Oedo

Geoje, South Korea, South Korea

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Oedo is a small offshore island near Geoje in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea, that has been transformed from a barren, rocky island into a famous marine botanical garden known as Oedo Botania, located within Hallyeohaesang National Park. In 1969, Lee Chang-ho (also reported as Lee Sang Ho) and his wife Choi Ho-suk settled on the island, initially trying to grow tangerines and raise pigs, but after those efforts failed they gradually developed the island into a garden with more than 3,000 plant species, including many subtropical and exotic plants such as cacti, palms, agave, eucalyptus, and bottlebrush bushes suited to Oedo’s mild, slightly subtropical coastal climate. Today, Oedo is one of Geoje’s busiest tourist attractions, reached by ferry from several ports on Geoje Island, with visitors typically spending about one to two hours on a guided walking tour that winds through flower gardens, manicured topiaries, statues, and coastal rock formations, and the island also features notable geological features and around 100 Cretaceous dinosaur footprints designated as provincial cultural heritage. The garden’s development was officially approved in 1976, and Oedo Maritime Botanical Garden formally opened to the public in 1995, making it a celebrated example of how a couple’s vision and long-term cultivation turned an isolated island into a tropical-style “secret garden” in the waters off southern Korea.