The Gukje Market in Busan, South Korea, is a well-known open-air market catering to both retail and wholesale customers. Busan is the part of South Korea’s second largest city, after Seoul, and is home for some of 3.5 million people. This makes it a vibrant the shopping city, with many goods coming in through the world famous port and from traders inland.

The Gukje Market was the first formed after the Korean War. The products on sale at the market are new as well as the second hand, with a focus on the electronic goods, household appliances, bed linen, souvenirs and local handicraft, clothes and underwear, silk and satin, bags, sunglasses and spectacles, cutlery and crockery and the ceramic artefacts.

The Gukje Market has around 40 set stores and a variety of smaller stalls. It is spread over 263 square metres and is typically open between 9am and 8pm. It is closed on the first and third Sunday of every month. It has information stalls for English, Japanese and Chinese speakers.

You can reach the Gukje Market using Busan’s subway. It is some 200 metres from exit number seven, the Jagalchi Station. This is on subway line 1.

There are many hotels in Busan in the Gukje Market area, although travelling to and from the market on the subway or by car is fast and reliable. DirectRooms allows you to browse through many places to stay in the city, whether it is for the architecture, history or the shopping.