BTS In the Soop Pyeongchang Tour: Phoenix Resort Guide

Hey ARMY!

(ARMY Hi!)

I booked this back in December last year,

and finally, I went on the HanaTour In the SOOP Tour!!!!!​

HanaTour: [Gangwon] In the SOOP BTS Edition 'Pyeongchang' Filming Site Tour, Gangneung (Gangwon), South Korea: Bus Tour/Train Tourfnd.hanatour.com

To the boys,

and to all of us ARMY, Pyeongchang was a place of pure healing in In the SOOP Season 2...

Pyeongchang...

You can't actually visit this place on your own.

Thanks to an exclusive contract between HanaTour and HYBE,

it was only accessible through HanaTour's official travel package!

*2026 UPDATE

Unfortunately, the HanaTour package is no longer on sale,

but the filming site is now open to guests staying at Phoenix Pyeongchang!

The IN THE SOOP Filming Site

It's such a beautiful place,

so I highly recommend every ARMY visit at least once!

​----------------------------------------------------------

There were two options: a day-trip Bus Tour and a 1-night stay package at Phoenix Pyeongchang.

I chose the Bus Tour!

Bus Tour: ~$95

In February, departures were on Saturdays and Mondays,

and in March, they were on Saturdays and Sundays.

Running twice a week!!!

(Minimum group size: 10 people)

8:00 AM

We departed from in front of the CenterMark Hotel in Jonggak.

(I even booked a night at the CenterMark just for this... Talk about dedication!!)

The driver lol... he peeled off the HanaTour sign and put it up higher so it was easily visible.

Brought my In the SOOP photocards for the trip~~~~

Only Kim Seokjin could pull off that flashy Louis Vuitton look...

The BT21 babies joining me on today's tour...

And the Hanjanz...

The itinerary for the February tour was:

8:00 AM Departure

Iryeong Station (where the 'Spring Day' M/V was filmed)

Gapyeong Service Area

Arrive at Phoenix Pyeongchang and transfer to the shuttle bus

In the SOOP Pyeongchang Filming Site

And back to Seoul!

That was the plan.

The official itinerary said we'd finish at 6:30 PM,

but on weekends, extreme traffic can delay the return.

(Our guide estimated we'd get back around 7:30 PM to 8:00 PM...)

Fortunately, we had a master driver and arrived back at CenterMark by 7:00 PM!

True to being an ARMY Bus,

the entire playlist was BTS... hahaha.

They had them loaded on a USB.

They are legally downloaded files, right, Mr. Guide...?

(Next time, can we just connect via Bluetooth and stream on Melon...? ^.~)

After driving for a while, we arrived at Iryeong Station!

The 'Spring Day' M/V sign has faded quite a bit over the years.

It's currently a closed, abandoned station,

but our guide mentioned they plan to resume operations by late this year or next year.

That's why there were a couple of temporary container offices in front of the station...

Though, the station building itself looks so old, I wonder if it might take longer...?

(Once trains start running again, you won't be able to just walk around like this... Go this year, fellow ARMYs!)

Hahaha, our guide's bias was Jimin,

so it was incredibly cute that they brought a Chimmy plush...

My mutual who came with me posted it on Twitter,

and it got so many likes, retweets, and quotes... wow...

Instead of "Follow the sound of the pipe" ~~~

It's "Follow the sound of Chimmy" ~~~~~~

From the start of the official 'Spring Day' M/V up to 35 seconds!

Iryeong Station was the backdrop for the intro.

And the season was winter...

Even though there wasn't any snow,

it was still amazing!

Haha, I really wanted to kneel down on the tracks and lay my face against the rail like Taehyung did,

but considering my social standing(?) and dignity...

Tata, Yamyam, and Jehee did it on my behalf instead.

RK is here with us, too...

Taking selfies only when in a great mood

(Because looking at selfies usually ruins my mood.. haha)

The bus we took for our tour!

It would've been awesome if it was a premium deluxe bus, but...

It was a standard 48-seater bus.

The tour crew consisted of 31 ARMYs + driver + our guide.

33 people in total!!!

Honestly, it wasn't too uncomfortable!

