kja - I finally have an itinerary but now am having trouble finding hotels. Smaller towns don't have hotel listings on line and we like to have reservations. What sources did you use?

@ re: I reserved most of my lodging through booking.com and a few places through their own web sites (after consulting booking.com and tripadvisor.com).

The only reservation I didn’t have before leaving was for Yeongju; for that city, I had identified a possible hotel through guidebooks and then asked someone at one of the hotels I stayed in early in my travels to call and book it for me. I was not wholeheartedly pleased with my choice there.

Hope that helps!

kja I wondered if you would take a look at our itinerary and let me know what you think. After reading your wonderful trip report on South Korea I feel we prepare for a trip and travel in a similar manner. We will arrive in Busan after taking a ferry from Fukoko, Japan.Two nights and 1 day in Busan visiting Jagalchi market, Beomeosa and maybe a night walk on the beach. Then we will pick up a car and drive to overnight at Namwon or Sucheon. A distance of 132 miles. I hope we can stop in Jogyesan Provincial Park and see Seonomsa, Songgwangsa, Seungseongyo. The next morning we will head to Gochang and the Dolmen museum. I am skipping Daehan Dawon Tea Plantation as we saw many tea plantations in Myanmar. After a visit to the museum we will overnight in Jeongeup, Jeonju or go back to Namwon. Will then head East and hope to drive thru Maisan Provincial Park and see Haein-sa. Overnight not at the temple but nearby or Daegu. Don't think we can drive all the way to Andong from Gochang. Andong - Byeongsan Seawon and Dosen Seowon - shall we see both or is one better to visit than another? Also should we visit Hahoe Folk Village if we are planning to see Yongdong Folk Village in Gyeongju? Mask museum? Then Gyeongju to visit National Museum, Bulguksa, Seokguram Grotto, Tumuli Park and Royal tombs.
Will stop to see Tongdosa on the way back to Busan. Turn in car in Busan and take the fast train to Seoul. 3 days in Seoul. We end up with a free day and I wonder were it should be put - extra day added to Seoul, Busan or? I have had to leave out Independence Hall of Korea which is near Cheonan, Ungno Lee Museum of Art in Daejeon as well as many other sites that sounded interesting. I certainly would appreciate your thoughts - what to change, what to add; just what you think about this itinerary. Thanks in advance for all your help.

Should be a great trip! Just a couple of thoughts --

As I understand it, South Korea has one of the highest car accident rates in the world, and every Korean I know advised me against driving there. In fact, they all say they refuse to drive there when they go back to visit. I know that at least one other Fodorite -- shelemm -- had a car for part of his time there, and recommends it. But do keep the cautionary notes in mind.... Also, I trust you have confirmed that you would need to return the car to Busan? I ask only because I hate backtracking, and am always looking for ways to avoid doing so.


"should we visit Hahoe Folk Village if we are planning to see Yongdong Folk Village in Gyeongju? Mask museum?"

They are different, and I tried to speak to those differences above (those comments are in the section on Hahoe, which I visited second) but there are many similarities and I'm not sure it makes sense to visit both when there are so many other places calling to you. I found the Hahoe Mask Museum of great interest, and if you think you would also find it of interest and you are going to visit only one, Hahoe would get my nod.

Whether to add your time to Seoul or Busan really depends on what you want to see and experience. One day isn't much for Busan -- but it sounds like you have another 1/2 day or so there for Tongdosa. And 3 days isn't much for Seoul, particularly if you want to include Ho-AM (which I loved). But no bad choices here -- just difficult ones!

Note that Tongdosa, Sanggwangsa, Haeinsa, and Bulguksa are each very large temple complexes; make sure you plan on enough time to explore them.

As you probably know, I didn't stop at many of the places you are considering, so I really can't provide comments on them. And that means I can't comment on a large portion of your itinerary -- sorry!

I hope you enjoy South Korea as much as I did. :-)

BTW, definitely visit any of the National Museums you can!

Are you still there, re?

kja - Finishing itinerary, booking hotels etc. We leave March 14 and will spend 2 weeks in Southern Japan before taking a ferry to Busan. 2 weeks in South Korea visiting many sights by car and then taking the fast train to Seoul were we will spend 5 days. Thanks for your help, your trip report was one of my guides.

Enjoy!

