Suwon is famous for its Hwaseong Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage site, which was built from 1794 to 1796. King Jeongjo wanted to honor and save the tomb of his father Prince Sado with this fortress. Today Suwon is a popular tourist destination, mainly because of its location just 30 km away from Seoul. I took the subway which takes one hour to Suwon and started the round course of the fortress in the afternoon. For the round course, which is almost 6 km long, you need at least two hours but if you wanna make a few breaks you need at least three hours. I would suggest that you start the tour at Paldalmun where you have to climb up a few stairs for 10 minutes, but don’t worry this is the most exhausting part of the round course, so it’s better to do it at the beginning. At the entrance, before going up the stairs you can also grab a very useful map of the fortress. My personal highlights were Paldalmun, Hwahongmun and Hwaseomun gate.
