The A-Train: Korea's Jeongseon Arirang Train
One train a day into the mountains of Gangwon, timed for a five-day market and the river of the Arirang song
On market days in Jeongseon, the stalls run for hundreds of metres along the streets, selling buckwheat pancakes, sorghum cakes, mountain herbs and roots. One train a day comes to meet them. The Jeongseon Arirang Train, the A-train, leaves the junction town of Jecheon at two minutes past nine, climbs east into the old coal country of Gangwon and reaches Jeongseon at about eleven. Then it runs on to Auraji, where two mountain streams meet and, in the story Jeongseon tells of its Arirang song, two lovers were kept apart by the river.
It is the only passenger train on the Jeongseon Line, and the line has just come back. A rockfall in February 2024 closed it for more than two years, and the train returned on 22 May 2026, newly fitted out, with big windows that reach to the ceiling. It waits at Auraji for nearly six hours and leaves again at twenty past five, so a whole day in the valley comes with the ticket.
How this page was madeWe have not ridden the A-train, and we have not yet been to Korea. This page is built from Korail’s announcement of the 2026 service as reported in the Korean press, the Korea Tourism Organization, Jeongseon County, and the few accounts we could find by people who rode it. The one ride account and the descriptions of life on board date from 2015, before the 2026 refit, and we say so where they appear. When we ride it, we will say so here.
Last updated 6 November 2026
The route
The A-train runs east from Jecheon on the Taebaek Line to Mindungsan, then follows the Jeongseon Line to Jeongseon town and Auraji. The Jeongseon Line was built for coal in the 1960s and reached Jeongseon in January 1967. When the government closed the mines from the late 1980s, the coal trains went, and floods in 2002 cut the line beyond Auraji. Passenger trains have ended at Auraji since 2004.
The A-train began on 22 January 2015, running from Seoul. Its name stands for Arirang, and for amazement and adventure. In February 2024 a large rockfall between Mindungsan and Byeoreogok damaged the track, and for more than two years no train reached Jeongseon. Korail has fitted rockfall protection at 13 places along the line, refitted the carriages and added racks for eight bicycles. Since May 2026 the train starts at Jecheon rather than Seoul: you change at Jecheon from the KTX-Eum or ITX-Maeum.
Before the closure the train also called at Yeongwol, Yemi, Mindungsan, Byeoreogok, Seonpyeong and Najeon. Reports of the 2026 service name only Jeongseon and Auraji, so check the stops for your day on Korail.
What the rail journey is like
Few people have written about riding the A-train, and nobody we could find has written about it since it came back in 2026. The best account is Son Go-eun’s, for the Seoul Shinmun in April 2015, when snow still lay on Mindungsan. Heading into the mountains, she watched from a left-hand window, opened it and found the air sweet and clear. The train slowed for the view, and she counted seven tunnels after Jamiwon, a halt about 660 metres up. All the while the Arirang song was playing, a song she admitted she mostly did not know.
Music on board was part of the plan from the launch. In 2015 the Korea JoongAng Daily described singers with a janggu drum performing Arirang in the carriage by the snack bar, with passengers invited to join in or take the microphone. Korea.net wrote that the song played almost constantly. We found nothing on what happens on board since the refit, apart from a performance by the Jeongseon Arirang Arts Troupe on the first day back.
Arirang is a folk song sung across Korea in thousands of versions, and UNESCO added it to its list of intangible heritage in 2012. Jeongseon’s Arirang is counted among the oldest versions. Jeongseon County tells the story behind some of its verses: a young man and woman on opposite banks at Auraji, kept apart when the river rose. Korea.net, writing from Jeongseon in 2015, gave the refrain as “Arirang, arirang, arariyo”, with a call to be taken over the Arirang pass.
At Auraji, walk out onto the footbridge where the two streams meet. Watch the water come together under you from two valleys and leave as one. This is the place where, in the county’s story, the river kept the lovers apart. Stand there for a while before you go and find lunch.
The market is the other half of the day. In 2015 Son Go-eun found the stalls stretching about 800 metres, and bought deodeok, a mountain root, haggling for a little extra. The county lists buckwheat pancakes, sorghum cakes, gondeure rice and noodles, alongside dried wild vegetables and farm produce.
