K-Drama Studio & Open Set Tours: Where the Shows Are Actually Filmed

MBC Dae Jang Geum Park (MBC 대장금파크), also known as MBC Yongin Drama Set, is the largest and most productive historical drama set in Korea. It's filmed Dae Jang Geum, Dong Yi, Jumong, The Moon Embracing the Sun, Mr. Sunshine (partially), and roughly a hundred other historical productions since opening in the mid-2000s. The set is built across a hillside in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do, about 90 minutes from central Seoul by bus or train + taxi combination. It reproduces Joseon-era palace buildings, marketplaces, residential alleys, and an official residence compound. Several structures are full-scale and walkable, with interior sets dressed for specific productions still intact. Admission is around 9,500 won for adults (confirm current pricing at the ticket booth; it has risen over time). Operating hours are typically 9 AM to 6 PM with last entry around 5 PM; closes on Mondays. The park is closed occasionally for active filming — check MBC's website before planning a trip. Getting there: Take KTX or ITX to Suwon Station or Yongin area, then taxi for the final 20 minutes (around 15,000 won). Alternatively, Seoul's express bus terminals have direct buses to Yongin. Self-driving is the most efficient option if available. Inside the park, the main attractions are the recreated palace courtyard (used as throne room exteriors for many productions), the market street (dressed differently for each show), and the dressing-up experience — you can rent hanbok on site for 10,000–20,000 won depending on style, and walk the sets in costume. Photo spots are well-marked. Honest note: the park is showing its age in some sections, and some buildings that used to be accessible have been closed to preserve them. It's still the single best stop for historical drama fans who want to walk through a 'real' Joseon-era setting.

Hapcheon Image Theme Park (합천영상테마파크) in South Gyeongsang Province recreates 1930s-to-1980s Korea. Unlike Dae Jang Geum Park's Joseon focus, this is where modern-period dramas and films recreate Japanese colonial-era Gyeongseong, post-war Seoul, and 1970s street scenes. Films and dramas that filmed here include Thieves (2012), Assassination (2015), Mr. Sunshine (partially, 2018), Pachinko (Apple TV+, 2022 exterior scenes), and many more. If you've seen a Korean production set between 1910 and 1990 in a city street, there's a decent chance parts were filmed here. The park recreates Gyeongseong's main streets (Namdaemun area in its pre-modern form), a 1970s downtown scene with vintage signage, a rail station, and the 'Blue House' replica used for political dramas. Several structures have dressed interiors you can walk through. Admission runs around 5,000–8,000 won. Operating hours 9 AM to 6 PM. Located in Hapcheon-gun, South Gyeongsang Province, about 4 hours from Seoul. The realistic access plan is: take KTX to Daegu or Changwon, rent a car, and drive to Hapcheon. Hapcheon pairs well with Haeinsa Temple (해인사), a UNESCO-listed Buddhist temple about 30 minutes further that houses the Tripitaka Koreana. Many visitors combine the film park with Haeinsa as a full-day trip from Daegu. If you're specifically chasing modern-period filming locations and a trip to Jeolla or Gyeongsang province is on the itinerary, Hapcheon is worth the detour. If you're only in Seoul, it's a longer commitment than most filming-location-fans will budget for.

