Quick Guide to JEJU ISLAND + Few Updates On SEOUL
Okay, I know I have neglected my sharing of travelling
for quite a while but actually there is a painful reason behind L I said to share my
Japan travel experience on my next blog however I was too careless, my laptop hang
and I don’t know why it was not save properly in the system and EVERYTHING just GONE like in
one second! I was really upset about it because I make a lot of effort
to write on my Japan travel trip and then with the busy life after, I couldn't have time to update my blog again ....haha......anyway from now on I will be sharing more
frequently and I have definitely learn from my lesson! Won’t make the same mistake again L
For this post, I am going to share my latest Korea trip with you
guys because I just came back from Seoul last week and a lot of friends were asking me about my itinerary and recommendations. Yeah, like I said previously
I love Korea so much! As much as I love myself haha J so this time it is my third time
visiting to South Korea, However first time to the beautiful Jeju Island! Since
I have cover up the basics of travelling to South korea on my last post (you
may click on this link to read the first post if you haven’t -http://never2late2travel.blogspot.my/2015/12/quick-guide-to-seoul.html) so for this time round, I will be focusing on Jeju
Island instead and some of the interesting experiences I discover on my third visit to Seoul J
Let’s get started!
What you need to know
about traveling to Jeju Island
Domestic Flights to Jeju (https://www.eastarjet.com/newstar/PGWHC00001)
There are a few of budget domestic airline between Seoul and Jeju like Jeju Air and Easter Jet. I choose Easter Jet because I fly on Easter Jet before from Seoul to Tokyo therefore I am familiar with this airline and also they have the sales fare which for this trip it cost me about RM210 only (round trip). Tips to get lower fare is to book earlier (at least one month before your travel date).
Jeju
is an island off the southern coast of South korea. Bear in mind that the
weather condition is totally different from Seoul. Most of the tourist visits
during July – November as December to early February are normally rainy season.
I visited Jeju on end of October till early November, the weather is cooling
(mostly around 14-19’c). Although the temperature is not high but most of the
time it was very windy and we do encounter rainy days during our visit as well
so do remember to have an umbrella with you and make sure to wear coat which is
good in protecting you from windy weather J
Language
· For me, Jeju is more like a “kampong” area! The
percentage of people speaking English is lesser if compared to Seoul. Except
some limited English speaking person at the hotel or airport area, basically
the taxi or bus driver don’t speak at all but it won’t be a big problem as long as
you do some research before your trip (Note down those places you wanted to go and print an English Jeju bus intercity map and you are good to go) !
Transportation
·
T Money can be use here as well (If you do not
know what’s T Money, you may read my last post). Main transport here for
tourist is bus or taxi. Some people prefer to rent a one day taxi trip (you may
pre-book it with the taxi driver, there are a lot of post
regarding this so all you need is to google it). My friend and I decided
to go for bus since we wanted to be more relax in Jeju and those places which we are interested to visit are not many. Jeju is a very big island, if you are travelling there for
only 3 days , it won’t be possible for you to visit all places so what you need
to do is to first select the spots your are interested and categories them into different
area. I recommend one day for one area (North, East, West & South) so it depends on how many days you are planning to visit in order to plan your itinerary. - · The transportation here is a bit complicated. For example, we stay in central town area (it’s 10 min away from airport by taxi). However every time if we want to visit each area we need to travel through airport or the Jeju Bus Intercity bus Station so please choose your hotel destination wisely (choose according to your interested area if not it will be quite a hassle to travel around Jeju because it’s too huge!)
Jeju Intercity Bus Map
- · My friend and I have a bad impression about the transportation in Jeju which make us until now still feels very uncomfortable. Most of the bus driver and taxi driver are at the age of senior citizen; they are impatient, not friendly and they drive the bus like they are driving a sport car. We get so headache at the end of the day because of how they drive the public transport! Seriously no joke here. They can apply emergency break suddenly like more than 10 times within a 45min bus trip. surprisingly, those taxi driver who we encounter also did the same =.=’. & the scary part is that because of this issue we encounter one real life accident in front of us. One of the day, while we are on the way back to our hotel, the bus driver apply the break suddenly in a very dangerous way and one korean young lady who sit in front at the first row of the bus fells badly towards the front door area. It must be so painful and hurt! She sited there for a while and the bus driver just neglected what happen and continue to drive the bus. I am really surprise and shock to witness this. The lady was very very angry towards the driver and she was nagging all the way back and took a photo of the driver then only the driver starts to talk to the lady nicely but she insisted to report about this incident and this is where the bus driver starts to scream at the lady. In the end, both of them fight loudly at the station. The main point here is to tell you guys that if you decide to take public buses please do not sit INFRONT and be very careful by grabbing something even if you are sitting. We almost vomit when we reach back to our hotel lol. Speechless about this matter.....
