Regions & prefectures
KoreaRegions & prefectures
South Jeolla
Two thousand islands, the country’s largest tea plantations and the benchmark kimchi.
- Capital
- Muan
- Status
- Province
- Region
- Honam (Jeolla)
- Must-see
- The Boseong tea plantations
- Local specialty
- Kimchi, green tea, hongeo, seaweed
The southwest of the peninsula frays into an archipelago of more than two thousand islands, seventy percent of all Korean islands. It was in these waters that Admiral Yi Sun-sin fought the Japanese fleet in 1597, including at Myeongnyang, thirteen ships against more than a hundred. Boseong has grown terraced tea since the 1930s, Suncheon Bay holds one of Asia’s largest reed beds, and the province’s cooking sets banchan spreads reputed to have no equal.
What to see there
Places, dishes and traditions tied to this territory.
BanchanKorean side dishes served with main meal.KimchiKorean national dish of fermented and spiced vegetables, primarily napa cabbage (baechu) seasoned with gochugaru (red pepper flakes), garlic, ginger, green onions, and jeotgal (fermented seafood condiment).The Boseong tea fieldsCurves of tea bushes cut into the hillside, Korea’s largest tea-growing area.
In the magazine
Articles that cover this topic.