Interesting list of likes and dislikes from Korea. Most of which I would agree with. Any great photos or videos you can share from your adventure?

Mike
To the Nations Worldwide - Share Your Travels

@ MikeNatalieWorldwide -- thanks for your interest! But no, sorry, neither photos nor video. After reading your comment, I re-read my lists of likes and dislikes, and I can say that nearly 2 years after the fact, I still vividly remember all the likes, and had forgotten most of the dislikes. :-)

Hi kja,

Just rereading you report which is still a mine of information.

I may be going back in May with luck and will have some spare time so have been looking around Andong as I will definitely be in Mungyeon which is quite close but most of the time back in Icheon/Yeoju.

We will hire a car which, out of the cities, is quite easy. At least my husband is happy driving there. Me not so. We did that in the far South last time and were able to get to so many odd spots that we would not have gone by bus. We took the bus between main cities and picked up the car in Gwanju. We chanced on many interesting little places that turned up on roads to nowhere in particular and of course we were free of waiting for buses even though the buses a really so good.

I still haven't written a report on the last trip and feel very guiltly as I have benefited so much from your report - both in information and pure reading enjoyment.

Mary

@ MaryW - Oh, how very nice to hear from you again! I think of you every time I see a piece of Korean ceramic ware (and since I bought myself a small piece, that's pretty often!) and hope that you are well and continuing to enjoy your choices about how to further your career and craftsmanship as a potter.

And please, stop feeling guilty about a trip report! I doubt that I'm alone in recognizing how difficult it can be to juggle life's endeavors or to find time for all the worthy goals that pull us each in so many different directions. But perhaps I should restate that -- if the ONE thing in your life that most tugs on your guilt strings is your "failure" to write a trip report, then IMO, that's where you should go. Now. Think of it as one of Monopoly's "Go Straight to Jail" cards, and treat it with <u>exactly</u> that degree of seriousness. ;-)

Thanks again for your kind words, Mary, and for hanging in there with me through my lengthy trip report -- for better or worse, you definitely helped me keep going with your expressions of interest, not to mention your very interesting contributions. :-)

Thanks for your kind words Kja.

If it all comes together we will go in May otherwise October. Of course its always largely about the ceramics for me anyway but there are a couple of big ceramic festivals on then as well as Buddha's birthday which is a big plus (and your report very helpful in this). We may well be outside Seoul then which is s pity but will find a temple wherever we are to see the festival.

Its such a beautiful country to travel around and though small by Australian standards has enough packed in that I still haven't seen enough despite 4 trips.

I hope your Indonesian trip goes well.

@ MaryW -- I will look forward to at least a word or two (but not necessarily an actual trip report) from you in the coming months. I don't think you need to worry about being <u>in</u> Seoul for Dharma -- I think ANY temple, anywhere in South Korea, would likely allow you to experience the celebration of Buddha's Birthday. And as you say, it is a beautiful country.

I can't imagine that my time in Indonesia will be anything other than amazing (thanks!), and still look forward to spending some time in Australia at some point (at which time I will DEMAND your help). :-)

Kja - I'm in Western Australia - out in the bush (countryside). Anytime you are this way I will help in any way I can and would love to meet you if possible.

@ MaryW -- I hope that I am able to take you up on that offer some day! :-)

Wow kja, I love your report.. It will definitely help my planning... Thank you!!!!

Anyways kja, I am from Indonesia, just let me know if you need anything for your trip... I hope you will enjoy your stay here and best regards for you... Your posts have assisted me so many times, like your Japan report and some other responses... I cannot wait for your Indonesia's trip report...

@ julianaoctavia -- I'm glad you found it useful! Good luck as you plan, and feel free to ask questions. :-)

Hello! I just found your post last night and thoroughly enjoyed it. I love all your vivid descriptions. We're planning a family trip to Korea next year--still about a year and a half away, but I've been deeply immersed in researching and planning and daydreaming, with much anticipation. Waiting is so hard. (Seriously, I'm ready to go RIGHT NOW.)

I was in Korea as a missionary years ago, waaaay back in 92-93, and then went back over and taught English with my husband in Cheonan right after we got married. I spent about 2 1/2 years total in the country, but it's been almost 20 years now since I've been there. I've been dreaming of going back. It's so fun to finally have a plan. (I've been saving up!)

