Seoul Layover
 

Hi there,

I arrive in Seoul at 4 p.m. and my departing flight isn't until 2:20 p.m. the next afternoon. It isn't a connecting flight, so I will have to pick up my luggage and head somewhere for the evening. Is it worth going into Seoul for the evening and heading back to the airport the next day? Should I just find a hotel by the airport instead? I will be spending 2 weeks in Korea the following month as well.

Thoughts?

If it was me I'd get a hotel for sure. I am not sure how long your flight is to Seoul. If it is long will you be tired and just want to rest? Then get a hotel close to the airport. We got a day room at the Hyatt I think though I don't recall exactly as we had an 11 hour wait to connect to SYD. However you have much more time so another suggestion is to get a hotel in Seoul and check it out. Here is a list of areas and what they offer in Seoul:
https://theplanetd.com/where-to-stay...neighborhoods/

If it is long flight, say from Europe or the US, once you get through immigration etc. i think I would be ready for a nap, a shower and find somewhere close for dinner. If you have an international flight the next day you will need to check in three hours before which won’t leave a whole lot of time to do much before heading back to the airport. If you are going to be spending more time there later, then I would just go for the easy option.

Okay, thank you for helping me make my decision. I will stay close to the airport.

for your extended stay in South Korea later you may want to consider a visit to the DMZ. I think it has to be booked in advance.
All the best.
Larry

Oh, okay, thank you for that heads up. I will look into that sooner than later. Can you recommend a guide/tour operator for that?

Cathy

Good question. Viator gets good reviews.

https://www.viator.com/Seoul-tourism...RoCpQcQAvD_BwE
Alternatively you could inquire thru the hotel concierge once you decide on where to stay

If not been before the ICN airport is a shoppers paradise. Many, many 'duty-free' shops, restos, geegaws, etc. I'd get a room in/next to the airport.

Viatour is a reseller. The recommendations I have seen say that the best DMZ tours are run by the USO: DMZ TOUR

I have been to South Korea twice but chose not to spend time visiting the DMZ. It seems to me that the most interesting thing about the place is the flourishing wildlife in the protected zone between the two countries, and I don't know how much of that you would see.

We went on the DMZ tour when in Seou and found it very worthwhile some details and photos of our time on that tour and elsewhere in Korea are on our blog @ https://accidentalnomads.com/category/asia/south-korea/. We booked well in advance as instructed with http://www.uso.org/korea and found there were number of checks security /passport checks needed and strict instructions on how to behave when in the DMZ.

A great reminder, if one were needed (given the current precarious state the world) of the ability of politicians and governments to continually screw things up!

Thank you Clive for your comments and the TR.
The DMZ is something I would love to see one day. If I can can convince Sue to take one more long flight Seoul would be the destination and of course the DMZ. I agree that its worthwhile to be sure. There is no other place like it. I would recommend it to the OP for sure.

Speaking of flags we went to the Indo-Pak border at Wagah. It was quite a display of showmanship to be sure. At the end they lower their respective flags and we noticed the Indian guy doing it seemed to not lower his flag any lower than his Pak counterpart. The entire display was one of national pride and prestige.

Thanks for the recommendation for the USO tour. I will look into his.

We are going to Iceland in June for three days b4 our cruise departs. Iceland is open now. There are no covid precautions. Same for our other ports on Norway, Scotland and disembarkation in Southampton.

All the best.

Larry

Thanks again for your suggestions. I do very much appreciate them. I do hesitate to use viator as they are resellers and would prefer to deal directly with local sellers. Sometimes, though that can not be helped. I'm looking forward to checking these out.

Thanks, Cathy

Sounds good.

Best of luck finding a local guide. Should be plenty of choices I would think.

Larry

Hi JW

We are in the UK in June but not sure where! most of the summer we are flitting between London and Oxfordshire, if you happen to be passing through, let me know when and maybe we can fix up that long outstanding beer!

We loved our time in Seoul and would have used it as a stop over on our trip to Australia in Sept but chose Japan instead. Now it seems touch and go as to whether Japan will be open by then :frustrated: so we may well have to reroute anyway! Would go back to SK in a heartbeat just for the street food, especially the dumplings!

that beer may have to wait sadly. We get into Southampton after our cruise ship docks and then we fly right to Heathrow for our flight back home that same day. Some day I hope we can meet up.

I just read about traveling to Japan and it seems that unless you are a businessman or a student or a researcher you can’t go. And even under those circumstances you still have to have a negative test 72 hours before departure and have one booster shot so who knows when they will open up.

if we ever do one more long transpacific flight it may be Australia because we have a niece in Brisbane.

however I am also fascinated by South Korea so maybe we could combine them one day. I hope so.

we do have quite a few Korean restaurants and grocery stores around us and there is a Koreatown in Chicago.

if your travels ever bring you to the Windy City well we have a lot of beer here. :)

All the best.

Larry

I'll be o'nite in ICN, at the hotel. May need to get a PCR test prior to flight to ATL.

Any recent info on such tests at the ICN airport, or rapid results in Seoul?