Jeju City

Jeju City (Jeju-si) is the capital of Jeju Province in South Korea and the largest city on Jeju Island. Its geographical location is The city is served by Jeju International Airport (IATA code CJU).

Located in a southern island where the weather is mild even in winter, the city is a famous resort with public casino facilities. Jeju welcomes over 4 million visitors from mainland Korea, Japan, and China every year.

Geography

In its present boundaries, Jeju City is 19.3 kilometers from east to west, and 10.2 kilometers from north to south. To the north, it looks across the Korea Strait at the southern coast of South Jeolla Province. To east and west, it borders Bukjeju County. To the south, it meets Namjeju County and Seogwipo City at the top of Hallasan, the island's sole mountain.

History

The area of the city has played a central role in Jeju since before recorded history. The Samseonghyeol, holes from which the three ancestors of the Jeju people are said to have come, are located in downtown Jeju City.

The city has grown quite rapidly since the 1970s. Shin Jeju, or new Jeju, was created some decades ago, up the hill from the airport and houses many government buildings. The thatched roof buildings that were common throughout the city until the 1970s are gradually disappearing.

The city was separated from Bukjeju County in 1955. However, in 2005 Jeju Province voters approved a proposal to merge the city with Bukjeju County, also merging Seogwipo with Namjeju County to create two large cities directly administered by the province. That change was put into effect in July 2006.

Administrative divisions

Jeju is divided into 16 neighbourhoods ("Dong"):
* Ara-dong
* Dodu-dong
* Geonip-dong
* Ido 1-dong
* Ido 2-dong
* Iho-dong
* Ildo 1-dong
* Ildo 2-dong
* Nohyeong-dong
* Oedo-dong
* Ora-dong
* Samdo 1-dong
* Samdo 2-dong
* Yeon-dong
* Yongdam 1-dong
* Yongdam 2-dong

Transportation

Jeju City is the principal transportation center for Jeju Province. It is home to the island's sole airport, Jeju Airport. In addition, its port is the largest on the island, serving the great majority of passenger and cargo vessels that visit the island. It also stands at the center of the island's road network.

Tourism

Due to its central position in transportation, Jeju City gets the lion's share of tourist traffic to the island. Many tourists arrive at the city through the port terminal or airport, stay in the tourist hotels of the Sinjeju neighborhood, and stay within the city to visit various Jeju tourist attractions. These include Dragon's Head Rock along the coast, the Samseonghyeol holes in the downtown area, and Hallasan National Park in the interior.

Sister cities

* Wakayama, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan
* Beppu, Oita Prefecture, Japan
* Shanghai, People's Republic of China
* Guilin, Guangxi Automonous Region, People's Republic of China
* Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China
* Kunshan, Suzhou District, Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China
* Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
* Santa Rosa, California, United States

See also

*List of cities in South Korea
*Geography of South Korea
* List of Korea-related topics

External links

*City government website
*Open Directory category
*Statistical Yearbook, partially in English
*Galbijim wiki page on Jeju City