Hello, this is 속초어때 (Sokcho Eottae). It is 5 a.m. on Wednesday, September 16. Right now Sokcho is at 18°C, the sky is clear, and the chance of rain is 0%. For three days straight I have been talking about umbrellas, but today there is no need for that. However, the most important number in Sokcho today is not the weather — it is 20,000 KRW. Starting this morning, if you buy domestic seafood at 속초 관광수산시장 (Sokcho Gwangwang Susan Sijang, the Sokcho Tourist & Fishery Market), you can get up to 30% of your purchase back in Onnuri gift certificates (온누리상품권). Only three places in all of Gangwon State (강원특별자치도) are taking part, and the period is just five days. There is one more condition attached. After 10 a.m., you cannot drive into the inner part of this market. If you are reading this at dawn, this morning is the most advantageous time slot of the week.
Sokcho at 5 a.m.: the numbers first
- Weather Currently 18°C, daytime high 24°C, low 18°C, chance of rain 0%, clear
- Sea Water temperature 23.5°C, wave height 0.5 m
- Sunrise 06:08, sunset 18:33 — the sun rises about 68 minutes from now
- Tide 13-mul (13물), high tide 05:19 / low tide 12:36 / high tide 19:17 / low tide 23:27
- Congestion Only the Daepohang (대포항) Port Observatory is crowded; Cheongchoho (청초호), Cheongchoho Lake Park, Sokcho Port, Teddy Bear Farm, and Sinheungsa (신흥사) Temple in Seoraksan (설악산) are normal
- Access traffic Misiryeong-ro (미시령로, toward Seoul), Donghae-daero (동해대로, coast and downtown), and Seoraksan-ro (설악산로, toward Seorak) are all flowing smoothly
The daily temperature swing is 6 degrees. Standing by the sea at dawn feels chilly, and by around noon short sleeves are comfortable. Bring one outer layer, but you do not need a thick one. A wave height of 0.5 m is among the calmest readings of this month. It is hard to believe this is the same sea where waves of up to 4 m were washing over the breakwater at dawn on September 9.
Five days starting today: buy seafood and get up to 20,000 KRW back
Ahead of Chuseok, Gangwon State is running an Onnuri gift certificate rebate event for five days, from Wednesday, September 16 to Sunday, September 20, at three seafood traditional markets in the province. The participating markets are 도래미시장 (Doraemi Sijang) in Wonju (원주), 황지자유시장 (Hwangji Jayu Sijang) in Taebaek (태백), and 속초 관광수산시장. Only three of Gangwon's 18 cities and counties were included, and Sokcho is among them.
The rebate structure is tiered. Buy domestic seafood and submit the same-day receipt at the rebate booth set up in the market.
- Purchases of 34,000 KRW or more and under 67,000 KRW → 10,000 KRW in Onnuri gift certificates
- Purchases of 67,000 KRW or more → 20,000 KRW in Onnuri gift certificates
- A total cap of 20,000 KRW per person during the event period
This is where mistakes happen. Buy 33,000 KRW worth and your rebate is 0 KRW. Buy 66,000 KRW worth and it is 10,000 KRW. Adding just 1,000 KRW more makes it 20,000 KRW, and every year there are people who miss 10,000 KRW because they did not add that 1,000 KRW. When you fill your basket, I recommend checking once with a calculator whether you have crossed the 67,000 KRW line. And the 20,000 KRW cap is not per day but for the entire event period, so even if you spread your purchases over the five days, the total you can receive is 20,000 KRW. If you plan to visit on several days, it is better to put it all into one receipt on the day you buy the most.
It also helps to know in advance what is left out of the rebate. Imported seafood, government-stockpiled items, and seafood paid for with Zero Pay seafood sale (수산대전) gift certificates are not eligible. The cost of a meal of raw fish eaten at an ordinary restaurant inside the market is also not eligible for the rebate. In other words, the standard is not what you sit down and eat but what you carry out. The rebate booth has until now been set up in the seafood complex cultural space on the second floor of the market, but it is safer to check the market's guidance and the on-site notices once for the booth's opening and closing times before you head out. Since this is an event with a fixed budget, you always have to keep the possibility of an early close in view as well.
But from 10 a.m., cars cannot get into the market
This is the most practical part of today's post. Since July 20 this year, 속초 관광수산시장 has operated a timed car-free street on two sections, Jungang-ro 147beon-gil (중앙로147번길) and Jungangsijang-ro (중앙시장로), restricting vehicle traffic every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Since it took effect, the daily average vehicle traffic during the operating hours has dropped 89%, from 4.8 vehicles to 0.5, and not a single pedestrian traffic accident has occurred. Loading and unloading vehicles enter only before or after the restricted hours.
So if you plan to buy seafood by the box today and load it into your car, the timetable works out like this.
- 8 a.m.–10 a.m. This is when most shops in the market open, and it is the only window in which vehicles can still get in. Parking stress and crowds are both at their lowest.
- 10 a.m.–6 p.m. This is walking time. It is better to park in a nearby lot and bring a shopping bag, a cooler, or a folding cart.
- After 6 p.m. Vehicle traffic opens up again, but this is when customers for raw fish and food pour in. It is unfavorable for large grocery runs.