And every couple of rows (?) - there were 2 outlets for every 4 seats.

Keeping our phones charged all day was an absolute breeze~~~

After wrapping up our free time at Ilyeong Station,

our next destination was...

Ga!pyeong! Service! Area!

From Jungkook's vlog,

where Jungkook did an epic food broadcast eating tornado potatoes, so-tteok so-tteok, sweet potato sticks, and sweet & sour shrimp chicken...

He really devoured everything there...

Gapyeong Service Area also has a pet park,

so it was incredibly crowded!

Hahaha

A special perk of the Hana Tour:

Free service area snacks!

Tornado Potatoes

So-tteok So-tteok (Sausage and Rice Cake Skewers)

Sweet Potato Sticks

You could choose 1 out of these 3 options.

So-tteok So-tteok: 8 people

Sweet Potato Sticks: 3 people

Tornado Potatoes: 20 people

Hahaha!

The reason I remember exactly what everyone chose is...

Out of the 31 ARMYs, my friend and I were the only K-ARMYs...

The service area was so packed and chaotic

that our tour guide asked us for a helping hand!

So I stood at the head of the So-tteok So-tteok line to hand them out, lol

while my friend stood in the tornado potato line, handing them out and keeping count...

and the guide ran around paying for everything and quickly grabbed the 3 sweet potato sticks to hand them out...

Talk about ultimate teamwork to speed things up!

Since we absolutely HAD to eat everything our foodie king Jungkook ate,

besides the tornado potato,

we bought the so-tteok so-tteok, sweet potato sticks, and sweet & sour shrimp separately with our own money.

*A Quick Warning!*

The sweet & sour shrimp is priced by weight (per gram).

If you scoop without thinking, you'll end up paying the price of a whole chicken for just a few pieces of shrimp...

(Jungkook might have one, but we don't have his famous "Black Card"...

we gasped when we saw the final price at checkout!)

After our service area free time and food tour,

we were finally off to Pyeongchang!!!!!

Once we arrived at Phoenix Pyeongchang,

we transferred to a shuttle bus and rode for about 15 to 20 minutes.

You have to go deep inside to actually reach the filming location.

Our guide and Chimmy, still keeping us company at Phoenix!

"Follow the sound of Chimmy~~~~"

While the guide was explaining,

I snapped a quick pic with superstar Chimmy.

Hahaha

The shuttle bus is a smaller bus that only holds about 20 people,

so we had to split into two groups...

Depending on the crowd, they might run 2 shuttles?

Or a shuttle + a Starex van...

Since you'll feel so much better riding the official "In the SOOP" themed shuttle,

make sure to board early!

It would have been so cool if the inside of the bus was decorated too...

But it was just a plain, ordinary bus on the inside.

(HYBE, please spend a bit more money here...)

Before hopping on the bus, I checked out the In the SOOP merch store...

(The stock was pretty limited, and a lot of the sizes were sold out)

The thing I wanted most was these In the SOOP slippers, but...

Since other groups under the same label are filming In the SOOP now, and the characters are the same...

"Are we seriously taking the bus all the way up here??"

Just as you're wondering that while winding up the mountain road...

We arrived!!!!

The pure excitement of knowing I was walking the very same path the members took,

and at the same time,

a bittersweet feeling of realizing they had to come this far out, completely secluded, just to enjoy some true freedom...

It was a mix of emotions.

The In the SOOP filming site, with the snow still clinging to the ground.

Dun dun dun!

Even the camper van where Yoongi stayed!!!!!!!!!!!! 😭😭😭

Our HYBE staff guide...

Since it happened to be Hobi's birthday on the day of my visit,

they said they had decorated Hobi's room beautifully to celebrate! :-)

A quick tour of Buildings A, B, and C!

We had about an hour and a half to 1 hour and 40 minutes of free time at the site.

...The perks of being a K-ARMY!

Haha, just kidding...

Since there were only two Koreans and the rest were international fans,

the guide kindly gave us a quick explanation first

and let us go ahead to take a look.

(Since they had to explain everything again in Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, and other languages afterward!)

And we were told we could view the indoors without masks since the safety guidelines had been relaxed..!

The In the SOOP filming site consists of three buildings!

