Lovely Runner Filming Spots in Suwon: A Haenggung-dong Walk

Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon lit up at night

By YUNA, my pen name. I read the official pages, then tell you what I’d do.

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Last checked: November 2, 2026

I’d do Lovely Runner’s Suwon spots as one walk in and around Haenggung-dong, the neighborhood around Hwaseong Haenggung palace. Im Sol’s house, the alley she took to school, and the stream where Sun-jae confessed are all on the Korea Tourism Organization’s Haenggung-dong date course, and I’d give them one afternoon. The fortress is free, and Suwon’s own tourism site lists four of the spots by name.

Quick answer

  • 📍 Where: Haenggung-dong in Suwon, around Hwaseong Haenggung palace
  • 🚌 Getting there: Suwon Station, then bus 60 or 7-2 from Exit 7
  • 🎟️ Cost: the fortress is free; the palace is 2,000 won for adults

T-money card on Klook

Which Lovely Runner scenes were filmed in Suwon?

A lotus pond with a small pine-covered island below Banghwasuryujeong pavilion in Suwon
The pond below Banghwasuryujeong pavilion, seen from the pavilion, September 2022.

Suwon’s city tourism page lists four spots from the 2024 drama: Hwahongmun gate, Banghwasuryujeong pavilion with Yongyeon pond, Im Sol’s house, and Haengnidan-gil in Haenggung-dong.

Spot Scene Can you go in?
Im Sol’s house Sol’s home, the most-used location The cafe, yes
Blue-gate house opposite Sun-jae’s house No, residents live there
King’s Alley The walk to school Public alley
Suwoncheon stream Episode 1, Sol drops her watch Free, open around the clock
Below Hwahongmun Sun-jae’s confession Free, open around the clock
Yongyeon pond The bicycle lesson Free, open around the clock
Road to Changnyongmun Sol’s bus 34 to school Public road

I’d walk them in that order, from the Haenggung-dong alleys to the fortress. If your time is short, keep Sol’s house and Hwahongmun.

How do you get to Haenggung-dong from Seoul?

You can take Line 1 or the Suin-Bundang Line to Suwon Station. From Exit 7, cross to the AK Plaza stop and take bus 60 or 7-2 to the Hwaseong Haenggung stop. Buses 11 and 13 from the Novotel stop at Exit 4 go there too. The Suwon Cultural Foundation puts the walk from the stop to the palace at about 5 minutes.

If you’re staying near Jamsil or Gangnam, I’d take an express bus, so you don’t need to change at Suwon Station. Express bus 1007 from Jamsil Station stops at the Hwaseong Haenggung–Yeomingak stop, and express bus 3000 from Gangnam Station stops at Paldalmun. Either way, you’ll be about 5 minutes on foot from the palace.

The foundation lists routes but no ride times, and I couldn’t find an official estimate. Check your live journey time in a map app the morning you go.

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Im Sol’s house and the blue gate across the street

A stretch of Hwaseong Fortress's stone wall and a watchtower lit up at night in Suwon
Hwaseong’s walls in Suwon, November 2016. Photo: Mathew Schwartz, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Korea Tourism Organization calls Sol’s house the drama’s most-used location. The building is now used by a cafe called 몽테드, and Suwon’s tourism page lists it under Im Sol’s house. Type the cafe’s Korean name into your map app to find it.

In the drama, the ground floor is a video shop and Sol’s family lives on the third floor. When The Fact, a Korean news site, visited in May 2024, the real building had a nail shop downstairs, the cafe on the second floor, and a private home on the third.

Two Korea Tourism Organization pages say the cafe closes on Wednesdays, but give different hours: noon to 9 p.m. in a June 2024 article, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on the English page. Check the cafe’s own notice on the day you go. If you want photos inside, I’d order something.

The house with the blue gate across the street is Sun-jae’s house in the drama. Residents live there, and the tourism organization’s article asks you not to go in.

⚠️ Heads-up

The blue-gate house is a private home, not a set. Take your photos from the street, keep the gate and the alley clear, and keep your voice down. If you want photos indoors, the cafe opposite is the place.

King’s Alley and the community center

If you remember Sol and Sun-jae walking to school, that’s King’s Alley in Haenggung-dong, according to the tourism organization. The Fact puts the backdrop of their walk to school in a public parking lot in Yeonmu-dong instead. I’d stay with King’s Alley, since it’s in Haenggung-dong.

The Fact also says episode 3’s passport-photo scene was filmed right in front of the Haenggung-dong Community Center. It’s a working public office, so I’d take photos from outside and move on.

Hwahongmun and Suwoncheon: the watch and the confession

Suwoncheon stream flowing through the arches of Hwahongmun water gate in Suwon
Suwoncheon stream flowing under Hwahongmun, November 2008.