The stages
Times are from Korail’s announcement of the May 2026 service; the time at Jeongseon is from press reports. Intermediate times were not published, so check them on Korail for your day.
| Stage | From → to | Time | What you see, and which side | Stops and changes | Main constraint |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Into Gangwon | Jecheon → Yeongwol → Yemi → Mindungsan | Leaves 09:02 | The Taebaek Line climbs into the mountains of Gangwon | Jecheon, where passengers from Seoul change | Reach Jecheon in good time; the train will not wait |
| 2 · The coal valleys | Mindungsan → Byeoreogok → Seonpyeong → Jeongseon | Arrives Jeongseon about 11:00 | The Jeongseon Line, through valleys mined for coal until the 1980s, and the tunnels after Jamiwon | Jeongseon, for the market | This is the stretch the rockfall closed in 2024 |
| 3 · To the meeting of the waters | Jeongseon → Najeon → Auraji | Arrives 11:33 | The Korea JoongAng Daily, in June 2026, picked this stretch as the highlight; no source names a better side | Auraji, the end of the line | Nearly six hours until the train back at 17:20 |
Stops worth breaking the journey for
With one train each way, “breaking the journey” means choosing where to spend the day between the morning train and the evening one. You can get off at Jeongseon in the morning, but the return time there is not published; the sure way back is the 17:20 from Auraji.
Jecheon
Where the train starts and passengers from Seoul change. Uirimji, one of the oldest reservoirs in Korea, is free to walk round, if you arrive the night before.
Mindungsan
A mountain of 1,118 metres whose upper slopes are covered in silver grass, which holds a festival in autumn (2 October to 15 November in 2025). It is where the Jeongseon Line begins; whether the 2026 train stops here is not confirmed.
Jeongseon
The county town and its five-day market, on dates ending in 2 or 7, from 9am to 6pm. A county bus tour leaves the station at 11:20 on train days for the market, Hwaam Cave and Auraji, for about 10,000 to 15,000 won.
Auraji
The end of the line, where the Songcheon and Golji streams meet. Timber rafts once set off from here for Seoul. A rail bike runs 7.2 km from Gujeol-ri to Auraji in 30 to 40 minutes; check the operator for times.
Planning the journey
Where to sit
We found no source that names a better side. The line follows rivers through the valleys, and the water is sometimes on one side, sometimes the other. In 2015 Son Go-eun watched from the left on the way in. The carriages were designed for the view, and after the 2026 refit the windows reach to the ceiling, so any window seat will do.
Booking, passes and fares
Jecheon to Auraji is 10,200 won, as announced by Korail in May 2026. A Korean blog gives Jecheon to Jeongseon as 8,700 won. Korail shows the fare when you book.
Book on Korail’s website or the KORAIL Talk app, where the A-train is listed under tourist trains, or at a station. We found nothing reliable on how far ahead booking opens, and nothing saying the Korea Rail Pass covers it, so check before you rely on it; our page on the Korea Rail Pass sets out what it does cover. On market days and during the Arirang festival in early October, check that seats remain before you set off.
One way or there and back?
There and back, in a day. The train reaches Jeongseon at about 11:00 and Auraji at 11:33, and leaves Auraji at 17:20 for Jecheon at 19:49. You can spend the day at the market in Jeongseon, take the county bus tour to Auraji, or ride to the end and walk by the rivers. From Seoul, the first KTX-Eum leaves Cheongnyangni at 05:40 and reaches Jecheon in about an hour and five minutes, according to a booking site. We could not confirm a train back to Seoul after 19:49, so check before you go, or stay the night in Jecheon or Jeongseon.
Travelling with a mobility need, and luggage
The Korea Tourism Organization’s accessibility listing, which is undated, shows no accessible toilet, lift or accessible carriage on the A-train, and a stepped entrance. We found nothing newer from Korail since the refit, so ask Korail before you book. There are racks for eight bicycles. We found nothing on luggage, so travel light.
If the journey breaks down
This line has been closed before, more than once:
- Rockfalls are the risk on this line. The February 2024 fall closed it for over two years. Korail has added rockfall protection, but after heavy rain or snow, check Korail on the day.
- Engineering works closed Mindungsan to Auraji from February 2021 to spring 2022. The service can change at short notice, so confirm the day’s train before you set off.
- There is one train back. If you miss the 17:20, plan on a night in Jeongseon; we found no reliable public transport timetable for the evening.
A final word on the A-train
A train that comes back to the mountains once a day, on the days the market is on, and gives you six hours in the valley of one of the oldest Arirang songs. Go on a market day, eat something made with buckwheat, and be at Auraji for the 17:20.
Andrew + Margaret
- Rail journeys Journeys
- The V-Train Journeys
- Visiting South Korea Overview
- Getting around South Korea Practical
- Do you need the Korea Rail Pass? Practical
- Korail: timetables and booking Official
- Jeongseon County: the five-day market Official
- UNESCO: Arirang, lyrical folk song Culture
- Jeongseon Arirang, the folk song of the valley, in its many recorded versions Music
Does the A-train still leave from Seoul?
No. Since May 2026 it starts at Jecheon. Take the KTX-Eum or ITX-Maeum from Seoul to Jecheon and change there.
Which days does it run?
Saturdays, Sundays and Jeongseon’s market days, which fall on dates ending in 2 or 7. Check Korail for your date.