From a Refugee Market in 1953 to a Car-Free Street in 2026: How to Read Sokcho Tourist & Fishery Market

The reason it changed from the 3-gu Market in 1953 to the Tourist & Fishery Market in 2006

The beginning of Sokcho Tourist & Fishery Market dates back to 1953, right after the Korean War. At that time, Sokcho’s market was in Yeongrang-dong, where the Republic of Korea Army 1st Corps and a U.S. military unit were stationed, but after the armistice the unit moved and the commercial district shifted to what is now Jungang-dong. This area was administratively called Sokcho-ri 3-gu at the time, so the market was initially known as 3-gu Market.

When Sokcho was promoted to a city in 1963 and neighborhood names were introduced in 1966, 3-gu Market also changed its name to Jungang Market. A fire in the early morning of October 27, 1959 destroyed 49 shops, and around 1976 the boom in Seoraksan tourism helped the market grow. In 1988, a commercial building was newly constructed with one basement level and two above-ground floors, accommodating 505 shops.

After the Asian financial crisis and the spread of large discount stores caused a downturn, the market adopted the name Sokcho Tourist & Fishery Market in 2006 as part of Sokcho City’s modernization project and was equipped with a rain shelter, lighting, parking, and a seawater intake facility for the underground sashimi center. The seawater intake facility installed at that time drew seawater from 1.6 km offshore Sokcho, at a depth of 25 m, and brought it to the underground sashimi center.

08:00~24:00 and shop-by-shop closing times: when to visit the market

According to the market’s official general guide, operating hours are 08:00~24:00 every day and admission is free. However, this time range applies to the market area as a whole, so shops in different categories, such as dakgangjeong, sundae, side dishes, or the sashimi center, each have different opening times and closing times depending on when ingredients run out. In the morning, it is efficient to first look at grocery shops and seafood corners, then move to meal and takeaway shops around lunchtime.

The main phone number is 033-633-3501, and the market’s official website is https://www.sokcho-central.co.kr/ . There is no separate regular closing day for the market as a whole, but individual shops have different days off. Some sashimi centers and sashimi restaurants operate late into the evening, so they can be included in an evening schedule; however, if you are visiting for a specific food only, checking whether the shop is open that day first will reduce wasted time.

• 08:00~10:00: A good time to look at grocery-oriented shops such as fruit, red pepper alley, and dried seafood.
• 11:00~14:00: A time when lunchtime at Sundae Alley and takeaway demand for dakgangjeong overlap.
• After 18:00: You can organize an evening meal route centered on the underground sashimi center and sashimi restaurants.

A floor-by-floor route that lets you read 30 seafood shops, 26 salted seafood shops, and 24 sashimi restaurants at a glance

According to the official guide map, the market contains 30 seafood shops, 26 salted seafood shops, 24 sashimi restaurants, 25 dried seafood shops, 13 chicken/dak shops, and 29 restaurants. Instead of lining up immediately at the first shop you enter, it is easier to compare options if you divide your purpose into “meal,” “immediate takeaway,” and “ingredients to take home,” then move to the appropriate alley.

Jungang Market Arcade has dried seafood, salted seafood, and live sashimi on the basement level; textiles, vegetables, and food on the first floor; and clothing, miscellaneous goods, and footwear shops on the second floor. In Chicken Alley, look for dakgangjeong, raw chicken, and local native chicken; in Sundae Alley, look for ojingeo-sundae, Abai sundae, and sundae soup; and in the salted seafood and fish market alley, focus on salted seafood. Visitors planning to buy sliced fish for takeaway and eat it later should leave the basement level for last to reduce refrigerated and cooling time.

The official classification also includes 50 clothing and bedding shops, 12 food and mart shops, and 12 daily goods shops. In other words, the market is not a one-lane place for only packing dakgangjeong; it is a structure that combines seafood, side dishes, and everyday retail. A May 2024 visit note about a steamed rice bread shop recorded a line even at 9:00 a.m. and about a 30-minute wait, so for particularly popular shops it is better to budget for waiting time separately from the market’s overall opening hours.

Two 10,000-won parking vouchers and the rules of the public parking lot from 08:00~21:00

According to the market’s official parking guide, the parking lot is available from 08:00~21:00, and outside those hours parking is 안내ed as free. If you spend 10,000 won or more at the market, you can receive a 30-minute parking voucher, and one vehicle can use up to two vouchers per day for a total discount of 1 hour. Since the voucher has an expiration date, it is a good idea to check the printed date as well if you are not settling the payment right away.

If you do not have a free parking voucher, regular fees are charged to ordinary vehicles. Disabled persons, national merit recipients, and compact cars receive a 50% parking fee reduction, and if you lose the parking voucher, the maximum daily rate will be applied. The official guide also introduces a large parking lot and cart use together, so when buying bulky items such as dried seafood or salted seafood, vehicle movement is practical.