Our first breakfast in Jeju <3
I booked the Mir guesthouse through Agoda. I simply love
this place so much as you can see from the picture, the outlook of the guesthouse
is so cool and unique! plus inside is super duper cozy. My friend and I stayed
in bunk bed room type, damage per person is about RM360 for 3 nights. I will list down
the advantages and disadvantages of this hotel based on my personal staying experience
:
What I like:
·
The owner can speak Basic English, easy to
communicate and he is friendly to all his guests. During our stay, he helps
us a lot by giving us recommendations and how can we go about for our trip, also helping in calling
taxi & ordering the fried chicken to the guesthouse for us J
·
The location is at the central town of Jeju (many
eateries around), 10min away from the airport, therefore guesthouse can be
found easily by taking a cab (cost about 4000won per trip). Also, 10 min to
reach Jeju interchange bus station (Main station to connect to other tourist destinations from the guesthouse).
·
The unique and trendy design outside but so cozy
inside. They provide all you may need (shampoo, body shower, small towels, hair
dryer, breakfast, brochures, maps). They do sell postcards and help guest to
post it as well! Very considerate J
·
Everything is so clean and new! Free Wifi!
What I don’t like:
·
The actual space of the room is actually quite small. Slightly
smaller than the picture shown in Agoda website but still acceptable since we
know that we are not paying for hotel rates.
Overall Review: 9/10 :) If you are planning to stay in Jeju Town as well , give Mir Guesthouse a try!
What I EAT In JEJU
I stay in Jeju for only 3 nights and there is one convenient store next
to our hotel so basically we have our meals mainly from those cup
noodles/snacks/drinks from the store. Many varieties and mostly are nice for
me. I will show what I had in Jeju by pictures below :)
The hotel staff help us to order this yummylicious fried chicken! We paired it with banana milk instead of beer ! lol ;p (All about 8000KRW per pax)
Brunch at Monsant Cafe
All sorts of premium quality matcha desserts and drinks at O'Sulloc Tea Musuem
(All items above average price)
Where I Visited
Everyone has different travel preferences, I will be listed down my 2 days Jeju Itinerary below just for your references:
- O'Sulloc Tea Musuem + Innisfree House (just next to O'Sulloc) - DAY 1
I am a matcha lover therefore O'Sulloc Tea Musuem is a must visit for me! There are branches of O'sulloc tea houses in Seoul as well however the one in Jeju is bigger and therefore there are more varieties of tea selections/merchandises for you to purchase :) It's all about quality here so the prices are pricey as well, I bought back the famous green tea spread and premium tea bags which I love it so much and I regretted of not buying more! I had the Ice Matcha and Matcha Ice cream at the store. I love both as it's really very matcha ;p After getting ourself a great treat here, we head to the next door - Innisfree House (is also like a small musuem). Innisfree house sells some products which Seoul don't! They will label it as <Jeju House Exclusive> so make sure that you take note of it :) Nice green tea field are all over outside Innisfree house and we cant help to take many pictures here because it is just too pretty and breathtaking!
After that, we head to visit the teddy bear museum (ticket cost about 10,000won per pax, equivalent Rm37). It is located same bus direction with the Tea Musuem. (the travelling time from central to these places usually takes about 45min - 1 hour per way so travelling time is quite time consuming in Jeju because the island is very big and do take note also that the day time is shorter during cold season) so make sure you add in all these travelling time while planning your activities/itinerary.
I get to know the teddy bear museum from the Korea drama named : <宫> haha not sure if you guys watch it before or heard about it before but because of this drama, the teddy bear museum become one of my wishlist and I am happy that I visited this year!
If you like teddy bear or that korea drama I mentioned, you may like to visit this museum, there are total 3 floors to roam around (include the merchandise store). Basically all these places sum up my first day in Jeju, it was raining quite heavily at the evening and we do not have umbrella with us therefore we couldn't visit any more places :( The bus stop is uncovered in Jeju (some) so we get wet and cold, luckily there is one kind Ajusshi share his umbrella with us. We are really thankful for that..........
