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Captain Corea
Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Location: Seoul
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 Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:40 am Post subject: Access to US bases here |
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I'm curious about access to the US bases here in Korea for non-military / DoD personnel.
Is there a list of services one can access without being "in the mix"? I know you can walk into the USO and such in Yongsan without passing through any checks - is there anything else like that (restaurants perhaps)? |
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tommo123456789
Joined: 31 Jan 2008
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:44 am Post subject: |
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| From what I've been told, you need to know someone that lives on base and be their guest.. |
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Korlingus
Joined: 01 Sep 2007
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 5:18 am Post subject: |
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| Contact the USO near Samgakji about volunteering if you want access. |
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climber159
Joined: 02 Sep 2007
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 5:42 am Post subject: |
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| Befriend someone in the military. The base isn't really all that interesting. As a base guest you will not have access to the PX or the commissary. Still...it is nice to go somewhere once in a while where drivers are civil and things feel at least a little bit like home. |
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anyangoldboy
Joined: 28 Sep 2007
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 5:45 am Post subject: |
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| taco bell |
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jou ma se poes
Joined: 13 Apr 2008
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 6:10 am Post subject: |
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| Dragon Hill Lodge |
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Adventurer
Joined: 28 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 6:28 am Post subject: |
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| It was cool getting cheap vitamins from this gal who had access to the base, but she's gone now. |
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Captain Corea
Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 1:25 pm Post subject: |
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| Korlingus wrote: |
| Contact the USO near Samgakji about volunteering if you want access. |
Actually, the thing is, I really don't want access.
I was in a conversation with a friend the other day and they had mentioned that "all you need to be is American to be able to use the base (restaurants and such)"
I was under the impression that you needed to be
-active duty
-retired
-reserve
-DoD
-a dependant
or walked on with one of the above. |
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asylum seeker
Joined: 22 Jul 2007
Location: On your computer screen.
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 2:23 pm Post subject: |
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| Just another example of Korean racism- denying Americans access to their own bases! |
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Lekker
Joined: 09 Feb 2008
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 2:38 pm Post subject: |
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| asylum seeker wrote: |
| Just another example of Korean racism- denying Americans access to their own bases! |
That makes no sense. |
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eliross
Joined: 14 Jun 2007
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:20 pm Post subject: |
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| I've been on the Yongsan Base. You just need someone to sign you on/off. It's pretty easy but you can't buy anything from the stores (maybe you can from the restaurants). It's too bad to because everything is DIRT cheap. Bottle of Patron 40$ Jack Daniels 20$ and food was cheap to. If you have a friend in the military you can ship things for pennies as well. |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:04 pm Post subject: |
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| Captain Corea wrote: |
| Korlingus wrote: |
| Contact the USO near Samgakji about volunteering if you want access. |
Actually, the thing is, I really don't want access.
I was in a conversation with a friend the other day and they had mentioned that "all you need to be is American to be able to use the base (restaurants and such)" |
That person is wrong.
| Quote: |
I was under the impression that you needed to be
-active duty
-retired
-reserve
-DoD
-a dependant
or walked on with one of the above. |
Exactly right. There is a limit to the number of guests a person with access can bring onto the base at one time, though--last I heard, it was three guests. Additionally, the person with access must get that approved whenever his DEROS (Date of Expected Rotation from Overseas) is extended.
For special events, the person with access can request permission from the installation commander to bring more than three guests. That requires submitting a disposition form with the following information: all guests' names, their NID or passport number, the special event, and expected duration of the event.
The Dragon Hill Lodge has a sort of miniature shopping center and a few restaurants. Here is their website. The site doesn't mention this, but it's valuable information for some people: Bentley's is the bar where smoking is permitted, Whispers doesn't permit smoking.
If you're not into the fancy restaurant scene, you can go to the food court across the street from the PX at Yongsan. They have various fast food outlets: Subway, Taco Bell, etc. There's no McDonald's but there is a Burger King on South Post and also a Popeyes on both North Post and South Post.
Another thing to remember is that this month the area commands directed all activities where there is gambling (such as the slot machines at the Dragon Hill Lodge) to monitor who is using the machines. Only those with Military or Military Dependent ID Cards are permitted to use the gaming devices (as they're called). There will be uniformed MPs and plain-clothes agents checking IDs at random in the gaming rooms.
There are a few clubs on Yongsan also. The main club is just inside the gate to North Post. The Navy Club, which I found to be 2nd in running for the ultimate in crud award, is also on North Post.
There are also a very few members of other countries' military stationed at Yongsan and they have the same access to bases and services as US military stationed here. I encountered one such officer inside the PX about a year ago. For the US personnel, State Department employees are also included for access. |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:06 pm Post subject: |
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| asylum seeker wrote: |
| Just another example of Korean racism- denying Americans access to their own bases! |
There are restricted bases in the United States also. To get onto the Naval Postgraduate School, a US Navy base in Monterey CA, you need to have a person with military ID or who is employed on the base escort you on. They can only do that after they first visit the base Security Office and put your name on the list for approved escort. That's a heck of a lot more hassle than it is here. |
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brento1138
Joined: 17 Nov 2004
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:19 pm Post subject: |
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You could always try sneaking in!  |
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Intrepid
Joined: 13 May 2004
Location: Yongin
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| Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 8:11 pm Post subject: Hard cheese |
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| CentralCali wrote: |
| asylum seeker wrote: |
| Just another example of Korean racism- denying Americans access to their own bases! |
There are restricted bases in the United States also. To get onto the Naval Postgraduate School, a US Navy base in Monterey CA, you need to have a person with military ID or who is employed on the base escort you on. They can only do that after they first visit the base Security Office and put your name on the list for approved escort. That's a heck of a lot more hassle than it is here. |
I think asylum seeker was joking.
The bases were cool in the 90s when they let Americans on on the 4th of July. Nowadays, the bases seem so much less modern than the nice areas of Seoul--no need to go for a good steak or whatnot. |
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