Korean Job Discussion Forums

[tacitus14]

I've never been to Jeju island. I'm going there over Christmas for like 3 measley days. Anyone ever been there in the winter? Anything cool to do?

[stevelad_83]

Hi,

I have to go to Jeju for a 3 day 'educational research workshop' in January. Any information would be appreciated.

[prideofidaho]

I was there at the end of February. The weather was alright....kind of early spring I guess, but either way....

We visited the love museums, and puttered around. Hiked Hallasan.

I liked the southern city better (Seogwipo)...it was pretty relaxing, actually.

[DrOctagon]

You can waste all your money at the racetrack, or go to some love/sex museums. If you do only 1 I recommend Loveland. It's pretty funny. If you're going by yourself, then that would be kinda weird. There's sunrise peak on the East side of the island. I heard it's really beautiful, but I haven't been there yet. And there's some cliffs and waterfalls in Seogwipo (in the South). The South is more relaxing and picturesque, but the North has better restaurants and nightlife. Then there's Mt. Hallasan, cave tunnels, and MokSeogWon (?) temple...

If you want to experience the nightlife then go to city hall in Jeju-si. There's tons of bars and restaurants. Shin Jeju also has a pretty good nightlife. More clubs though, if you're into that type of thing.

Send me a PM if you want more specific advice. Maybe we can meet up if I'm in town (I might go to Japan).

[tacitus14]

I'd love to hike halla san, but I just saw in a korean newspaper that something like 46 cm of snow fell. What kind of gear would you need? I bet mountain boots and shit, right? Is there an easy path up the mountain that wouldn't take all day?

[DrOctagon]

Yes, there's an easy trail, but it's probably still rigorous if you don't hike a lot. I've yet to climb Hallasan, but I recommend getting some spike attachments for your shoes and wearing warm clothes. Not sure about snow boots. Someone else can chime in on this... But, unfortunately most Jeju people post on RhymesWithJeju, a boring yahoo group. But you can definitely get more information on climbing Hallasan there.

[prideofidaho]

You will need to have that snow-shoe attachement thingy....basically ice picks you attach to your shoes. You can buy them at the base of Halla for maybe 5,000 won. They're well-worth it...and frankly they made me feel really tough. Also, you can buy a hiking stick. It's not overly expensive, because you must have the ice-shoe thingies to hike.

Basically, you should aim to start hiking at 8am-ish. If you don't make it to the halfway point by a certain time, they won't let you go up. It took my boyfriend and I about 8 hours all told (up and down). It's a really beautiful mountain, and the view is amazing. You can see the entire island from up there.

We stayed in Seogwipo, and took a bus to Halla in the morning. We timed it so that we did it the second last day....I was knackered and couldn't really move for a few days afterward, but I'm not the most athletic person.

I'd say do it! Also, if you can, try and have dinner at the Lotte hotel near Seogwipo. We went there and had a multi-course meal for a really reasonable price, and the food (mostly seafood) was really yummy. I'm still thinking about how yummy it was.

Enjoy!