2. Dragon Head Beach + Monsant Cafe + Halim Park - Day 2
Honestly there is nothing much in dragon head beach (although it is listed as one of the must visit area in Jeju) but since our hotel is just walking distance to this beach area so we decided to have a morning stroll over here! and again it is sooooo windy !!!
Must take photo with the Jeju 'Dol hareubangs' (trademark stone)
After a windy morning stroll, we head to Monsant Cafe, a cafe which rumors are spread that the owner is GD, I am a KPOP fan so this is in my must go list for sure. It is located in a nice view location however this place is quite far away from the city center but it never stop my determination to reach there haha;p It's located at Aewol area, there are a lot of other nice guesthouses and cafes surrounded in this area so for those cafe hoping lovers, this is a right place for you :)
Exterior of the cafe, it's all mirrors! so pretty but actually those people who are siting inside the cafe can see very clearly of what you are doing outside ! haha
so this is what I mean, I am siting inside of the cafe and people watching for the whole afternoon :)
Although I am not lucky enough to see GD in person here lol but still I am satisfied with the good coffee and great environment (but not the pricey price of course)!
After taking so many photos at Monsant cafe, we head to Halim Park, it is quite a huge park covers with different theme (according to the season). This time round we get to see the chrysanthemum flowers, cactus, caves, animals and etc. We treat it as an exercise actually so if you love plants you may consider to visit but if you don't it can be quite boring for you I think.
Across the Halim Park, there is a beach with just walking distance :)
Halim Beach
<3 <3 <3 Day 2 Ended
My Personal review on Jeju Island :
Like I said Jeju is a very big island and there are a lot of activities to do like
- Hallasan Mountain (beautiful scenery , its a famous spot for mountain hiker)
- All sorts of museums, waterfalls, parks, beaches
I think that those who love natural scenery and sports activity (hiking & water activities) will definitely love this place as many sites are also recognize as UNESCO HERITAGE! I do enjoy my trip this time to Jeju (except for the transportation thingy, everything else is perfect).
SEOUL
Next I will be sharing some of the interesting new experiences/places I had/went this time when I visit to SEOUL <3 Seoul is definitely a fascinating city! Trendy and Fashionable as always, therefore trendy stuffs are changing very fast (and this is why I am not bored with Seoul even though I visited Seoul for 3 times consecutively in 3 years already). Every year there will be new things going on in this city to explore!
- Line Friend's & Cafe In Myeongdong (due to its popularity in Seoul, there are now quite a few branches located around tourist spots) - I am not a big fans of Line but find their merchandises really cute and even the store itself it's so cute and pretty, very crowded and locals are really fancy and crazy about Line & Friends! If you are a fans , this is a must go for sure :)
The must take photo with the popular "Brown" (you have to queue to take pictures!)
Can't help to have a selfie with the famous Mr "Brown"
and not forgetting about "Sally" too :)
2 2. Stylenanda Pink Hotel
in Myeongdong
- It is not
really a "hotel", but the outlook and interior is build like a hotel and everything is so pretty and pinky! It's my favourite shop in Myeongdong haha.....of
course a lot of damages here especially I am a big fan of Korean skin care and make up products. Stylenanda is a brand under 3CE (I guess most
people know?). There are total 5 - 6 floors and there is a cafe on top of this
building serving the famous cotton candy coffee! Most of their products
are really good to use and I love their packaging, colour, design, concept & products so much!
3. Rose Flower Led Light in Dongdaemun
The view at night is totally stunning! It is located behind of the Dongdaemun History and culture park stadium. A must visit for pretty photos haha. During my visit this month, the temperature was like 1'c , its freezing cold, make sure you wear more if you are travelling to SEOUL during end of October onwards as the temperature can drop dramatically at night :(
4. My First Ever Hanbok Experience in SEOUL!
It's a crazy experience!! Why I say so because of a few reasons but still I think that it is a must do itinerary if you are a Klover like me !
The crazy reasons include :
- You have to wear the Hanbok from the rental place to your photo shooting destination so which mean for my case we wear it to travel all the way from Chungmoro Station to Gyeongbokgong Station by taking train and everyone was looking at us like we are at the wrong world haha
- - You have to be very careful while wearing the hanbok because any damages may cost you a bomb because hanbok itself is an expensive fashion! Additionally, it will be hard to walk on a staircase while wearing a hanbok, My friends and I almost fell and slip all the time =.=
- The cost of renting is not cheap , damages are about 13,000 Korean Won for only 4 hours (include the time of travelling from the rental shop to your destination and return from your destination to the rental shop, fines will be apply if you return late..) you can also choose to rent for one day its totally up to you as long as you can afford to pay :)
- If you are travelling during cold season, it may be very hard to take pictures because if you are wearing a hanbok, you wont want to wear too thick inside, the hanbok is basically not thick and it is just like a dress top on top of what you are wearing, if you are wearing too thick inside then it may look very fat.