Seafood is not something you can leave at room temperature for long. If you leave the cooler in your trunk and walk to the market and back, the fish is exposed to room temperature for the whole round trip. That is even more so on a day like today, when the high climbs to 24°C. If you are able to move in the morning, taking the window between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. is close to the right answer.
Why you should finish this within the week
Chuseok this year falls on Friday, September 25, and the holiday runs from September 24 to 27. Today is D-8 to the holiday. But the rebate event ends on Sunday, September 20. Laying out the calendar, the four days from September 21 to 24 are a stretch with no rebate. The problem is that those four days are when the crowds are biggest and prices are marked up the hardest. If you do your holiday shopping right before the break as usual, you end up paying more while also missing out on 20,000 KRW. The order is reversed.
So it is a good idea to divide up your items. Things that freeze well — pollock, squid, octopus — plus dried seafood and items like dried pollock and anchovies, buy between today and Sunday and take the rebate; fish for the ancestral rite table, or raw fish and mulhoe where same-day freshness matters, you can buy separately once the holiday is closer. The Onnuri gift certificates you receive from the rebate can be spent again at the market during those four days, so the net effect is that your holiday shopping budget is 20,000 KRW lighter. 속초어때 sorts out the market and access road situation every day, so if you make it a habit to check once before setting out, you will have fewer wasted trips.
The sea is calm, but you cannot go in
Today's water temperature is 23.5°C. It has been easing down from 24.2°C on September 7, and it is 5.5 degrees higher than the current dawn air temperature of 18°C. If you dip your hand in, it will still feel warm. That does not mean you should go in. All of Sokcho's swimming beaches are closed, with Deungdae Beach (등대해수욕장) ending water entry on August 30. With no lifeguards and no rescue equipment in place, water looking calm and warm and water being safe are two entirely different things. Today the beach is a place to walk and look at, and nothing more.
Instead, looking at the tides, there is a window you can make use of. Today is 13-mul, and high tide already passed at 05:19. Low tide is at 12:36. The East Sea (동해) has a small tidal range, so even today the difference between high and low is only about 20 cm, but between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. the water is at its lowest. For those taking photos around the breakwater or the rocky shore, this stretch is relatively better. That said, even at a wave height of 0.5 m, swells come in irregularly. Please do not climb onto the tetrapods today either.
The reason only the Daepohang Port Observatory is crowded among the six tourist spots right now is simple. Today's sunrise is at 06:08. The people standing there at this hour are the ones waiting for what comes 68 minutes from now. If you are setting out later, Misiryeong-ro, Donghae-daero and Seoraksan-ro are all flowing smoothly, so you can get from downtown to Daepohang without any strain. Sunset is at 18:33, and it is now moving two minutes earlier each day.
The next two weeks in Sokcho
- Sunday, September 20 Seorak Cultural Festival ridge trail walk. The course starts at Seolhyang Park (설향공원) in Seorakdong (설악동), passes Seorak Hyanggi-ro (설악향기로), Dalmabong (달마봉), Gyejoam (계조암) and Sinheungsa, and comes down to Seoraksan Sogongwon (설악산 소공원); it is limited to 500 people on a first-come, first-served basis. The same day is also the last day of the Onnuri rebate event.
- Thursday, September 24 Sokcho City's comprehensive situation room for the Chuseok holiday goes into operation. Seventeen situation teams are formed, and four of them — disaster safety, waterworks, sewerage and public facilities — run on a 24-hour system. City hall and four nearby parking lots, 263 spaces, will be opened.
- Around Wednesday, September 30 Forecast for the first autumn foliage on Seoraksan. That is about two weeks from today, with the peak expected from mid to late October. If you are coming during the holiday and were hoping for fall colors, it is worth knowing in advance that the timing does not line up.
- Friday, October 2 – Sunday, October 4 The 61st Seorak Cultural Festival. It is held at the Sokcho Expo Lawn Plaza and around Seorak Rodeo Street, and at the opening ceremony on the 2nd the 2026 Sokcho Citizen Awards will be presented in three categories: regional development, culture and the arts, and community service.
For reference, the 속초도문농요 (Sokcho Domun Nongyo) public performance that appeared in recent news was an event that already ended on September 14 in Sangdomun Village (상도문 마을). If you go today based only on the article, it will be a wasted trip, so I recommend checking before you set out. Sangdomun Doldam Village itself is a good place for a quiet walk even on weekdays, so it works well as an afternoon stop after shopping at the market.
Today's practical checklist
- Do your seafood shopping between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. It is the last window in which you can drive into the market.
- Check before paying whether your basket has passed 67,000 KRW. Over it, the rebate is 20,000 KRW; short of it, 10,000 KRW.
- Receipts are valid only on the same day. Go to the rebate booth right after buying.
- Imported and government-stockpiled items, purchases paid with Zero Pay gift certificates, and restaurant meal bills are excluded from the rebate.
- Bring a cooler and a folding cart. The high today is 24°C.
- All beaches are closed. Swimming is not allowed. Low tide is at 12:36.
- Sunrise 06:08, sunset 18:33. The Daepohang Port Observatory is already filling up.
Today we looked at Sokcho's weather and sea as of 5 a.m. on Wednesday, September 16, along with the seafood Onnuri gift certificate rebate event that starts today and ends on Sunday, and the market's vehicle restriction hours — was it useful? We will be back next time with even more useful information.
