Jeju's Studio Ghibli Cafe: Koriko & Dotori Forest Guide
On this page
- Studio Ghibli Cafe Jeju Island: What Koriko Cafe and Dotori Forest Actually Are
- Step 1: Plan Transport Before You Go
- Step 2: Time Your Visit Around the 09–19 Window
- Step 3: Walk Through Dotori Forest First
- Step 4: Order the Jeju-Limited Menu at Koriko Cafe
- Mistakes First-Time Visitors Make
- Frequently Asked Questions
The Studio Ghibli cafe on Jeju Island is Koriko Cafe, the island’s only officially licensed Ghibli space, paired with the Dotori Forest goods shop under one roof in Songdang, Gujwa-eup, on the eastern side of the island. Both now open at 09
and close at 19 daily, an hour earlier than the schedule most map listings still show, and admission to Dotori Forest is free. The complex sits at 1199 Bijarim-ro in Songdang-ri, about an hour east of Jeju International Airport by car. Koriko Cafe is a near-exact rebuild of the Gütiokipänjä bakery where Kiki works in Kiki’s Delivery Service, while Dotori Forest greets you with a stained-glass Totoro, a life-size Catbus, and a row of umbrella-holding Totoro figures under a mocked-up Jeju bus stop sign.Quick answers
- Koriko Cafe and Dotori Forest share one building in Songdang’s “Donghwa Maeul” (fairytale village) complex at 1199 Bijarim-ro, Gujwa-eup, eastern Jeju.
- Both run 09 to 19 daily after the operator’s 1 July change; Dotori Forest’s admission is free, and so is the park around it.
- A Jeju trunk bus out there costs a flat ₩1,150 by transit card (₩1,200 cash), while a taxi meter opens at ₩4,300 for the first 2 km.
Studio Ghibli Cafe Jeju Island: What Koriko Cafe and Dotori Forest Actually Are
Daewon Media, which holds Studio Ghibli’s Korean licensing rights, opened both spaces in early March 2024 as the brand’s first official Jeju outpost. Dotori Forest is the retail half, a goods shop built around My Neighbor Totoro, with the stained-glass Totoro, Catbus, and umbrella figures as its signature photo spots. Koriko Cafe, named after the fictional coastal town in Kiki’s Delivery Service, recreates the Gütiokipänjä bakery from the film rather than just slapping character mugs on a generic menu. Both sit inside Donghwa Maeul, a free open-access theme park that has welcomed visitors since 2023 and offers free parking, so the Ghibli buildings are one stop inside a much larger garden complex rather than a standalone shop. You’ll notice regulars treat it less like a themed photo op and more like an actual bakery-cafe that happens to be Ghibli-branded, and the reproduction is detailed enough to earn that.
Step 1: Plan Transport Before You Go
Rent a car if you can. The complex sits in Songdang-ri, Gujwa-eup, near the Daecheon intersection, roughly an hour east of Jeju International Airport, and public transit out here runs infrequently. If you’d rather not drive, the province publishes exactly what the alternatives cost: a trunk or branch bus is a flat ₩1,150 with a transit card and ₩1,200 in cash for adults, while the faster express routes start at ₩2,000 and cap out at ₩4,000. Tap out at the end of every ride, because Jeju’s published fare rules charge that full express maximum when you skip the exit tag, and they allow up to two discounted transfers within 40 minutes of it. If buses are your plan for the whole trip, it’s worth reading how to get your T-money balance refunded at the airport before you fly home.