We have two kids, girl and boy, who will be 12 and 8. We're planning to spend a few days in Seoul, then take the train to Daegu and rent a car (the better to haul around kids and luggage), visit a friend in Pohang, and then make a loop south and west.

I keep finding more and more places to add to my list. There's a temple called Daewonsa (on Jirisan) that I pinned on Pinterest years ago, but while researching it I found a different temple called Daewonsa that has a hall in the shape of a dragon, that you enter through the mouth. And it's just north of Pohang! We can't pass that up. And Naeyeonsan mountain with its 12 waterfalls looks gorgeous, and hey, it's really close to Pohang too. And then while doing a google image search for something else I ran across this temple called Hongryongsa that's right by a waterfall, and found out it's just a bit south of Tongdosa, which we were planning to see anyway. And Daewangam park in Ulsan looks very cool, and has a dragon slide--we can squeeze that in too. It's amazing how many of these places happen to be in the Pohang/Ulsan area. Or maybe it's just that there are a lot of foreigners there who blog and take lots of pictures.

My husband and I are both greatly enamored of Korean Buddhist temples and their gorgeous mountain settings. I'm hoping the kids will be up for lots of temple-ing. They'll enjoy the bridges and stairs and streams, I think. (We'll make sure to bring along water shoes for everybody.) Dale's Korean Temple Adventures site has some great info about all the different elements of a temple (in the Architecture and Artwork sections), and I think I'll write some of that up in simplified form for my daughter, so she'll understand better what she's seeing. We can make it into a treasure hunt, like find the San-Shin (mountain spirit) shrine and see how many tigers this one has in the painting. (It occurred to me that this could make a great informational coloring book, too. Hmmmm....)

We're planning to go down through Geoje and Tongyeong (do the cable car), visit a friend who farms maeshil plums in Gwangyang and then go on to Yeosu and see Hyangiram, then spend the night in Nagan Folk Village, go to Songgwangsa and then up to Seomjin river train village and ride the rail bikes (the kids will like that). I spent a lot of my mission in Jeollanam-do and I'm looking forward to seeing some of the area again. (I've actually been to Songgwangsa three times--and once my husband and I hiked over the mountain to Seonamsa. That was very cool. We are hoping to visit all three jewel temples, so I was pleased to see that you'd done that too, kja.)

My daughter wants me to teach her Korean. I've told her that she'll be fine without it, but she still wants to know some. I've taught her the alphabet (actually I've taught it to her several times, but it may be sticking this time!) and we're practicing a few words. I need to make a Go-Fish game with useful nouns. (It's also great for practicing "do you have a _____" We did that with the kids that we taught English.)

We're looking at early September--probably including a few days at the end of August, so I'm hoping it won't be too beastly hot. I'd really prefer to go around late September, early October, but this will fit with my husband's schedule, and maybe the mountains will be less crowded since the trees won't be changing color yet. I'm just excited to go back with a good camera! And eat lots of food!

Thanks for sharing your adventure! It was a great vicarious journey. (Now I'm even MORE excited... Eeeek!)

@ HelenaJ -- it sounds like you and your family are going to have an absolutely awesome trip. What a treat to be able to return, and to be able to introduce your children to places you hold near and dear! They are lucky. And you are reminding me of how many places I had wanted to visit, but couldn't fit in -- more than enough for another trip one day!

I'm glad you enjoyed my report and appreciate that you took the time to tell me and to share a bit of your plans. Best wishes!

4 weeks in the fall!
 

I just read this entire thread. What a wonderful travelogue.You are truly a gifted writer. We are planning a trip for Mid October until mid November of this year. We plan on renting a car for the first 2 and a half weeks then turning it in for a trip to Jeju and our time in Seoul for the last week and a half or so. I took a quick look for the guides you used but there don't seem to be any new versions of your top two. Does anyone have suggestions for the best guidebooks that are more current? Since we will have a car I really want to take advantage of that and find the out of the way places and scenery. I would have thought there would be a ton of new ones out because of the olympics but that did not seem to happen. Is driving (other than seoul of course) difficult in S. Korea? On previous trips I have tended towards loosley structured. I tend to meander. I have a list of must dos but don't tend to make room or meal reservations ahead of time for fear of being locked into getting someplace by a specific date. Is this an ok way to travel in South Korea or will it be difficult to find rooms that time of year? The last few years on trips to Iceland and Scotland I've used air b and b. Can anyone here advise if this is possible? I briefly checked out the listings for Seoul and there seem to be plenty but I haven't researched elsewhere yet. In terms of maps is it possible to use google maps once you are in the country or is there a different mapping service that is reccomended?

