The Island That's Free If You Wear Purple - Banwoldo and Bakjido, Shinan

There is an island where you can pay admission two ways: hand over 5,000 won, or wear purple. Banwoldo and Bakjido in Anjwa-myeon, Shinan County - together known as 'Purple Island' - are purple down to the rooftops, roads and bridges. Wear any one purple item - a top, a hat, an umbrella - and entry is free, so the island's opening scene is travelers pulling on something purple in front of the ticket booth. In 2021, the UN World Tourism Organization named it one of the world's Best Tourism Villages.

The heart of the island is the purple wooden footbridge over the sea. Walk the causeway linking Anjwado, Bakjido and Banwoldo (915m on the Bakji-Banwol span), with mudflats and sea below and a purple village ahead. Purple flowers fill the island in season, and for photos, the low afternoon light brings out the bridge's color best. Open year-round, ticket office hours 09:00-18:00. Getting there: drive from Mokpo across the Cheonsa Bridge to Anjwado (by public transport, bus transfers from Mokpo) - an island you reach by bridge, not boat, which actually lowers the threshold for first-timers. It suits solo walkers, and for families and couples who arrive color-coordinated, the dress code itself becomes the game. At minimum, readers of this article go knowing how to save the 5,000 won.

By Kim Taechoul, Korea Tourism Times