After taking a tour around the beautiful Changdeokgung Palace in Seoul, be sure to head to the back to see the Huwon, or “Rear Garden”. Today, it’s widely known as the Secret Garden and secret it is! You can only enter the Secret Garden on a guided tour, so be sure to time your visit wisely. During the Joseon Dynasty, this garden was built for the sole use of the royal family and the women of the palace. The Secret Garden at Changdeokgung Palace is an extremely green, peaceful, and charming place to explore for a few hours.
Our tour guide, much like our guide from the Changdeokgung Palace, was absolutely wonderful. She was very informative (naturally being her job and all) and engaging throughout our tour.
The first part of the tour took us through the various lush greenery that made up the 78-acre Secret Gardens. Throughout the gardens there are lotus ponds, identical pavilions to that in the Palace, and various flowers and trees. Unfortunately, the pictures don’t do the actual scenery justice.
We were told that when you walk under this entrance way, you will age well and stay younger-looking longer. I may or may not have walked back and forth multiple times.. A girl can hope, right?
I could have spent much more time just aimlessly wandering the gardens or setting up camp for a little while by putting out a blanket and cracking open a bottle of beer and some yummy kimbap. Unfortunately, we had to make our way throughout the gardens with the tour and had to leave when the tour was over.
Our guide said the best time of the year to come to the Secret Garden is in the fall when all the leaves are changing. I guess that just means another visit to Korea!
Until next time..