Hwahongmun is the north water gate of Hwaseong Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997. It was built over Suwoncheon stream between 1794 and 1795. Suwon’s tourism page explains the name: the first character stands for Hwaseong and the second means rainbow.

Suwon’s city news places two scenes on this stretch of the stream. In episode 1, Sol drops her watch while crossing a bridge near the stream. After the baseball game, Sun-jae confesses below Hwahongmun, and the tourism organization pins it to the footbridge downstream of the gate.

The Fact links the bridge here to the moment Sun-jae tells Sol he has come to like rainy days. Its reporter saw fans standing on the bridge and facing Hwahongmun for their photos, and that’s the angle I’d copy.

The fortress is open around the clock, so you don’t have to leave at sunset, and the city news reporter thought the confession spot is better after dark. I’d reach Hwahongmun and Yongyeon pond, next to it, late in the afternoon and stay until it gets dark.

Yongyeon pond and the bus 34 road

Banghwasuryujeong pavilion on Hwaseong Fortress above a small pond
Banghwasuryujeong pavilion and its pond, October 2008.

Next to Hwahongmun on the fortress is Banghwasuryujeong, a corner pavilion completed in 1794. Its name means something like “seeking flowers and following willows.” Suwon lists it with Yongyeon pond as one spot, and the pond is where Sun-jae teaches Sol to ride a bicycle. If you only have time for one view of the fortress, I’d make it this one.

If you walk past the pond and up the hill to the right, you reach the road toward Changnyongmun gate. Suwon’s city news says it shows up often in the drama as the road where Sol rides bus 34 to and from school. She always gets off here because both families live in Haenggung-dong.

Is Hwaseong Haenggung worth adding?

Buildings of Hwaseong Haenggung palace in Suwon in autumn
Hwaseong Haenggung palace in Suwon, November 2015. Photo: Rtflakfizer, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The palace isn’t on Suwon’s Lovely Runner list. At Hwaseong Haenggung, you’ll pay 2,000 won as an adult, 1,500 won as a teenager or soldier, and 1,000 won for a child. If you’re 65 or older with ID, or your child is 6 or under and not yet in school, entry is free.

The Suwon Cultural Foundation and Suwon’s Hwaseong tourism site both list the palace at 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., winter included, with last entry an hour before closing. VisitKorea’s English page still lists a 5 p.m. close from November to February, so I’d get there by 4 p.m. this winter.

Admission is free on the last Wednesday of each month, the same day the cafe is closed. If you want both, I’d pick another day and pay the 2,000 won.

Honest take

If you’re here for the drama, the free fortress, the stream, and the pond give you more Lovely Runner than the palace does. I’d add the palace only if you still have an hour before last entry. A 4,000-won ticket also covers two Suwon museums, but I’d skip it on a drama day.

The palace’s 2026 night opening ran from May 1 to November 1, Friday to Sunday, so it’s over for 2026. The fortress itself stays open at night, so the late part of your walk doesn’t depend on it.

Yuna’s pick

Only the drama scenes: Sol’s house, King’s Alley, Hwahongmun, Yongyeon pond, then the bus 34 road.

A full afternoon: add the palace before last entry, then the fortress after dark.

Rather not plan it: a Suwon day tour from Seoul, after you check its stop list.

Check Suwon day tour prices on Klook

FAQ

Is Dongtan Lake Park in Suwon?

No. The Gyeonggi Tourism Organization says the final episode’s setting is Dongtan Lake Park, which is in Hwaseong city. Hwaseong city is a different place from Hwaseong Fortress, which is in Suwon.

Can you go inside Sol’s house?

Yes, if you go in as a cafe customer during its hours. The blue-gate house opposite is a private home, so you should stay outside.

Do I need a tour?

No. I’d go on my own, since the buses above and your own feet are enough. Several tour sites sell Suwon day tours from Seoul, and two of those listings mix the drama spots with other stops. Check the stop list for Sol’s house and Hwahongmun before you pay.

Enjoy the walk!

Hwaiting!

Yuna

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Sources and last check

How I put this guide together: from Suwon city’s tourism pages, the Suwon Cultural Foundation, VisitKorea, the Korea Tourism Organization’s Korean article on Haenggung-dong, Suwon city’s news site, and Korean news reports, checked on November 1 and 2, 2026. Scene locations come from those pages. The walking order and the palace advice are my suggestions. More on how I research every guide is on the About page.

Last checked: November 2, 2026. Palace hours and fees can change, so please confirm before you go. This is an independent guide, not affiliated with Suwon city or the drama’s makers.

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Hi, I'm Yuna. I read the Korean-only fine print so your trip doesn't have to start with a puzzle, and then I tell you what I'd pick.

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