Gangneung dessert shop in Gyodong: 10-piece sand boxes, Gangneung Sand

If you're traveling in Gangneung, Gangneung Sand is the obvious souvenir snack! I searched the green search engine and a bunch of places came up, but this is the spot that actually won an award as Gangneung's representative dessert snack, so I went to check it out~

Which Gangneung Sand is the real main branch? Gyodong, near Ojukheon

Search 'Gangneung Sand' and tons of results pop up, but to avoid the look-alikes, make sure you find the actual main branch on the map!!! It's close to Ojukheon, so it's a great spot to visit after checking out Ojukheon with your kid and touring the currency museum — this is the real Gangneung Sand main branch.

Even the building exterior has a different vibe from the other Gangneung Sand locations. Gangneung Sand, the representative dessert snack for Gangneung travel gifts, has four locations total including the main branch.

• Gangneung Sand Branch 1 (Wolhwa)
• Gangneung Sand Branch 2 (Chodang)
• Gangneung Sand Branch 3 (Cookie Lab)

When buying a Gangneung travel gift, shouldn't you buy the representative dessert snack that actually won an award from Gangneung city? Since there's a Branch 3 as well, it might be convenient to just go to whichever branch is nearest to you.

Parking and looking around: two car parks, a gallery and an elevator

Gangneung Sand Main Branch has plenty of parking space~ there are two lots like this so parking is easy.

There's a clean outdoor restroom outside the building, and a gallery next to it that's nice to browse for a bit.

Since the building is big, there's an elevator, which is nice for your knees too, and if you climb the winding stairs, the store entrance appears~

Walking inside, it's spacious and pleasant, decorated with lush greenery inside — the interior gives off such a resort vibe that it feels totally different from the building's exterior. A really charming atmosphere at Gangneung Sand Main Branch.

The countless award certificates tell you this is a real dessert snack hotspot — Gangneung Sand swept the lineup at the Gangneung tourism souvenir contest!

Gangneung Sand menu and prices: six flavours, breakwater bread, canned drinks

Gangneung Sand's original menu is made up of 6 flavors: coffee, strawberry, sweet potato, Chodang corn, dried persimmon, and black sesame. Another Gangneung Sand dessert, the tetrapod-shaped coffee-flavored breakwater bread, is 7 pieces for ₩10,000!

And to go with Gangneung's representative dessert snack, there's dried persimmon, strawberry, samgye latte, and americano all available in canned takeout packaging, which is convenient to drink while driving.

You can pack it up yourself at the store, but you can also arrange courier shipping.

The third-floor sand play area, and why Gangneung Sand suits families

On the 3rd floor of Gangneung Sand Main Branch there's a bulldozer/excavator play space for kids, giving off major kids' café vibes~

If my kid were even a year younger, he'd probably be all over this?! The kids play with the excavator in the sand, while the adults have a good space for tea time.

What we bought: strawberry and Chodang corn at 17,000 won each, sweet potato sold out

• Gangneung Sand Strawberry ₩17,000
• Gangneung Sand Corn ₩17,000

Unfortunately the sweet potato flavor was already sold out when we went, so we packed Chodang corn and strawberry instead.

The expiration date is printed on the packaging too, so extra peace of mind~ Open the fancy packaging box, perfect as a Gangneung travel gift, and there are 10 pieces of Gangneung's representative dessert snack Gangneung Sand, lined up neatly.

Gangneung Sand, the No. 1 dessert snack that captures the character of Gangneung.

Each Gangneung Sand is wrapped tightly in plastic, and they're color-coded so the flavors don't get mixed up — even if they get shuffled around you can tell which flavor is which. Clapping for this kind of attention to detail~👏👏

How to store Gangneung Sand and how to check the engraving

I thought Gangneung Sand would be kind of soft, but it's actually firm~ It's delicious just as is, but personally I think it's even better frozen! You'll obviously finish it all before the expiration date, but if you want to store it, room temperature is fine, though as written on the packaging box, I'd recommend freezing it too!

First, make sure to remember this engraving~! Since Gangneung Sand has look-alikes, if you search the map for the store you'll find two places called 'Gangneung Sand Main Branch,' but the real one — the representative dessert snack that actually won the Gangneung city award — is the genuine main branch in Gyodong!

Strawberry vs Chodang corn: which Gangneung Sand tastes better?

I was going to give them to my kid's academy friends and teacher to share, but I wanted to take photos to show you, so I unwrapped and cut one of each flavor in half haha. The strawberry one had cream packed with strawberry flavor, and the buttery scent came through nice and rich.

The corn one has a sweet corn flavor with actual corn kernels scattered throughout, giving it a great chewy texture too~! Highly recommend as a Gangneung travel souvenir snack — the kids said the strawberry was tastier, but I liked the corn one better.

• If you're stuck on what to buy as a Gangneung travel souvenir, I recommend Gangneung Sand, Gangneung's representative dessert snack~
• There are several Gangneung Sand locations, but the award-winning one is right here~!