of Interest: downtown Nonsan, large covered market

It is surprising how quiet Nonsan is considering that it is so near Daejeon. The main attraction is a multi street covered market that covers downtown. There are few chain stores in the town, probably because the market sells everything.

The motels don't look great, but they are right by the train station.

Onyang-oncheon (Asan)

Lodging: Yes, walk to the left when leaving the station

Tourist Office: Yes, in the square in front of the station

Of Interest: Multiple spas based around the local hot springs, City Tour (really county tour, on weekends)

ATM: To get to the nearest station, walk straight out from the station

Computer in station: No

Oncheon is Korean for hot springs. Onyang oncheon is one of the more famous hot springs areas in Korea. It is also one of the hottest. The local hotels in the area all have hot springs in their basements. There is also a famous sauna near the train station. The train station and the hot springs are at the edges of Onyang's small downtown. There is a pedestrian area that starts one block north of the station.

The tourist office is in the plaza to the right of the train station. A tour of the Asan area leaves from this plaza on Saturday and Sunday mornings. The most significant stops are at the local folk museum and a confucian shrine which is partly dedicated to Yi Sun Shin, an admiral who is famous for repeatedly defeating the Japanese when they attempted to invade Korea between 1592 and 1598. He grew up in Asan. There are several monuments dedicated to him in the area as well as a yearly festival.

Onyang-Oncheon is on the Janghang Line that runs south from Seoul and then curves west at Cheonan to run through South Chungcheong Province to the coast then south to Gunsan, then east again to Iksan where it turns north to Daejeon (Seodaejeon Station). The line almost makes a circle around the Geum River. If you are going to Iksan or Daejeon, it is quicker to go to Cheonan-Asan (KTX) or Cheonan Stations (Saemaueul and Mugungwha) and change trains. Cheonan is fifteen minutes away, Pyeongtaek half an hour, and Suwon forty-five minutes. This trains stops at two locations within Seoul, Yeongdeungpo (an hour and fifteen minutes) and Yongsan (an hour and a half). These are most of the stops on this train. Korail assumes that people will take the metro within cities in Gyeonggi-do.

Going away from Seoul, Yesan is fifteen minutes away. From here there start to be significant differences between the time by mugungwha and samaeul as the mugunghwa stops at some of the smaller locations that are served by the metro closer to Seoul. Hongseong is half an hour by saemeul and forty-five minutes by mugunghwa. Trains to Daecheon take an hour to an hour an a half to get to that coastal town. Janghang used to be the end of the Janghang line, and it takes between an hour and a half and two hours to get there. Add fifteen minutes to that time to get to Gunsan.

Onyang-Oncheon is also on line 1 of the Seoul Metro. This line runs alongside the Janghang line from here to Yongsan Station. Sinchang, one stop away, is the end of the line and the location of Soon Chun Hyang University. (I used to work for them.)

Jochiwon

Of Interest: Freight yard, downtown Jochiwon

Lodging: motels

Tourist office: none

Jochiwon is a little town that grew up around the convergence of the rail lines connecting Seoul and the rest of the country with the lines that connect Daejeon with Chungcheongbuk-do and the mountains of Gangwon-do. It is a typical Korean small town with a lot of lodging right next to the train station. Overall it feels like an industrialized area.

You can take buses that go out into the countryside and to Gongju from the bus stop across the street from the station.

Besides being on both the Seoul-Busan and Yongsan-Gwangju/Mokpo main lines, trains from here go up into North Chungcheong Province. The three stops that serve suburban Cheongju are from ten to twenty minutes away. Jecheon, where you can change to trains Gangwon and Gyeongsang Provinces, is a little more than an hour and a half away along an attractive route near many mountains. There is good hiking from some of the stations on this route.

If you are going toward some of the more urban parts of Korea, Seoul is about an hour and a half away while you can reach Daejeon in about thirty minutes. Go to Daejeon Station to transfer to the Busan KTX and to Seodaejeon Station to transfer to the southwest KTX. Saemaeul and Mugungwha trains to southern Korea are cheaper, but they are also slower.

The three stops that

Cheonan

Of interest: station square, old downtown

Lodging: Hotel on station plaza

Tourist Office: Yes

Computers in the station: yes, but may be hard to find

Cheonan is a city of about 500,000 people. It is the largest city in Chungnam. It is near Gyeonggi Province on the major transportation routes connecting Seoul with the rest of the country. Trains for Chungnam Province (Janghang line) branch of from the main Seoul-Busan line here. This makes the station a little confusing. There are actually two stations in the building, the main one and the one that serves the Janghang line and the subway. So if you can't find your train, go into the hallway and look for the other station. Do not leave the station.

Like many Korean cities, Cheonan has an old and a new downtown. The new downtown is located near the bus station. The old downtown is just southeast of the train station. Explore far enough, and you will run into a traditional market.

There are large public spaces on both sides of the train station. The tourist office is located in the one that flanks the main station entrance. There are sometimes musical performances in this area. I think this is exit 1, and it exits from the east of the station.

Note: There is a store on station square that advertises international goods that it does not sell. The original store was sold and the new owners never took down the old signs.

Daejeon

Of interest: old downtown, traditional food and clothing market, art cinema, city tour

Lodging: Motel

Tourist office: Yes, a good one. There is also an international center across the street.

In Station Computers: Yes

Nearest Int'l ATM: In the underground subway station

Daejeon Station is the main train station for Daejeon. It also has the main tourist information office for Daejeon. This is unusual because few train stations have tourist info offices anymore. The people working here are a good source of information about Daejeon AND Seoul. Note that while the maps and pamphlets on local attractions are in multiple languages, those for Seoul are only in Korean. However, it may be worth stopping here before starting a trip to Seoul because there is NO tourist office at Seoul Station. They are inside. If you leave with the crowds when you arrive in Daejeon, you have to walk back into the train station. The tourist office is on the second floor, the same floor as ticket purchases.

Trains from Daejeon Station run southeast to Daegu and Busan, north to Seoul Station, and into Chungcheongbuk-do. KTX trains run along the Seoul-Busan route. Seoul is about an hour away to the north. To the south Daegu is also about an hour away, while Busan is two hours, all by KTX. Saemaeul and Mugungwha trains take about twice that long, but they are also half as much. There are also five Mugungwha trains a day that run to the mountains. (Trains running southwest leave from Seodaejeon Station.) Cheongju Station, near the capital of Chungcheongbuk-do, is 37 minutes away to the northwest. The line ends at Jecheon, two and a half hours away. At that point travelers can transfer to two other mountain lines.

Daejeon Station is also the name for a subway station which runs underneath the train station.

Daejeon Station is in old downtown. The station plaza is sometimes the location for citizen sponsored events. For the downtown food market, turn to your left when you leave the train station. It starts at the edge of the parking lot.

To get to the international center or the art cinema, go into the subway station to cross the street. There is an underground shopping center. Walk into this. The first set of stairs to your left will take you up to the international center. Keep walking straight away from the train station and shortly you will see some movie posters and flyers. The art cinema is on the third floor. Their website is http://cafe.naver.com/artcinema (Korean). There is also a more conventional multiplex near the station.

There are some good traditional Korean restaurants a five to ten minute walk from the train station. Again, cross under the street through the subway station and exit on the first set of stairs to the left. Keep walking straight, parallel to the train station, until you come to the first street on your right. Walk down this street. On it you will find used clothing stores, a couple of Buddhist stores, and various other small shops. The small streets to your left will take you to a market for luggage, hats, and clothing. Near the end of this small street there are several restaurants.

On the weekends, a city tour leaves from in front of the station.