Suncheon Open Film Location (순천드라마촬영장) reconstructs Seoul's neighborhoods from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. This is the set you've seen if you've watched almost any Korean period drama or nostalgic-era film covering that range — Ode to My Father (2014), Reply 1988's general era aesthetic (though 1988 itself filmed on studio sets), Mr. Sunshine's later scenes, and many others. The park is divided into three zones: a 1960s Seoul neighborhood with traditional hanok houses and muddy streets, a 1970s-ish village center with a Dalseong-style market, and an 1980s Bongchan-dong area with brick apartment blocks and newspaper stands. Signage, shop fronts, and fixtures are period-accurate. Admission around 3,000–5,000 won; operating hours 9 AM to 6 PM. Getting there: Suncheon is in Jeollanam-do, about 3.5 hours from Seoul by KTX. The film set is accessible from Suncheon Bus Terminal or Suncheon Station by local bus or taxi (about 20 minutes by taxi, 5,000–7,000 won). Suncheon itself rewards visitors. The city hosts Suncheon Bay Wetland Reserve and Suncheon Bay National Garden, two major attractions that together with the film set can make a full day trip. Many visitors combine all three with a stay in a local guesthouse. The vibe is different from Dae Jang Geum Park. Fewer visitors wear historical costume — the 60s–80s era doesn't invite hanbok — but atmosphere is strong, especially on weekdays when crowds thin. It photographs beautifully and is one of the most underrated film tourism spots in Korea.

Silla Millennium Park (신라밀레니엄파크) in Gyeongju is less a filming set than a themed historical park that happens to have hosted drama production. It recreates the Silla Kingdom era (57 BCE–935 CE) with royal palaces, noble residences, and open plazas. Drama productions filmed here include The Great Queen Seondeok (2009), Queen of Ambition, and numerous shorter historical productions. The park's scale and authenticity attract productions that need Silla-era specifically — which is a narrower era than the broader Joseon-focused sets. The park operates more as a tourism site than as an active filming location, with costumed performers, cultural workshops, horse-riding demonstrations, and seasonal shows like 'King Seondeok's Coronation' reenactment. Admission is around 20,000–25,000 won, higher than pure filming-location parks because of the active programming. Location: Gyeongju is one of Korea's historic capitals and a major tourism destination in its own right. KTX from Seoul to Singyeongju Station takes 2 hours. From there, local bus or taxi (about 20 minutes) to the park. For fans of historical Korean drama, Gyeongju is worth a trip regardless of whether you visit Silla Millennium Park specifically — Bulguksa Temple, Seokguram Grotto, Tumuli Park, and Cheomseongdae Observatory are all within a 30-minute drive and form one of Korea's densest concentrations of UNESCO-listed heritage sites. Combining Gyeongju's historical sites with a visit to the park makes for a compact 2-day loop from Seoul.

Several other open sets and filming parks deserve mention depending on your interests. Buyeo Baekje Cultural Land (부여 백제문화단지) in Chungcheongnam-do recreates Baekje-era architecture (an even earlier period than Silla). Dramas including Ja Myung Go, Kingdom (partially), and Queen Seon-duk's early scenes used its palace and fortress reconstructions. Admission around 6,000 won; 2 hours from Seoul. Jeonju Korean Traditional Culture Center and the broader Jeonju Hanok Village area have appeared in dozens of contemporary dramas as 'a traditional place character visits for an episode.' Not a filming-specific set but a complete village of traditional architecture where many slice-of-life drama scenes shoot. Jeonju is 2 hours from Seoul by KTX. Andong Hahoe Folk Village (안동 하회마을) is a UNESCO-listed living heritage village that also hosts occasional drama filming. Unlike the constructed film parks, Hahoe is a real 600-year-old village where families still live. Drama scenes filmed there tend to be brief establishing shots rather than extended sequences. 3 hours from Seoul. Contemporary drama tourism has shifted toward Seoul location-spotting. K-dramas increasingly film in real neighborhoods (Itaewon Class used the actual Itaewon Gyeongnidan-gil area; Extraordinary Attorney Woo filmed at the POSCO headquarters in Gangnam; Business Proposal at real Seoul restaurants and offices). If you're chasing recent drama settings, a self-guided walking tour of the actual filmed neighborhoods will deliver more than an open-set day trip. Practical advice for mixing approaches: one open-set park (Dae Jang Geum for historical fans, Suncheon for modern-period fans) + 2–3 days of Seoul location-spotting is the pattern that works for most international K-drama pilgrims. The open set gives you the immersive reconstructed feel; the real-neighborhood walks give you the 'I was there' photos next to scenes you remember.