Korean Job Discussion Forums

[whitebeagle]

Hi, 2 friends are visiting the Land of Morning Calm in Aug / Sept and are getting a ferry across from japan to busan. I worked in korea for 2 years but couldnt really think of a doable route for these 2 fresh off the boaters that they could take from busan to seoul. Any itinerary suggestions I can pass on?

ps dont think theyre overly worried about budget

[sunhelen]

What do your friends like to do?

I think there is a train along the coast from Haeundae that is very beautiful. I think that it stops in Gyeongju. Gyeongju is one of the more historic cities in Korea and the food is good.

I also recommend Jeonju. Jeonju is a center for the arts, both traditional and modern. There are many old buildings that are still inhabited. Also lots of vegetarian restaurants.

[rednomad]

once they get into busan, head for kimhae airport, catch TG651 to bangkok, have a great time, eat great food, relax, spend less money in better ways, then in thirteen days, catch TG628 bound for seoul. they'll have a memorable trip and return to japan happy rather than frustrated and disappointed.
i laugh....although i kid you not.

[moosehead]

I agree with rednomad - some of my worst experiences here were trying to travel when I first arrived - my first attempt to buy a train tkt - the lady wouldn't even sell me a tkt!!

I had to call my director on the phone to convince her to sell me one - ? why? I'll never know.

K's lack of tourist industry is pathetic - your friends would waste their time and money - tell them to go to Thailand, Vietnam, elsewhere where their money and presence is appreciated.

sad, but true

[whitebeagle]

Yeah, i appreciate what you guys are saying but I think they are doing most of the major SE Asia trail thailand etc later in their trip.

I was tempted to suggest they just have 2 or 3 days in busan then head to seoul on ktx simply because of the inherent headaches involved in traveling around the more provincial Korea (without a korean, that is) such as those mentioned earlier. Seems a bit defeatist but maybe more conducive to them having an enjoyable time!

Unless anyone has any other suggestions i will do this, thanks for input though.

[articulate_ink]

There are great things to see in Korea but the problem is the language barrier in many cases. Without a modicum of Korean, plus the patience of several saints combined to deal with the smiling xenophobia one may encounter here when one least expects it ('I'm sorry but you're a foreigner so you can't...'), this is a tough country to navigate. Busan and Seoul have good subways and are easy for people who don't speak K. As worthy as Gyeongju and Jeonju are (I spent a month in Jeonju and really liked it), if you're depending on buses and taxis to get around, you need the language. And if you venture even a little bit off the beaten track, finding restaurants with English menus will be a challenge too. If there's no one on hand to help your friends with the language, I'd suggest they spend several days checking Busan out, then take the train to Seoul. There's enough here to spend about a week (throw in the DMZ, and Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon). If their tickets aren't purchased I'd advocate for staying in Japan a bit longer before coming over.

[matthews_world]

Geoje, Jirisan, Daegu, Kyungju, Andong for starters then maybe a beach town like Pohang.


There is ferry service from Busan to Geoje island. Try booking the 4-star hotel there for the night but I forgot the location. Jirisan I believe also is reachable by ferry.

Make a day out of Daegu. Shop downtown and eat the great Korean and international food there. You can go to the top of Daegu tower. I believe Woobang Land theme park is across the road. Go see a baseball game or any sport event.

Kyungju, the traditional 'capital' of Korea, takes only a few hours to visit the Chosun era 'towers' and temple.

Off to Andong to check the Folk village and mask museum.

After this, depends on which direction you want to head. You could try the Boryoung tea plantations on the west side and then make it to Everland. Cross over to Soraksan and Seokcho(??) beach. Maybe hit Gangwon Casino for a night.

Ask board members about hot springs around Korea.

[ajgeddes]

I am pretty sure that they could probably get an overnight, or day, tour from Busan to Gyeongju. The trains are simple to use. You can buy your own ticket from the automated machines and they are in English. Once they are in any city with a subway system, getting around the city will be easy enough.