Gangneung café with an elevator and 3rd-floor piano: Gangneung Sand

I was traveling in Gangneung, Gangwon! When you travel, it's a shame to come home empty-handed after all the eating and playing, right? I heard there was a café where you could pick up snacks as Gangneung souvenirs, or an easy dessert gift for friends and family, so I went to check it out. It's called Gangneung Sand — a café that nailed both taste and gift-giving!

Daily 09:30–19:00 / Last order 18:30

Where is Gangneung Sand Main Branch? 5 minutes by car from Gyeongpo Lake

Gangneung Sand Main Branch is just 5 minutes by car from around Gyeongpo Lake. Gangneung has famous spots, right? If you're looking for a café around Gyeongpo Lake, or want to pick up a souvenir at a café near the Sea Mark Hotel or Skybay Hotel, this place is only 5 minutes away — the accessibility was really great??

I arrived at Gangneung Sand! I was so surprised at how huge the café was! If you're looking for a big café in Gangneung, I'd recommend this one~~

The parking lot was also spacious, which was great~~ And the air around the area was fresh and pleasant, so for anyone living in a big city, this is truly the best spot for a little break!

And Gangneung Sand Main Branch is great whether you visit for Gangneung souvenir snacks or just as a regular café! The café itself is really pretty too, it felt like I'd wandered into some little village??

How the five floors of Gangneung Sand Main Branch connect by elevator

Gangneung Sand Main Branch is a large café with a total of 5 floors, and instead of just stairs, you can also ride an elevator up. You can walk up from the 1st to 2nd floor via stairs, or once inside the building, take the elevator up!

Having an elevator makes it so much easier when visiting with family, right? If you're looking for a café in Gangneung, I recommend this one~~

It's a large café with a total of 5 floors — counter, restrooms, café, and even an observation deck. It has everything you'd need~~

Seating and atmosphere in the 2nd-floor café

I first checked out the 2nd-floor café at Gangneung Sand Main Branch. The space was so clean and pretty?? There was also landscaping throughout, which gave it a really nice atmosphere!

The tables and chairs inside were comfortable too, so if you're coming to Gangneung for a date, I think this café would be a great stop!!

There was so much to look at inside the café that I lost track of time~~

Gangneung city tourism souvenir competition awards

And here's what's impressive about Gangneung Sand Main Branch — it's won some serious awards at the Gangneung tourism souvenir competition??

• 2022 Gold Award — Gangneung Sand Original
• 2025 Silver Award — Gangneung Breakwater Bread
• 2021 Bronze Award — Persimmon for You
• 2020 Bronze Award — Gangneung Coffee Tart

This café has quite the award history!

Ordering two boxes: coffee flavor and sweet corn flavor Gangneung Sand

At Gangneung Sand Main Branch I ordered Gangneung Sand in coffee flavor and sweet corn flavor, one box each. Gangneung Sand comes in coffee, dried persimmon, strawberry, black sesame, sweet corn, and sweet potato flavors. For drinks, there's Persimmon for You latte, strawberry latte, Daegwallyeong ginseng chicken latte (samgye latte), iced tea, americano and other coffee types, plus bread and jam! And you really should pick up the travel gift that Gangneung Sand Main Branch is famous for!

They wrapped it up so nicely, it's perfect as a gift when visiting Gangneung! It's also great to eat right away, and if you love dessert or snacks, you have to come here~~ It was also really good to eat in the car??

Photo exhibition, 3rd-floor piano and the sand event zone

Inside Gangneung Sand Main Branch there was also a photo exhibition! If you like photography, spending time at this Gangneung café was really nice too!

There was also a separate eating space on the 3rd floor??

The 3rd floor was spacious too, which was nice. If you're looking for a café in Gangneung with plenty of room and a nice atmosphere, I recommend it!

There was even a piano on the 3rd floor! If you love piano, I think this place is worth a visit! A café with a piano isn't that common, right~~ haha

There were a bunch of heavy-equipment toys, like excavators and diggers? I wondered what was going on! Turns out there was sand, so it's called the event zone. This is really a great café to visit with family and kids! Kids get bored at cafés sometimes, but here parents can relax without worry — isn't that the best kind of family visit?

How Gangneung Sand tasted in the car and at the lodging

I packed some Gangneung Sand to go and ate it in the car and again back at the lodging! Each piece was individually wrapped, which was so convenient!

Yellow is the sweet corn flavor, and black is the coffee flavor! The wrapper colors are different, so it's really easy to tell them apart?? haha

Gangneung Sand comes in a square shape, so it's perfect as a snack!

I felt like it would've been such a shame to visit Gangneung and not try Gangneung Sand, but I got to enjoy it! There are three Gangneung Sand branches in total?? There's the Wolhwa Branch, Chodang Branch, and Cookie Lab, so keep that in mind!

This is the sweet corn flavor — there's actual corn inside plus a corn cream? It went really well with coffee. It's sweet, great as a gift, and also a nice snack for a drive — most of all, it's just really delicious!

This is the coffee flavor! It's packed with coffee cream. It's even better chilled, you know?? haha The sand itself was so soft I kept reaching for more~~ If you're visiting Gangneung, picking up one of these as a gift would be perfect! Next trip, I'll come back just for the coffee!!