Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Always Curious]

I've got my job offer and I'm pretty much all set to go to Seoul, but I'm trying to figure out where to land.

I saw some information on the internet about the City Air Terminal in Seoul but no-one seems to fly there from the UK. Why is this?

If that's not possible then I'd rather fly into Gimpo Airport than Incheon as it's a bit closer to Seoul, and the buses are more regular I believe. Again though I'm having trouble finding flights into Gimpo, so has anyone else done this?

I'll be arriving on a one-way ticket from the UK without a visa, and my recruiter said I'd have to go almost immediately off on a "visa run" to Japan - will this be a problem, or should I tell the immigration officer what the recruiter told me?

[Shutterfly]

Gimpo is now a domestic airport only. The only international flights that go there (Ithink) are from China.

Incheon is not that far from Seoul, the airport buses run every 15 minutes to half an hour (depending on you destination) and are cheap.

[Always Curious]

OK if Gimpo's not an option then my best bet is the City Air Terminal?

I'm a bit wary of relying on the bus services as here in the UK they're notoriously unreliable. I've looked at the Seoul City Government website's map of the Seoul subway and I noticed a stop marked 'Incheon'. How far is this from the airport? Is it walkable with several big bags?

[chronicpride]

[flyguykorea]

Right, neither Gimpo or the City Air terminal are options. Gimpo is a domestic airport (except for daily flights between Gimpo and Tokyo Haneda). The City Air terminal is a building in Seoul so you ain't going to be landing there.

You will be flying to Incheon and Incheon only.

[Swiss James]

if you're flying from England, you can only fly into Incheon airport (for direct flights from Heathrow your only options are Korean Air and Asiana too, more choice if you don't mind changing planes).

Your only options to get from the airport to Seoul are
a) Bus
b) taxi

[hypnotist]

You could get to Gimpo via Tokyo, if I remember correctly, but I don't see why you'd want to. Incheon is set up to get people in and out very smoothly, and the airport highway is really quick.

What SJ said, plus only Korean Air fly daily and directly.

Don't worry about the buses here. I find myself taking them far more often than trains and subways - they're far, far better than anywhere in the UK with the possible exception of London, and are much cheaper to boot.

[hypnotist]

Oh, and Incheon (the town) is not really that close to Incheon (the airport) at all - certainly nothing like walking distance. The subway doesn't go to the airport. They're in the process of building a rail link at the moment, I think.

[dulouz]

You have other things to worry about beside the airport arrival. Thats pretty small stuff.

[JongnoGuru]

Such disinformation!!

Despite what the other posters have said (especially that Swiss James, I mean what does he know about airports? He's Swiss for corn's sake!) I highly recommend making use of the City Air Terminal, or "the CAT" as they pilots call it. Just tell the pilot you want him to make a quick swing by "the CAT" for you on his way to Incheon. The facilities there aren't so crowded, the ticketing and luggage processing goes much faster, and you can't beat the central location. It's the only air terminal in Seoul proper.

So, as you're making the final descent, wait till the plane cuts below cloud level, and then scamper up to the c0ckpit and tell the pilot "Take me to the CAT -- Now!" Like that. Just wink and he'll know what you want. But as they're not scheduled to make a stopover at the CAT, and stewardesses will try and stop you, you really do have to rush the c0ckpit, all furtive and stealthy like.

[OiGirl]

[schwa]

[tzechuk]

[mindmetoo]

[Bulsajo]