(They used to be a private pension/villa before)

Building A is the main lounge where the members hung out together.

(The place where Namjoon read books, and the members worked out, played games, cooked, watched the Olympics, danced, and sang)

**You have to take off your shoes and change into indoor slippers!**

A massive framed photo from the PTD concert!

And on the living room table,

there are postcards you can use to write messages to the members.

(There is exactly one per person, so please don't take two...)

From banquet noodles (janchi-guksu) to Jungkook's boiled pork (suyuk)...

The kitchen area where all those delicious meals were born!

Aww, look at our fresh-faced boys... 🥺😭

And of course, taking a quick selfie because I was in the absolute best mood... 🤳

The forest gym...

LOL, ARMYs are so transparent! 😂

Nobody hangs around the forest gym for long.

Hahaha 🤣🤣🤣

The things we absolutely refuse to copy: working out and studying English

LOL, too real! 💀

But since the photo booth is located inside the forest gym,

it's way more efficient to take your photos first before checking out the rest of the house..!

You can only choose one member to take a photo with...

And because a staff member stands right next to you to press the button,

it's a little embarrassing... 😳

But I just pretended Seokjin was right there next to me

and put my hand on his shoulder...

You take two shots and can only choose one to keep.

(I mean, Seventeen even got those Life Four Cuts-style photo frames... why not BTS? 😭)

Super fluffy slippers

...

(Well, for ~$25, they'd better be this fluffy! 😭)

During filming, this was the space where the members played games,

but now, all the computers are gone and it’s a cozy mini cinema!

They said filming the screen inside is prohibited,

but they were playing In the SOOP Season 2...

After quickly snapping some pictures,

I headed back out to the living room and went upstairs to the 2nd floor.

The second floor features the cozy space where Namjoon used to read.

(Well, of course, other members read here too... haha, but this was mostly RM's spot!)

The Most Beautiful Moment in Life (Hwayangyeonhwa)

It looked absolutely massive on TV,

but in reality, it wasn't quite *that* huge.

And the rubber-band powered model airplane hanging in the living room!

The one Hobi really wanted to make in Season 1,

and I remember how thrilled he was that they brought it over for Season 2!

"You're still alive, my friend!"

The ultimate brand ambassadors, BTS! 💜

Both the water purifier and the air purifier are Coway!

There's even a stamp station! 🐾

The outdoor table where they had dinner

while constantly worrying about bugs! 🦟

The pool where they used to float on tubes is completely frozen solid! ❄️

Hahaha! The trampoline that the members jumped on so excitedly... anyway... 😂

Hahahahaha!

(Unfortunately, we can only look at this with our eyes 🥲)

House B! 🏡

House B actually has two different entrance doors...

Jin, Suga, and Jimin stayed here in House B! 💜

The very first place we checked out was...

Jimin's room! 🐥

The restroom in the main building is available for visitors to use,

and as for the rooms where the members stayed,

you can sit on the sofas, but...

The bed and clothes are for eyes only! 👀 Please do not touch.

Since all areas are being monitored by CCTV,

let's avoid doing anything embarrassing, okay? ~~~

Such lifelike movement...

You might wonder, "Why a caravan all of a sudden right after Jimin's room? Huh?"...

But that's because the other rooms were packed with fellow ARMYs! 😭

It definitely requires some strategic timing!

Seizing the moment when the outdoor areas were empty,

I quickly swept through the outside first,

planning to head back to the other members' rooms once they quiet down... [!]

Talk about strategic time management!

The basketball hoop where the members used to play and run around!

There was even a basketball left there, but

the ground was unfortunately way too muddy 😭😭😭😭😭😭

It instantly reminded me of the maknae line playing basketball in the rain...

and dear Bam who went absolutely crazy whenever he saw a ball... 🥺😭

A panoramic view of the In the SOOP filming site 🌲

(Ugh, makes me really want to buy the Galaxy S23...)

The postcard I scribbled down quickly earlier.

They said the staff collects these and actually delivers them to the members!

(Is that RE-ALLY true???)

I have no idea if they’ll actually read them, but hey, at least they do collect them!

Finally...

Jin's room!