@ hmr28: My apologies for the delayed response: I’ve been away from Fodor’s for a while….

While offering my thanks for your kind comments, I’m not sure I can be of much help with your specfiic queries. But for what it’s worth, and hoping I’m not too late:

- re: the car. Although at least one other Fodorite has reported a very successful experience with renting a car in South Korea, all of my South Korean friends strongly urged me to avoid driving there. The accident rate is so high that none of them will drive when they return, annually, to visit friends and family, and most reported that their friends and family have given up their cars because they simply find driving unworthy of the risks. I didn’t try to drive, and so can’t speak to what the experience would have been. If you decide to drive, you might want to make sure you understand your insurance options and consider more extensive coverage than you might do elsewhere – just a thought! And FWIW, I’ll add that taking public transportation in South Korea was, for me, among the great delights of being there – whether on high speed rail or a snail-paced bus, I saw people interacting with one another, and had interactions with others, that were among my favorite experiences of my trip.

- As for rooms: I made my plans in advance, so I can’t speak to the experience of traveling on the fly in South Korea. I suspect that it would depend on your requirements, your willingness to pay more than you might otherwise pay, and your willingness to negotiate accomodation without use of English (at least outside of Seoul, Busan, and Jejudo). Language probably won’t be much of an issue – showing up at a hotel with suitcases generally communicates your need. But whether the room(s) so found would be acceptable to you, or what you would have to do to find a place that is acceptable, is another matter entirely.

- Best wishes! And again, my apologies for the delayed response.

I realise you may no longer be active here, but MaryW, would love to pick your brains on this. My husband and I are analysis potters and would love advice on travel in South Korea that references this. Thank you

@ Kavey: Thanks for topping my trip report!

I join you in wishing MaryW well. :)

I see that you are planning a trip to South Korea -- I'll add some comments to your planning thread soon. In the meantime, Kavey, if you (or others) have any questions about my experiences, please feel free to add them to this thread -- I get an email alert when someone posts to it.

Kja, it really is such a treasure of a Trip Report, and I will glean not just enjoyment from the reading but such a wealth of information as well!
I will have questions going forward and will add them here in case they also prove to be of interest to other future readers!
Thank you again!

I am probably the Fodorite that kja references - I had a very positive experience renting a car and driving in South Korea. I found the other drivers to be very polite. As I value spending time exploring the countryside, it's important to me to have some degree of private transportation. I definitely saw things and ate at places that otherwise would be pretty much off-limits.

I am glad to hear you already have significant experience with the food. I live within a 20 minute drive of ~40 Korean restaurants, and I was very much interested in trying food I can't get back home.

In Busan, I recommend Ji Sim Jeon near Gangwalli Beach that serves these very large mandu:

https://tinyurl.com/hbhxzrx2

In the Jagalchi Fish Market, there is a small place on the 3rd floor that serves food. Only locals are eating here. You might have to poke around to find it. No menu, no English, just sit down and they will serve you a feast. Great food and experience.

You could go to a thousand places to eat in Korea and never see duck or goat on a menu. But there are villages that specialize in those. At the Eastern gate of Geumjeongsanseong Fortress there is a goat village with about a dozen places to eat. Typically they will serve roast goat, then make fried rice of the leftovers, and then make a soup out of that when you're finished. Mercifully, there is no dessert. There is also a duck village near Beomeosa Temple at the opposite end of Geumseongsan Fortress. Duck bulgogi can be sublime.

@ Kavey: Such kind words! Many thanks.:)

@ shelemm: I remember that you had a positive driving experience – and am very glad that you bring that perspective to this trip report! :ok:


I think the decision about whether to rent a car or take public transportation is a very personal one that reflects one’s particular interests for a specific area (among other considerations, such as ecological concerns) because there are, I think, pros and cons to each option. I have absolute confidence that shelemm did, indeed, see things and eat at places in South Korea that would have been difficult, if not impossible, to see without a car. In contrast, I suspect that I had some delightful interactions with South Koreans and was able to observe local customs and patterns of social behavior in ways that were possible only because I took public transportation. And ooh!, some of those interactions were among my most treasured memories of that trip! :yay:

With trains, busses, and taxis, I was able to visit all the places that I considered a high priority for my first (and possibly only) trip to South Korea. Moreover, I ate exceedingly well! But unlike shelemm, I wasn’t versed in Korean cuisine before my trip – my only experience of Korean food before my trip had been a single (and unfortunately, less than enticing) serving of bibimbap– so I wasn’t looking for same type of culinary experiences that shelemm seems to have sought.

