Gwangneung Royal Tomb

Sejo, who took the throne in 1455, is buried here with Queen Jeonghui, and the arrangement is unusual - rather than a single joint mound the two lie on separate hills facing each other across a valley, sharing one ritual hall between them. Sejo is said to have ordered a simple burial without a stone chamber, and the tomb is plainer than most. The consequence that matters most is ecological: everything within a wide radius was designated tomb land and left alone from 1468 onward, no cutting, no farming, no building, and five and a half centuries of that has produced Gwangneung Forest - the best-preserved temperate broadleaf woodland in this part of Korea, now a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve with several hundred-year-old trees, a research arboretum and a small population of the endangered fairy pitta and other birds. The arboretum next to the tomb caps daily visitors and requires booking ahead, which catches people out.

What you actually see

• The paired mounds - Sejo and the queen on facing hills.
• The shared ritual hall - one hall serving both tombs.
• The old forest - five centuries of untouched woodland.
• The arboretum - the research collection, by booking only.

When to go

April to June and October to November. Book the arboretum well ahead - daily numbers are capped and it closes on Sundays and Mondays. The tomb itself needs no booking.

Honest expectations

Arboretum entry without a reservation is refused. The tomb is plain by royal standards. Public transport involves two buses; a car is easier.

Nearby

The Gwangneung forest and its arboretum adjoin the tomb; Pocheon and Sanjeong lake are north.