Busan

Is Busan safe?

Yes. Busan is a very safe city, and we score it 86 out of 100, one point below Seoul. Korean police recorded 17 homicides in Busan in 2025, about 0.5 per 100,000 of its roughly 3.3 million people, and 35 robberies. The UK Foreign Office calls crime against foreigners in South Korea rare.

Busan loses its point to Seoul on the roads and the weather, not on crime. It is South Korea's second city and its biggest port, built along a long coastline and up steep hills, so typhoon waves, summer floods and hillside traffic matter more here than street crime. For entry rules and the North Korea question, see our South Korea page.

Crime and scams for visitors

Theft is the most common crime visitors could meet, and even that is modest. Police recorded 14,351 thefts in Busan in 2025, about a quarter more per resident than in Seoul. The busiest spots are Haeundae beach in July and August, when towels and phones are left on the sand, Seomyeon's nightlife streets, and the Nampo-dong and Jagalchi market area. Lost phones and wallets are often handed in.

The tricks to watch for are small ones:

• Taxis from Gimhae Airport that skip the meter or quote a flat fare. Use the official rank, Kakao T or the metro.
• Bar tabs that grow while you are not looking. Pay as you go.
• Seafood restaurants in tourist strips with no prices on the tank. Agree the price per kilo before they cook.

The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary notes assaults, including sexual assaults, around bars and nightlife areas in South Korea. Police recorded 1,494 rapes and sexual assaults in Busan in 2025, fewer per resident than in Seoul. Drug laws are very strict: the FCDO says British nationals have been detained on drug test results alone.

Walking at night

Busan is comfortable after dark. Seomyeon, the Haeundae and Gwangalli beachfronts and the area around Busan Station stay lit and busy late, and the metro runs until around midnight. Gallup's 2025 Global Safety Report found that 80% of South Koreans feel safe walking alone at night, a little above Japan's 78%.

The same habits as in Seoul apply. Illegal filming with hidden cameras is a national problem, so choose established hotels, look for odd objects facing the bed or the toilet, and report anything suspicious on 112. Big crowd events, such as the Busan fireworks festival over Gwangalli beach, call for the caution Korea has adopted since the 2022 Itaewon crush: follow the marked routes and leave early if the crowd stops moving.

Roads and hills

This is Busan's weakest everyday factor. The Korea Road Traffic Authority counted 111 road deaths in Busan in 2025, about 3.4 per 100,000 people, and Hong Kong's Transport Department puts Busan at 31 deaths per million in 2024 against Seoul's 23 (and Tokyo's 9 in 2025). Busanjin district, which covers Seomyeon, had the most deaths (21).

Much of the city is built on slopes, and lanes in areas such as Gamcheon and the hills above Busan Station have no pavement, sharp corners and buses squeezing past. Delivery motorbikes ride on pavements, and drivers turning right often do not stop for people crossing. If you drive, Korean police usually treat the driver as at fault in a crash with a pedestrian, and the FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary warns that injuring someone can lead to criminal charges.

Typhoons, floods and air

Busan sits on the typhoon track. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary gives the season as June to November, and the city's seafront has taken direct hits: in October 2016 Typhoon Chaba drove waves higher than 8 metres over the seawall at Marine City in Haeundae, flooding the streets of the luxury tower district. Heavy rain is the other danger. In July 2020 three people drowned when the Choryang underpass near Busan Station filled with water during a downpour.

During typhoon or heavy rain alerts, keep off beaches, harbour walls and riverside paths, avoid underpasses and basement car parks, and expect ferries and flights to stop. Strong earthquakes are unusual in South Korea, says the FCDO.

Air is better than in Seoul. Busan's annual PM2.5PM2.5Tiny airborne particles 2.5 micrometres across or smaller. They reach deep into the lungs and are the air pollutant most linked to early death.More in the glossary was 15 µg/m³ in 2025, the lowest of Korea's seven largest cities for the sixth year running, according to the city's Institute of Health and Environment, though still three times the WHO guideline. Spring yellow dust brings bad days; KF94 masks are sold in every convenience store. Pusan National University Hospital and other large hospitals give good care.

For a ferry hop to Japan, see our Fukuoka page.

How we scored it

Violent crime (94), walking at night (88) and theft and scams (86) are all strong, within a point or two of Seoul. Health and environment (81) scores above Seoul's 78 because the air is cleaner. Traffic (80) and natural hazards (75) are the weakest factors, because of a road death rate about half again Seoul's and the city's exposure to typhoons and flash floods.