Yeosu Geomundo Sea Route 'Wide Open'

New Passenger Ship 'Hamelho' Launches Between Yeosu and Geomun

Two Round Trips Daily, 2 Hours Travel Time

The regular passenger ferry ‘Hamel’ operating between Yeosu and Geomun has newly launched, fully opening the sea route to Geomundo.

According to Yeosu City in Jeollanam-do, on the afternoon of the 5th, a launching ceremony for the regular passenger ferry ‘Hamel’ between Yeosu and Geomun was held at the Yeosu Expo Terminal, hosted by KT Marine shipping company, with about 150 attendees including Mayor Jeong Gi-myeong, National Assembly member Joo Cheol-hyun, shipping company officials, and village residents.

[Photo by Yeosu City]

The ‘Hamel’ is a super high-speed large passenger ship with a scale of 590 tons, a passenger capacity of 430, and a maximum speed of 40 knots, operating on the Yeosu~Naro-do~Sonjuk~Chodo~Geomun route.

It is scheduled to operate round trips twice a day, in the morning and afternoon, and the travel time between Yeosu and Geomun is about 2 hours and 10 minutes, shortening the previous voyage time of over 3 hours, which is expected to greatly improve the living conditions of island residents.

Until now, the Yeosu~Geomun route had been causing inconvenience to residents due to frequent cancellations caused by the expiration of the existing regular passenger ferry’s service life and aging vessels, as well as reduced accessibility for ferry users due to only one round trip per day.

In response, Yeosu City has been exploring various measures such as shipping company recruitment, ordinance amendments, and meetings with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to stabilize the Yeosu~Geomun route. Last year, due to a long-term cancellation of about 10 days, the local government took an extraordinary measure to secure a ‘backup ship,’ rather than the shipping company or the local maritime office.

The newly launched ‘Hamel’ is a passenger ship operated by KT Marine, selected through a public contest by the maritime office, and after final operational review procedures by the maritime office, official operation is scheduled to begin around the 20th. Yeosu City plans to support KT Marine for the next 10 years with ship depreciation costs and operational deficits.

At the launching ceremony, Mayor Jeong Gi-myeong of Yeosu said, “Our city, which has the second largest number of islands in Jeollanam-do and is preparing for the 2026 Yeosu World Islands Expo, has an important responsibility to secure maritime transportation rights for island residents.” He added, “I am very pleased that the ferry, a long-standing wish of island residents, is newly launched, and we will strive even harder to provide safer maritime transportation services.”