Deokjeok Island

Deokjeok Island's location

Deokjeok Island (덕적도, 德積島, Deokjeok-do), is in Gyeonggi, South Korea, just west of Seoul.

Understand

Deokjeok Island is located south-west of the Incheon Metropolitan City and is the largest island of Deokjeok-myeon.

Get in

By boat

Take a ferry from Incheon Ferry Terminal (AKA Yeonan Pier) in Incheon City. The trip is 75km and takes around one hour.

It is important to note that booking this ferry online requires a Korean credit card and a passport number for all passengers. You can pay in cash at the Incheon Ferry Terminal. If you are traveling during the summer you will need to book at least a week in advance.

Get around

By bus

There two main bus routes on the island you can take from the ferry terminal; Bus 1 and Bus 2. Bus 1 takes you to the island's main tourist destinations Seopori beach and Batjireum Beach.

Do

• Bijobong Peak. Climb Bijobong peak, its the highest accessible point on the island and on a clear day can give you a great view of the island and the surrounding islands. It's a very easy climb (under 2km on some paths) and at the peak there is an observation deck made to resemble a wooden pagoda. 
• Batjireum Beach. Camp at Batjireum Beach. It is the only way to stay on this beach, which is the island's nicest beach. You will have to bring your own equipment, but it is one of the nicest camping locations in the area. 
• Take a tour. Take a bus tour of the island. For ₩20000-30000 you can charter a van (for up to eight people) to take you to all the islands major attractions, ask the owner of your pension/minbak if they can arrange this for you. 

Eat

There are several restaurants on the island that serve traditional Korean food as well as a great selection of seafood including the island's famous blue crab.

Sleep

Accommodation on Deokjeokdo mostly consists of minbaks and pensions. It is easy to arrange accommodation once on the island as the minbak owners will wait at the Deokjeok Island ferry terminal (Dowoo port) and will offer to drive you to their minbak to inspect it and then pressure you into staying. Most of the owners of these minbaks only speak Korean and they can be booked by phone.