On the very sofa where Seokjin laid down so comfortably,

I lay down too! 😉

(But the photo of me lying there is a se-cret! 🤫)

Wait, isn't this bed literally just a super single size...?

I was actually shocked by how small it was!

But then again, our Seokjin sleeps so perfectly still and polite... 😂💜

Written in every room is

"What In the SOOP means to me..."

Jimin said, "The most restful rest,"

but as for Seokjin...

hahahahahahahaha

"A travel agency."

Like a packaged tour agency

planning customized itineraries... lol

I think I took the most photos in Seokjin's room...

The former roommates

Roommates in In the SOOP too... (or maybe housemates..?)

What In the SOOP means to Yoongi:

"Complete relaxation"

The next spot is...!

Moving over to Building C

for today's birthday boy...

J-HOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO J-HOPE

How are our fingers so synchronized?!

Since there were other ARMYs inside,

I tried my best to snap photos without getting them in the frame... lol

Hobi's birthday celebration scene!

(A Hobi birthday party without Hobi)

What "In the SOOP" means to J-Hope

"A different rhythm of life than usual"

The room next to Hobi's belongs to...

The '94-liners!

Namjoon's room!

If you head up the stairs to the 2nd floor,

you'll find Namjoon's bedroom (?)

Hahaha, it totally reminded me of when Jin came up to wake him up for a meal

and said, "Oh, it's a bit scary up here..."

Ah, the memories... lol

Lololol, and what's with all those puffer jackets piled up down there?

It's where all the ARMYs shed their heavy winter coats...

(Meanwhile, my jacket is way over in Building A...) Hahaha

Successfully tried on all three types of slippers!

The lyrics to Namjoon's "Bicycle"

It would have been even better if the paintings the members did were still on display here...

What "In the SOOP" means to Namjoon

"Time spent as the seven members of BTS"

As soon as I saw that, I instantly teared up, T_T

I even pulled out a single tissue from the box next to Namjoon's bed...

T_T

My heart just swelled!

Next up, Taehyung's room!

To Taehyung, 'In the SOOP' meant,

"A time for tanning."

This is where he had his saxophone lessons via video call!

And now for the grand finale!

On the way to Jungkook's room...

It's the furthest room inside, so they probably put up a sign just in case someone missed it,

Haha!

Bam's photo frame is just too cute...

And the paw print stickers of Bam on the floor are just beyond adorable!

Jungkook, wearing that polka dot sweatshirt

and eating bibim-myeon, was truly so adorable...

To Jungkook, 'In the SOOP' meant,

"Gratitude."

Even Bam's nose work mat, where he used to play, is still there!

Haha, since Jungkook was so thorough about packing all his daily essentials,

we thought it would be hilarious if his room was completely empty,

lol but thankfully, some of his things are still on display!

The abandoned house that had Hobi practically screaming...

unfortunately, we had to settle for viewing it from a safe distance! haha

Haha~

The caravan doors were locked, so we couldn't take a peek inside.

Knowing our time here was wrapping up, it felt so bittersweet.

We kept looking at the same spots over and over, lingering just a little bit longer...

Haha, why is there an egg tart box under the sink though...? 🥚🥧

If that photobooth actually charged money...

They would make an absolute fortune... 💸

Even the dumbbells and water bottles are so purple~~ 💜

Hahaha, Hobi jumping even higher than Bam... 🐶

Hahaha, I think this was when they were watching the Olympic archery matches...

I also tried sitting on the sofa where Seokjin sat~

Typical Korean thing:

I couldn't help but laugh seeing Hobi sitting on the floor instead of the sofa! 😂

If they sold a postcard set with these photos,

HYBE, you guys could have bought JYP stocks with that money.

(...just kidding!)

Taking one last photo before leaving as the tour ends! 📸

The special gift our tour guide gave us—

Hobi's Birthday Special Benefit!!!!!! 🐿️🎂

... It feels so much more special because you can only get it if you actually visit.

Lingering around, taking one more look at the gift shop.

Ending with a photo of the caravan, which I was sad I couldn't see the inside of...

And that's a wrap on my Hana Tour "In the SOOP BTS Ver." Pyeongchang Tour review...! 🌲✨