My Korea trip countdown – Understand Korea and my preliminary itinerary

My first Korea travel is set to kick off next month. As my normal practice, I like to draft out a preliminary itinerary for the trip so I could start booking whatever needed online include accommodation, flights, rails, entrance fees or others, before I really hit the road.

I will have 10 days in Korea since I have already booked both to and return air tickets. That said, I was soon realized that 10 days to explore those many attractions Korea has to offer are definitely impossible. So I have to work out how and where to go about this country to maximize my 10-day-trip to Korea, while still able to reasonably experience the true Korea.

Before that, I need to briefly understand the country, Korea. Thanks to the recent rhetoric action by the North Korea, It urged me to Google the history which helped me to know more on the peninsula. Korea has actually split into 2 nations since the World War 2, namely the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) or commonly known as North Korea to the north, and South Korea, formally the Republic of Korea or better known as Korea, to the Southern half of the Korean peninsular. Though it is more open to foreign visitors lately, North Korea is still a highly restricted country for tourism. I’m not interested in it. Where I’m flying off to next month is South Korea, the far more advanced and touristic destination.

Where is South Korea? South Korea is located in East Asia, southern half of the Korean peninsula attaching to the mainland China’s Lioning Province. Beijing and Shantong Province of China is just across the East China Sea to the West and Japan is across the Sea of Japan to the East. Both are less than 200km away from Korea.

Because of its geographical location, it has a subtropical climate with distinctive 4 seasons in a year, when Spring and Autumn are the most pleasant months to visit. This attracts me a lot as it has similar weather conditions as Japan, my favourite travel destination.

Korea is not a huge country, much smaller than Japan and slightly smaller than West Malaysia. Unlike Japan, Korea is more squarish in shape, and this makes traveling around the nation much more simpler and cheaper. Travelers could reach Busan from Seoul in less than 3 hour train ride.

Which are the top destinations to visit among the many travel attractions Korea has to offer? I don’t know until I experience them my self next month. Temples, heritage architecture, mountains, seas, hot spring, island, metropolitan city, eating and shopping, are among the things that have been included in my itinerary to Korea.

What do Korean speaks? It seems to most Free and Independent Travel (FIT) budget travelers that the only problem in traveling to Korea is language. To me, Korean language is more difficult to understand than Japanese, especially in written form. I can still understand Japanese Kanji since they are similar to Chinese, but not those square and circle Korean. Unfortunately, I heard Korean seldom speaks English or Chinese. So  I have to rely solely on the English and Chinese signboards, and a few IOS Apps. Wish me luck!

How much is their currency, Korean Won (₩) (KRW)? This is good news! Won is currently cheaper than most of other currencies in the world, with 1,000 Won equivalent to around USD0.90. The living standard is not as high as Japan which means my traveling cost in Korea could be cheaper than in Japan. So expect me to eat and buy more in Korea! 🙂

Alright. Finally. Here is my preliminary travel itinerary that I will follow through my trip in Korea next month:

Day 1: Arriving at Incheon airport and transfer to Seoul immediately. Check in to my hotel and spend the evening around Myeongdong area;

Day 2: Wandering about Seoul to visit some of its famous castles, temples, folk village and other attraction, Visit Namsan and N Seoul Tower in the evening;

Day 3: Take a KTX to Busan and transfer to Haeundae-gu for my love hotel. Relaxing on the beach, catch the beautiful Yeongdo Bridge at evening and pub hopping at night.

Day 4: Visit various attractions in Busan including temples, parks, shopping and its famous Fish market.

Day 5-7: Catch a budget domestic flight to Jeju Island and spend 2 and a half day on the romantic island. I still do not know where I will go on Jeju island… 🙂

Day 8: Catch another flight back to Seoul. Spend the day in Seoul outskirt such as Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and Namiseom Island.

Day 9: Shopping day! My last night in Korea. Shop around Dongdaemun, Insadong or maybe Coex Mall.

Day 10: Spend the morning hours in Seoul and catch my afternoon return flight to end my Korea trip.

That’s it. Definitely a rush trip trying to fit more destinations in 10 days. That said, my dream would not be realised without a peaceful and safe world. Let’s hope the world in peace and North and South Korea could sit down and talk over whatever issue in between them. Remember to watch this space for more of my Korea travel guide.

Do you have a better itinerary suggestion for me? 🙂 – Travel Feeder

About The Author

Cecil Lee

The author is an avid traveler and photography hobbyist who loves to share with others his travel and photo-taking experience in many popular tourist destinations around Europe, Asia and Australasia. Read the exciting stories with many photos captured on his journeys.