• Purchase amount: Parking voucher eligibility starts with purchases of 10,000 won or more inside the market.
• Discount limit: Two 30-minute vouchers, with a maximum of 1 hour per vehicle per day.
• Reduction category: Disabled persons, national merit recipients, and compact cars receive a 50% parking fee reduction.

From July 20, 2026, every day 10:00~18:00, a 190 m car-free street

From July 20, 2026, a time-based car-free street has been operating on the market access road. The restricted section is a total of 190 m, comprising 120 m on Jungang-ro 147beon-gil and 70 m on Jungang Market-ro, and vehicle traffic is blocked every day from 10:00~18:00 regardless of weekday, weekend, or holiday. The movement of passenger cars and taxis that want to drop you off right in front of the market or enter the alley changes during this time.

This measure was introduced as a pedestrian safety policy in response to 20 traffic accidents in the area around the market over the past five years. Therefore, between 10:00~18:00, the correct approach is to park first and walk in, and when loading luggage, you should plan based on the parking-lot direction rather than the vehicle entrance road. The market alley during this time is operated as a pedestrian-first zone.

3 minutes from the intercity bus terminal, 10 minutes from the express bus terminal: the Tourist & Fishery Market stop

The market’s official guide says it takes about 3 minutes by city bus from Sokcho Intercity Bus Terminal and about 10 minutes from Sokcho Express Bus Terminal, and in both cases it recommends getting off at the “Tourist & Fishery Market” stop. If walking from the terminal, it is guided as under 10 minutes. From Seoul, a nonstop intercity bus from Dong Seoul Terminal is introduced as about 2 hours 20 minutes, and an express bus from Seoul Express Bus Terminal as about 2 hours 30 minutes.

The navigation search terms are “Sokcho Jungang Market” or “Sokcho Tourist & Fishery Market,” and the road address is 12, Jungang-ro 147beon-gil, Sokcho-si, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province. If you are approaching by car, it is better to set the parking lot entrance as your destination rather than the market entrance, considering the 10:00~18:00 car-free street operation. Travelers with little luggage can stop by the market first from the terminal and then move on to the downtown or harbor area.

• Intercity Bus Terminal: about 3 minutes by city bus or under 10 minutes on foot.
• Express Bus Terminal: about 10 minutes by city bus.
• Disembarkation stop: Tourist & Fishery Market stop.

A 90-minute route connecting the gaetbae, Abai Village, and Cheongchoho after a market meal

Near the market, across the waterway from Sokcho Port, are Abai Village and the gaetbae. The gaetbae is a non-motorized steel-wire ferry connecting downtown Sokcho and Cheongho-dong; it moves by fixing two long wires and pulling the line with a hook. Abai Village was formed when refugees displaced from Hamgyeong-do settled on the sandy beach during the Korean War in 1950, so along with the market’s Abai sundae it becomes a route for understanding Sokcho’s history of refugee life.

Cheongchoho Lake Park is the site of the 1999 International Tourism Expo, and rather than carrying takeaway food from the market immediately, it is better to plan meals and walks separately. From the market, allow 60~90 minutes for eating, takeaway, and parking settlement, and adding the gaetbae plus Abai Village or Cheongchoho makes it a half-day itinerary. For sashimi and salted seafood that need refrigeration, it is safer to buy them at the end of this route.

The Sokcho City Tourist Information Center is inside the Tourist & Fishery Market parking lot, and its phone number is 033-639-2568. Sokcho City’s tourist information system provides promotional materials in Korean, English, Chinese, and Japanese, and also supports reservations for foreign tourist taxis, so it can be useful when continuing on to the gaetbae, Abai Village, or the beach after the market.

Tourist information from 09:00~18:00 and accessibility tips for flat alleys

The Tourist & Fishery Market Tourist Information Center is inside the market parking lot and operates from 09:00~18:00 according to Sokcho City’s tourist information standards. The center offers internet access, fax, copying, and printer services, and Lunar New Year’s Day, Chuseok, and Labor Day are listed as closed days. The market itself is free to enter, and the tourist information center is a separate facility from the market’s operating hours.

The main alleys are based on flat, covered walkways, and carts can also be used in the large parking lot. However, around lunchtime and during the car-free street hours, pedestrian traffic increases, so wheelchair and stroller users may find it easier to secure wider movement by starting with the alley shops rather than the basement level and second-floor arcade. Goods purchased at the market can be moved using the cart route toward the parking lot.

• Market admission: free.
• Tourist Information Center: 09:00~18:00, phone 033-639-2568.
• Foreign-language materials: tourist promotional materials are provided in Korean, English, Chinese, and Japanese.