All The Cheese! Imsil Cheese Theme Park in Korea

On a road trip through Korea, I was driving from the Bamboo forest to Tapsa Temple, jamming to some tunes, when I saw a huge, yellow cheese-wheel shaped building in the middle of nowhere. I had to check it out. Turns out I stumbled upon the Imsil Cheese Theme Park, a cheese oasis in the middle of the Korean peninsula.

So, What's the Cheesy Deal?

Up until a few decades ago, most people in Korea had never heard of cheese, let alone tasted it or made it. It’s the last place you’d expect to find a beautifully manicured plot of land inspired by a Swiss village dedicated to everything cheese - I bring to you, the Imsil Cheese Theme Park.

It all began in 1958, when a Belgian priest came to Imsil in the Jeollabuk-do region of Korea as a missionary. Instead of only serving the Catholics in the town, the governor of Imsil asked him to work for the whole community. Korea was going through a rough economic time, and the priest thought teaching the skill of cheese making would benefit the community long term.

So began Korea’s love affair with cheese, and the small county of Imsil is the mecca.

The Imsil Cheese Theme Park, opened in 2004, is a cheese heaven where you can learn about cheese, make cheese, eat cheesy grub, ride down the slide past the goats to the Cheese Playland, and stroll the walkways checking out the cheese-wheel buildings and various cartoon statues that dot the park.

Exploring the Imsil Cheese Park

The park has a number of buildings: a few cheese experience centers where you can make cheese, a promotion center, milk processing factory, local specialty shop, two restaurants, and a Cheese Science Lab that researches different methods for making the best cheese.

Both kids and adults can get in on the cheese making fun. You can make your own cheese and rice pizza with it. Or you can use the milk from the local goats to make natural soap. The Cheese Theme Park is open Tuesday thru Sunday 10:00-18:00, closed on major holidays.

More info at the official cheesy website