Seoul Trip Report

Hi all

Here to update my recent trip to Seoul. It was a Free %26amp; Easy trip, and it%26#39;s quite fun to do F%26amp;E in Seoul despite the language barrier.

2Feb

Touched down Incheon airport, took the airport limousine to Dongdaemun hotel, which we have pre-booked before flying over. The journey to seoul was about 45minutes, quite fast, and it only costs 9000won each, quite reasonable as compared to the cab. Walked around Dongdaemun area and took some photos, had lunch at the street stalls, the potato chicken was good, definitely worth the money!

Went to Insadong to explore further. Took their train and stopped at Angguk station, train ticket costs us 1000won each. Insa-dong is a great place to experience the traditions and culture of Korea. This is the arts place, selling paintings, and all things arty and has a very nostalgic feel.

We then checked out of the Dongdaemun hotel as it wasn%26#39;t to our expectations and shifted to a hotel in Myeongdong - Pacific Hotel. This hotel is good, would recommend to those who wants to stay in Myeongdong area to book this hotel.

3Feb

Booked a day-tour to the ski resort, with Grace Travel. They%26#39;re quite efficient and reliable. Brought us to Yangji Pine Resort which was less than an hour from Seoul. We didn%26#39;t try skiing, just tried the snowboarding. And if you do not have the ski attire, the guide will bring you to a place to rent, cost us 20,000won per person.

4Feb

Headed to Namsangol Hanok Village, located near Chungmuro station, which is actually only one stop away from Myeongdong. Basically, Namsangol Hanok Village is Korean traditional houses, since admission is free, we just went in to explore and toured around ourselves. Korean traditional weddings are still held at the village, however, they usually happen in summer, you can hardly find people getting married in winter! Inside the houses, we can view how the people used to live, saw the frozen lake here.

Afterwhich went to Mt Namsan and N Seoul Tower. We walked all the way up to the N Seoul Tower via the Namsan Park, it was a good hiking experience. Weather was quite foggy, didn%26#39;t managed to get a clear shot of the Seoul scenery when we were at the Seoul Tower. We then chose to take the cable car down from Seoul Tower back to Namdaemun. Namdaemun market sells everything, clothes, shoes, dried goods etc etc etc. Checked out Lotte Department Store and bought seaweed from there home.

5Feb

Gyeongbokgung was our first stop for the day. There is actually a train station named Gyeongbokgung, thus it鈥檚 not difficult to locate that place at all. Took the train there, and at that particular station, there is even a museum before you exit the gantry gates! Impressive!

Revisited Insadong later part of the day, had lunch there, and had tea at one of the many teahouses to experience their tea culture.

6Feb

Went to the Myeongdong Cathedral since it鈥檚 consider an iconic building in Myeongdong.

Throughout all the days, we spent every night at Myeongdong shopping since our hotel is in that area. I personally like Myeongdong alot cos there%26#39;s loads of shopping to be done. Didn%26#39;t managed to buy anything from Dongdaemun coz the shops happened to be closed when we were there.

Overall, I%26#39;d say it%26#39;s quite easy to navigate the transport system ourselves, and alot of walking to be done, but we did enjoy ourselves and am planning to go back again soon!

Feel free to ask questions and I%26#39;ll try my best to help. :)

Seoul Trip Report

Hi missyseoul, thank you for sharing with us; I am glad that you had a good time and decide to write a trip report (the second one)-which is rarely and hard to find in this forum- Hope that we will have more in the future

Btw, how long it was in Feb?

Seoul Trip Report

oops! edit: how COLD it was in Feb - not LONG -

My bad - as usual!

Hi Honglam

The temperature ranges from -3 to 6 during the efw days while I was there. But it wasn%26#39;t snowing, just foggy and cold wind blowing.

Hi MissySeoul ! I intend to go to Seoul in December with parents and my kids. Is Pacific Hotel near and convenient for food ?

We would also like to go to the ski resorts and maybe stay over a night-- i%26#39;ve narrowed it down to either Jisan or Yangji. Did Grace travel arrange the pick up for you from Pacific Hotel or did you have to travel someplace for them to pick you up ? And was the drop off on the return journey also right to the doorstep of your hotel ?

Thanks !

Hi Intrepid_Traveller08

Pacific Hotel is actually directly opposite the main street of Myeongdong, can use the underpass to cross over. The underpass is just outside the Pacific Hotel, but do note that the hotel is upslope, not very steep though.

For the ski resort, Grace Travel picked us up at the hotel lobby. They%26#39;re quite good, response time was quite fast when I emailed them my query. Also, they%26#39;ll give you a call the day before your ski trip to confirm and remind you abt your booking. Drop-off was also at the hotel lobby.

Missyseoul,

Thanks for sharing your experience with us? Im headed out there in May and I was wondering if it is difficult to get around without speaking/reading Korean?

Hi roofies

It isn%26#39;t that difficult actually, as the restaurants have English menu. For shopping and sightseeing, you%26#39;ll also get by with some hand gestures :)

By the way, the train stations and road signs are in English as well.

I did learnt some basic Korean phrases and also brought along English-Korean booklet where the commonly used phrases can be found, you might want to consider getting a copy of that.

Hi missyseoul,

I will be arriving Incheon on 29 Mar at 5am. I have till 3pm to explore Seoul before heading for Taegu. Which is one a better option to see, Dongdaemun or Insadong?

For weather around 5 degrees C, do u need to wear long john? TIA

Right now, Korea is having unseasonal warm weather, sometime temp. climbing to 20C! Then again, spring weather is very fickle, so I would check weather close to your arrival date. I doubt you would need longjohn though. As per your question on Dongdaemoon or Insa-dong it depends on your interest and preference. Dongdaemoon market is like ';shop till you drop'; kind of place. Many of its shopping malls filled with tiny stores selling home brand fashion items can be overwhelming for unprepared. Many places prefer cash only business and bargaining is expected! At Insa-dong, you can see some street performances, and there are some galleries, and some great restaurants, cafes, of course souvenir shops. You can buy same souvenir stuffs at Namdaemoon market at cheaper price, but that place is closed on Sunday. Do check out mini shopping mall called, ';ssamjigil'; which I think is one of the most design-oriented place in Seoul.

Because you are arriving on Sunday, many places will not open for business until around 11 am, and once stores are open, both places will be real crowded. Good news is your commute to airport won%26#39;t be that bad.

See here for more shopping info, 鈥isitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/SH_EN_7_2_1.jsp

Hi pixiee0809

As what blee246 mentioned, it depends on what your interest. Dongdaemun is good for shopping, but it%26#39;s a big area. Insadong is more on the arts and culture experience.

For my trip, I did not wear any long johns. :)