A taxi is the other option, and its meter is published too. Jeju’s official fare table opens a medium taxi at ₩4,300 for the first 2 km, then adds ₩100 every 126 m, with a 20% surcharge on trips past 20 km and another 20% between 23
and 04. An airport run out to Songdang clears that 20 km threshold comfortably, so treat the taxi as a splurge rather than the default. However you get there, pair the trip with other eastern Jeju stops like Bijarim Forest, which sits on the same road.Step 2: Time Your Visit Around the 09–19 Window
Dotori Forest and Koriko Cafe keep the same hours daily, 09
to 19. That opening time is the detail most guides still get wrong: the operator announced the shift to a 09 start from 1 July, and third-party map entries have been slow to catch up, so you may still see 10 quoted elsewhere. Last order lands well before closing, which is the trap worth planning around. The official Jeju tourism listing puts last order at 17 as of 2026, with the Dutch baby, fondant au chocolat and meat pie stopping at 17. Arrive close to opening on weekends, since the stained-glass Totoro entrance is the most-photographed spot in the complex and mid-afternoon crowds mean waiting your turn for a clean shot. Early June, before the monsoon arrives, is one of the better windows for an island day trip like this.Step 3: Walk Through Dotori Forest First
Enter through Dotori Forest rather than heading straight for the cafe. It’s free to walk through, and the layout is built as a mini-narrative: the stained-glass Totoro at the door, the Catbus and umbrella-holding Totoro figures further in, and a Jeju-style bus stop replica that ties the Totoro theme to the island itself. Browsing here first also means you’re not carrying a tray of pastries around the goods shelves.
Step 4: Order the Jeju-Limited Menu at Koriko Cafe
Koriko Cafe’s menu leans on local ingredients rather than generic character merchandise. Mini pound cakes and cream lattes are built around Udo peanuts, Sehwa-style roasted barley tea (bori-gaeyeok) and Seongeup matcha, among more than ten Jeju-limited items, and the pound cake line rotates through Jeju hallabong, Aewol lemon and Gujwa carrot as well. Prices aren’t posted online, so read the board when you arrive rather than budgeting from a blog photo. What surprises most first-time visitors is that the food holds up on its own; you’d still order the peanut pound cake even without the Kiki’s Delivery Service branding around it.
Mistakes First-Time Visitors Make
The second common mistake is treating it as a quick 20-minute photo stop. Between browsing Dotori Forest and actually sitting down at Koriko Cafe, most visitors spend closer to an hour here, and rushing means skipping the bakery’s Jeju-limited menu entirely. The third is rolling in around 18
expecting a full menu, now that the kitchen’s last order falls in the late afternoon.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What Ghibli attractions are there on Jeju Island?
Two, and they share a building: Koriko Cafe, the licensed Kiki’s Delivery Service cafe, and Dotori Forest, the Totoro-themed goods shop. Both sit inside the Donghwa Maeul park in Songdang-ri, and there’s no Ghibli museum or theme park anywhere else on the island.
Q: Is the Jeju Ghibli cafe officially licensed by Studio Ghibli?
Yes. Koriko Cafe and Dotori Forest are operated by Daewon Media under an official Studio Ghibli license, not a fan-made or unofficial theme cafe.
Q: Do I need a reservation for Koriko Cafe on Jeju?
No reservation system is in place, so seating is walk-in. Arriving near the 09
opening on weekends helps you avoid the midday queue.Q: How far is Koriko Cafe from Jeju International Airport?
About an hour by car. The complex sits at 1199 Bijarim-ro in Songdang-ri, Gujwa-eup, on the eastern side of the island rather than near Jeju City, and it’s only a few minutes’ drive from the Sangumburi crater if you’re already touring the east.
Q: Is Dotori Forest the same as Studio Ghibli Park in Japan?
No. Dotori Forest is a Korea-only, Totoro-themed goods shop with free admission, sharing a building with Koriko Cafe. Studio Ghibli Park in Aichi is a separate, much larger theme park unrelated to this Jeju location.
Q: What does it cost to reach the Jeju Ghibli cafe by bus?
A flat ₩1,150 with a transit card, or ₩1,200 in cash, on Jeju’s trunk and branch routes. Express routes start at ₩2,000 and are capped at ₩4,000, and tapping out on exit lets you transfer twice within 40 minutes.
Between the Totoro goods shop and Kiki’s rebuilt bakery, this is one of the few spots on Jeju where the Ghibli branding earns its keep instead of just decorating a standard cafe menu.
