A Suwon Day Trip: Hwaseong Fortress, Haenggung-dong & Lovely Runner's Filming Cafe

Suwon’s Haenggung-dong neighborhood, built around the UNESCO World Heritage Hwaseong Fortress, is a genuine day trip from Seoul on its own — and Korean entertainment reporting identifies a cafe there as an Im Sol filming location from “Lovely Runner” (선재 업고 튀어). The photo above shows the fortress itself as general area context; it is not a still from the drama. This guide focuses on what’s actually sourced: the fortress’s official hours and fees, how to get there, where to stay, and a reminder to respect private property along the way.

For other sourced filming locations around Seoul, see Koursea’s 10 K-Drama & K-Pop Filming Locations Near Seoul. This guide goes deep on a single day trip instead.

The Lovely Runner Connection, and Its Limits

Korean entertainment outlet TF News reported a wave of fans visiting and photographing Haenggung-dong filming spots after “Lovely Runner” aired, and WikiTree’s roundup of Suwon drama-filming hotspots names a cafe in the same neighborhood as a key stop. Fan-community posts, including one on fanmaum.com, place that cafe — commonly referred to as Monte-d — at an address on Hwaseomun-ro in Haenggung-dong. None of these is the cafe’s own official page, so treat the exact address, floor, and opening hours as unconfirmed until you check a live map listing or the venue’s own social account.

Respect private property. Fan reporting on this neighborhood references at least one real, occupied private residence associated with an on-screen scene. Koursea does not publish its location. Do not seek out, approach, photograph, or linger at any private home connected to a filming location — here or anywhere else in Haenggung-dong.

Beyond this one cafe, Koursea could not independently confirm which specific scenes, if any, were filmed inside Hwaseong Fortress or Haenggung Palace themselves for this drama. Treat the fortress as the day trip’s main destination in its own right, not as an extension of the filming-location stop.

Getting There from Seoul

Plan your rail journey to Suwon Station (수원역), which Seoul’s official 2026 guidebook lists on Line 1 and the Suin–Bundang Line. Check your departure station, service destination, transfers, and return journey in a live map app before leaving, and allow time for the onward connection below.

The Suwon Cultural Foundation’s official directions give this onward route to Hwaseong Haenggung Palace (화성행궁):

1. Leave Suwon Station through Exit 4 and find the Suwon Station Novotel stop (수원역 노보텔) in front of the hotel.
2. Take city bus 11 or 13 toward Hwaseong Haenggung · Suwon Seongji (화성행궁·수원성지).
3. Get off at that stop and walk about five minutes to the palace. Use the palace as your arrival point before exploring Haenggung-dong.

Bus routes and stop arrangements can change; recheck the official directions and live departures on the day. If you prefer walking from the station, compare the full walking route and your group’s needs in a map app rather than assuming the heritage area is beside the station. For card setup before boarding, see our Seoul transit card guide.

Where to Stay

For a single day trip, most visitors base themselves in Seoul and travel to Suwon and back the same day by rail — check a live map app for your outbound and return connections. If you’d rather stay overnight, lodging clusters near Suwon Station itself (better onward transit) and within walking distance of Haenggung-dong (closer to the fortress and the cafe street, but fewer large hotel options). Koursea’s Suwon Haenggung-dong Cafe Street guide covers the immediate neighborhood if you’re staying inside it.

Hwaseong Fortress and Haenggung Palace: Sourced Hours and Fees

The Suwon Cultural Foundation’s official Haenggung Palace page lists daytime visiting hours as 09:00–18:00 year-round. The same page lists a seasonal night-opening period from May 1 to November 1, 2026, on Fridays, weekends, and public holidays, with entry from 18:00 and closing at 21:30. Admission fees apply for both the daytime and night visits; check the current fee schedule on the same official page rather than relying on a figure quoted elsewhere. These are the hours and dates as read from the Suwon Cultural Foundation’s own page at this guide’s verification date — confirm the live listing before you go, since schedules can still change season to season. Koursea’s Hwaseong Fortress Night Tour guide covers the illuminated night-walk experience itself in more detail.

If your interest is a different drama’s Suwon filming spots, Koursea separately covers Extraordinary Attorney Woo’s filming locations — a different part of the city, not inside Haenggung-dong.

Food and Cafes Beyond Monte-d

Dailian’s travel feature describes Haengridan-gil as one of Suwon’s best-known visitor routes, with architecture and distinctive cafes drawing travelers beyond any one drama location. Koursea’s dedicated cafe street guide lists hanok-courtyard cafes and pastry shops in the immediate area if Monte-d has a wait.

Summary Checklist

• Confirm Monte-d’s current address, hours, and walk-in/reservation policy on the day you go, via a live map listing or its own social account.
• Do not seek out, approach, or photograph any private residence connected to a filming location.
• Save the official Suwon Station–Haenggung Palace directions above, and check live outbound and return connections before you travel.
• Use the Suwon Cultural Foundation’s official page to confirm the current Haenggung Palace daytime hours, night-opening season, and fees.
• Budget time for the wider Haengridan-gil cafe street, not just the one filming spot.

Sources and verification date (2026-10-22): the Suwon Cultural Foundation’s visitor information for daytime and night-opening hours and official directions for the station lines, bus connection, and final walk; TF News, WikiTree, Dailian, and fan-community reporting (fanmaum.com) for the Lovely Runner cafe context and neighborhood background. Live rail timetables and the cafe’s current opening details still need checking before your trip.