About Welcome to Samdal-ri
Welcome to Samdal-ri (Hwanyeonghae Samdal-ri) is a South Korean healing-romance drama that aired on JTBC from December 2023 to January 2024 and streamed internationally on Netflix. It follows Cho Sam-dal, an ambitious photographer who has spent years building a career in Seoul, only to see her reputation collapse after a public scandal. Stripped of her professional standing and her confidence, she retreats to the place she once left behind: her close-knit hometown on Jeju Island.
Back in the seaside village where everyone knows her family, Sam-dal is forced to slow down and confront the person she used to be before the city changed her. There she reconnects with Cho Yong-pil, a steady and warm-hearted weather forecaster who never left Jeju and who has carried feelings for her since childhood. As the two former sweethearts move through old memories and unresolved hurt, the drama leans into gentle comedy, family warmth, and the quiet pull of home.
The series is built around the rhythms of small-town life, the bond between Sam-dal and her sisters, and the community of Jeju that surrounds them, including the island's famed haenyeo (women divers). Rather than relying on high-stakes melodrama, Welcome to Samdal-ri offers a comforting story about second chances, reconciliation, and the idea that going back to where you started can be the first step toward healing.