Baksal 2 K-Island Jeju: A Trick Art Museum Visit With Kids

Baksal 2: K-Island Jeju (박살2: K-아일랜드제주) is an indoor trick art and media art museum in the Jungmun Tourist Complex in Seogwipo. It opened on May 29, 2026 in the space that used to be the Jeju branch of the Museum Is Alive (박물관은 살아있다). We visited on a Thursday afternoon in July 2026 because our son had been asking to go for weeks. This is how our visit to the Jeju trick art museum went, what it costs, and what to expect if your kids know the old version.

What Baksal 2 is

The building used to house the Museum Is Alive, a trick art museum built around optical illusion paintings. In 2026 it was renovated and reopened as Baksal 2: K-Island Jeju, with the rooms rebuilt around five Jeju themes: tangerines, stone, gotjawal forest, the sea and wind. Most rooms are painted illusions you pose in front of, with a mark on the floor showing where to stand, and some have media art and interactive games.

Our son’s pick, and a small letdown

This stop was our son’s idea. He had seen the Museum Is Alive online and had been asking to go for weeks before the trip. When we got there, that version had ended and the renovated Baksal 2 had taken its place. He was disappointed at the door, because it was not the museum he had been looking forward to.

If your kids have their heart set on something they saw in an older video, check what is running now before you go. Attractions like this change their rooms, and a quick look at recent photos can save a sulk at the entrance.

The illusion rooms

Once we were inside, our daughter took over. She posed in almost every room: trapped in a glass box on Jeju stone, clinging to a rock with a painted wave breaking behind her, leaning out of pop-art frames, driving a tangerine-shaped car and standing in a giant frame full of clouds. The tangerine rooms were the ones that looked most like Jeju in the photos.

Taking these photos is work. Each room needs someone to crouch at the right angle, line up the shot and tell the child how to pose. With two kids, I was the photographer for most of the visit. You do not need a picture in every room, so pick the ones your kids like and move on from the rest.

Our son came around

Our son started slowly after the disappointment at the door, but he joined in as we went. His two best photos were in the underwater room, standing in front of a painted sea god, and in the sky room, where it looks like he is flying past an open door in the clouds.

The interactive games at the end

Near the end there are rooms where the kids play instead of pose, including a target game on a lit wall. After a string of photo rooms, letting them move around was a good way to finish.

How long it takes

We were inside for a little over half an hour. Visit guides suggest about an hour, which makes sense if everyone in the family wants a photo in every room. It is not a full-day attraction. We did it as the last stop of an afternoon after rowing Soesokkak and walking to Cheonjiyeon Waterfall, and it was a good indoor finish after two outdoor stops in the sun. It would also work as a rainy-day plan in Jungmun.

More about Baksal 2

The five themed zones are tangerines, stone, gotjawal (Jeju’s lava-rock forest), the sea and the wind, and the aim is for each one to feel like a small Jeju island you walk through. Some rooms are painted illusions, some are media art, and some are objects you pose with. The same site in Jungmun also runs other activities, including Running Man and a tangerine cart, and a newer horror experience called 학교괴담 in Jeju; combined package tickets are sold for some of these. Visit Jeju also notes a 5% discount with a NOWDA card and a barrier-free route for strollers and wheelchairs.

Korean words that help

• 박살2 (Baksal 2): the short name everyone uses
• K-아일랜드제주 (K-Aillaendeu Jeju): K-Island Jeju, the full name
• 박물관은 살아있다 (Bangmulgwaneun Saraitda): the old Museum Is Alive
• 착시 (chaksi): optical illusion
• 포토존 (poto jon): photo spot
• 입장료 (ipjangnyo): admission fee

Questions parents ask

Is Baksal 2 the same as the Museum Is Alive in Jeju?

It is in the same building in Jungmun, but the old museum was renovated and reopened as Baksal 2 in May 2026 with new rooms.

Can you book ahead?

Visit guides say both advance booking on Naver and walk-in visits are possible.

Tips for the Jeju trick art museum with kids

• Check the current version: the old Museum Is Alive rooms are gone; this is Baksal 2 now.
• Stand on the floor marks: the illusions only work from the marked spot.
• Choose your rooms: a photo in every room wears out the photographer.
• Let the kids shoot too: it takes the pressure off you.
• Plan about an hour: we took a little over half an hour.
• Keep it for the heat or rain: everything is indoors.

Worth it?

For a family with a child who loves posing for photos, yes. Our daughter had a great time, and we came away with a camera roll of Jeju-themed pictures. Our son enjoyed it less because he was expecting the old museum. At 19,000 won for an adult ticket for about an hour inside, it works best as a short indoor stop rather than the centerpiece of a day. Our rating: 3.8 / 5.

For where we ate on this Jeju trip, see our Jeju family food guide on Korea Food Trails, our sister site for restaurant reviews.