As with so many travel decisions, I don’t think there’s a single right or wrong answer that will work for all people at all times. I hope these reflections help future travelers weigh their options.

Kja, of these five, if someone could / would only visit one or two of them, which would you recommend above the others? Thank you!

Definitely a key focus of the trip for us, I have this fabulous booklet on South Korean food and specialities, which the tourist office sent me, which definitely has things I've not tried before and will be seeking out!

And I love both goat and duck so those are definitely tempting to me!

Do you have any research sources for the food side that you found particularly useful -- how did you find out about these places / specialities, initially?

I have saved all your suggestions into my trip planning map! THANK YOU!

The National Museums ….

Gosh, if I could visit only one (ack!), I’d go with the one in Seoul because it had the widest and most diverse collection of the five national museums I visited. Unless you are exceptionally well versed in Korean arts, I would strongly recommend trying to go when you can take advantage of a free English tour, which should last an hour or so. And then plan, I’d guess, on at least another hour or two to see the things that most interest you with greater leisure.

If I had to pick a second (and only one other – ack!) national museum, I might choose the one in Gyeongju, which has a fairly extensive collection, including an impressive array of exceptional Silla-era gold and other artifacts.

BUT the National Museum in Seoul also has some exquisite examples of Silla-era gold work, so I might choose the museum in Gongju instead. IIRC, it’s another fairly extensive museum, but it features an array of Baekje-era artifacts that are unlike anything you’d see in Seoul.

The art of the Baekje era, featured in the National Museums at Buyeo and Gongju, is unlike anything I’ve ever seen anywhere else and it is, IMO, quite magnificent. If you are near Buyeo, the museum there is small and easily assessable, and you could, I think, easily visit it (or at least see it’s highlights) in substantially less than an hour. The museum in Gongju is more extensive, but you could see the Baekje-era artifacts in a rather quick visit.

Enormously helpful, thank you so much!

I echo what kja said, transport is a very personal decision, and there is no one correct way to travel. Just about everyone uses some public transport. After renting a car for a week from the Busan Airport, I took the train from Busan to Seoul. and relied on subway as well as taxi in both of those cities.

About the National Museums, a P.S.: I didn’t mention the Gwangju National Museum in post # 191 because, as noted above, I didn’t think any of the Korean pieces I saw there were as impressive as those I saw elsewhere. That said, the Chinese celadon was impressive!

Thanks again, yes my plan is not to have a car in Seoul, and in Busan, we'll use public transport within the city but use the car to get around outside of the city.

Depending on where we do the last night before returning to Seoul, we will keep the car till back at Seoul or take the train fro Gyeongju back to Seoul...

Good to know, thank you!

kja: Have no plans to visit Korea (though your wonderful TR might convince me :) ) and I don't visit the Asia forum very often. Just wanted to jump in it to say its nice to see you are still posting. Hadn't seen you around for a couple of years and was worried

welcome back (a few idjits still post on the Europe forum about driving 200 km after an over night flight ;) )

janisj! OMG, seeing your post has made me smile. :) :) :)

I'm fine, thank you, and I hope that you and yours are well, too.

Why am I not surprised that some people insist on driving after overnight flights? I guess I didn't solve that problem after all. :(

Rather than take this trip report into a personal aside, I'll try to open a short-term window for PMs. Whether you take advantage or not, please know that your words of welcome were very much appreciated! Best wishes to you, J.

janisj Janis, hello! Like you, was so pleased Kja still has notifications enabled and kindly logged in to help me with my South Korea trip planning. The last few years of my Fodors engagement were almost exclusively on the Asia boards, so I haven't posted on Europe board for a long while but still remember the many people I used to chat with back then! :-)

I'm glad to respond to those who reach out to me. I'm pleased to know that my trip reports still prove useful and delighted that some of you with whom I interacted over the years remember me and choose to say hello. How awesome! :blush: