Travel: Korea - General

[moom]

hi all,


back from Korea and it was great!! Thank you so much insider for your recommendation of Mr Byun. He is a very patient and accommodating person and I highly recommend him to anyone who is travelling with young kids or old people ( we had both in our group), and don't want the stress of negotiating the subway system/public transport.

Some places we went to :

1. We chionged all the way to Naejangsan on arrival, managed to catch some of the foliage but I can imagine how awesome it would have been at its peak, a week or 2 prior. Ironically, we found that Seoul was prettier in the subsequent days with more of the bright yellow ginko leaves and some of the maples still present, prob cos the city is hotter than the mountains.

2. I enjoyed the Korean folk village in Suwon cos I found walking around the buildings and reading about the traditional way of life really interesting. Pity we didn't have the time nor the energy to slowly go through all the buildings. oh, horse-riding there is really cheap, 2000W per kid. Granted that it was only 2 rounds, but quite enough for the young ones. If you are there, drop by Bonsuwon in Suwon city for the beef galbi.. really delicious..

3. Everland was pretty ( in a disney way ) but the extreme cold in the first week marred the experience somewhat, so I felt Lotte world was better as it was more compact and involved much less walking.. no joke with 2 kids, a baby, diaper bag and a ton of heavy winter clothing :banghead:

4. We also were at seoul grand park for the zoo ( lots and lots of walking)

5. I found that Namdaemun clothes for kids cheaper than other places. Doota recently became fixed price so no need to bargain 8-bd, but def pricier than NDM

basically lots and lots of walking which was very tough for the kids and especially for the grandparents ( my MIL was constantly rolling her eyes at me fo r making everyone walk and walk and walk.. can't help it leh, the koreans are a tough bunch it seems

Lastly, wanted to share with all of you a great pork galbi place that we found.. it's a chain store ( on the shop frontage, it is written 600gm for 13000W) very tasty and cheap.. if you happen to see it, give it a try.. i'm no gourmet so it was good for me for the price. The one we went to was opp Jonggak station exit 5.


Once again

:thankyou: to insider for all her useful tips and information.

PS : insider , you were right,very diff to shop with family,so quite disappointed with my loot. Really want to go again, just to shop but not really possible for me also quickly skimmed through the stuff near the Lotte world bookshops but could not find the nice art book you were sharing with us.. Should have asked the shop assistant :stupid:

[mathsparks]

Hi insider,

M leaving tomorrow. Will update you guys abt jeju when we’re back.

[moom]

We all liked Jeju, it was peaceful and had wide open spaces, lots of beautiful scenery, which we like. We were there for 2 days but only managed to cover the south part, Jungmun and seogwipo… our group moves very slowly and start the day late, usu abt 10am. Each place we take abt at least 2 hours cos of the walking involved and we don’t really like to rush through.


One thing I noticed is that the Korean guides/drivers tend to do a tour group kinda thing where they walk you briskly through the attraction, expecting you to finish 'enjoying it in half hour or less.

So for Jeju, we only saw 2 waterfalls, the tebby bear museum and 2 of the gardens, all in the south area.

One highlight for the kids was the submarine tour… it was an interesting experience for them and they had divers outside the submarine feeding the fish and enticing them to the viewing windows.

Jeju, I feel is for those who enjoy natural attractions like waterfalls and beaches and caves etc… we would definitely go again given the chance.

One small negative aspect abt Jeju is that you have to pay admission for EVERY attraction that you see, so must be prepared.

That’s all I can think of at the moment, feel free to ask if anyone has other queries

[titank]

Any idea Korea is using what sort of power plug? Where can I get those travel adaptor in Singapore?

[mckenzy]

Most electrical stores should have. Try Challenger at Funan.


most important however, is that your charger/adapter for the particular device must have variable voltage. It should read as 100-240V

[peapot]

Hi all!!


Was reading through the posts and reminds me of my past Korea trip. I went with tour package and its not that fantastic. We were packing and unpacking and changing hotel everynight. No time to really relax and take a luxurious meal. With tour package, we really felt that we haven’t visit Korea. We had to wake up 6.30am and meet in the lobby at 7am. It was so rush!! Now after reading these posts, I believe going on our own seems a better idea. Thanks for all the tips and information.

[Iceberries]

7am :shock: ... that's so early. I had book korea package trip for this mth end because i am gg with my DH, DS (3yo) & PIL... (MIL handicap) so this is the only choice considering the weather, language & also 1st time to korea.


really hope my grp tour wont assemble us at 7am...

[lezymom]

hmm… I also want to visit Korea !

But problem is, since i got school-going children, can only go during Jun or Dec hols. Will be either too hot or too cold. Any one keen to share if i can cover korea in 5 days, say either during mar or sep hols (i love the spring and autumn)? Which are the must-see places?

[nani]

Iceberries:

7am :shock: ... that's so early. I had book korea package trip for this mth end because i am gg with my DH, DS (3yo) & PIL... (MIL handicap) so this is the only choice considering the weather, language & also 1st time to korea.


really hope my grp tour wont assemble us at 7am...

Not too scare you but is true. 7am is realistic, that is assemble time, meaning the morning call will be even an hour earlier. Korea/China tour are usually very hectic and changes hotel every nite. Be prepare.

[mathsparks]

insider:

Hi mathsparks


wonder you'll visit here while you are there...

My close friend is visiting Seoul this 23 Dec in a group of 14 and need a private guide to pick them from airport to Hyundai ski resort. The chinese speaking guide that we have been using is book for almost whole of december and his car is also too small for the group.

If you can read this msg, grab any private guide info for me if you can...

Have fun!!

Hi insider,
we're at the ski resort now. Will check with my guide.

Can anyone advise why we're unable to connect to mobile network here in seoul. We've a N95 Nokia, Sony Ericson W595, HTC diamond all singtel. None of these can connect. It's so frustrating!