Other than all these things to be aware of, it is definitely a fun experience if you are travelling with your friends! Of course have to then take as much photos as you can for great memory :)
How to Rent
There are a few hanbok rental shops in Seoul, however I booked it from ONEDAYHANBOK. Basically their website will have all you may want to ask or need to know (http://www.onedayhanbok.com/). It is better to pre-book it with them by sending them an email and they will reply you within a short period. You do not have to pay first. Just let them know your name, the date and time (I recommend to book at the earliest time as possible because the shop can be very crowded and time will be wasted) of renting will do :)
Once you reach their shop, let them know your name , they will then start explaining you some of the must know info. You can then start to choose 2 sets of Hanbok which you like or you think it may suits you (bear in mind that you can only choose 2 design to try on, and you have to decide one of them to wear out) so you have to be very careful on selecting that two sets of hanbok design as no turning back after that.
Once you decided on your hanbok, you can then proceed to the accessories corner to choose any accessories you want to add on (hairband, flower band, hanbok accessories etc), get your hair style done (I suggest to get it done before heading to the rental shop) and you are good to go to your photo shooting destinations (most of the people will choose Gyeongbokgong palace, Changdeokgong palace or Hanok Village..totally depends on your preferences). Just remember to return back the hanbok to the rental shop before the renting hours end to avoid any fines!
Once you reach their shop, let them know your name , they will then start explaining you some of the must know info. You can then start to choose 2 sets of Hanbok which you like or you think it may suits you (bear in mind that you can only choose 2 design to try on, and you have to decide one of them to wear out) so you have to be very careful on selecting that two sets of hanbok design as no turning back after that.
Once you decided on your hanbok, you can then proceed to the accessories corner to choose any accessories you want to add on (hairband, flower band, hanbok accessories etc), get your hair style done (I suggest to get it done before heading to the rental shop) and you are good to go to your photo shooting destinations (most of the people will choose Gyeongbokgong palace, Changdeokgong palace or Hanok Village..totally depends on your preferences). Just remember to return back the hanbok to the rental shop before the renting hours end to avoid any fines!
\I am ready to go ! I choose pink as its my favourite colour:)
(but my friend and I feels so weird to wear this traditional wear and appears at the modern places haha)
I am lucky to find this accessories to suit my hanbok
(this is why I suggest to reach early at the shop so that you can have more choices of hanbok and accesorries to choose from)
We Choose Gyeongbokgong Palace to take our Hanbok pictures :)
Take as many pictures as you can to make it worth! :) It's funny that many tourists (Japanese,, Europeans, Thai....) thought that we are local Koreans and they ask us for permission on taking pictures with us! We are too kind to reject so there are many pictures of us with strangers out there lol...we should actually charge them to earn some pocket money right lol (Just Kidding). Anyway, it is an awesome and interesting experience in overall. Hanbok is really pretty! I am not sure if I have the chance to wear it again but this amazing memory will be with me forever :)
A local "Ajumma" is also secretly taking pictures of us lol but after that she offer herself to take pictures for us, very kind of her :)
What I Eat & Recommend in Seoul
There is a huge raved about for this Remicone "thunderbomb" ice cream. It is basically a milky based ice cream top with a minty kind flavor of cotton candy. I love it so much! Recommend to blend everything together. They have other choices of ice cream combinations as well but this is the signature one, if you are an ice cream lover, you may want to drop by to try! I visited the Gangnam outlet, about 10 - 15min walk from the Sinsa Station, Exit 8, walk straight until you get to Missha, and make a left turn, keep walking again until you see Fossil Store, cross the street and this pretty unique ice cream store is just in the alley! It's a bit pricey though, if you have price concern, order one and share it with your friends :)
It's a bowl of homemade awesome king size mixed types of dumplings with Topokki in a hearty warm soup ! The best for cold weather and this is my kind of comfort food. makes me missing home after having this :( They are generous with the dumpling filling (minced pork), its my first time trying this actually and I personally strongly recommend you guys to have it on a cold night. I had this is Dongdaemun however I didn't note down the restaurant name as we just enter the restaurant to have a try when we are very hungry but I believe there are plenty of restaurants out there at the tourists spots where you can find this bowl of goodness. Honestly, I have been to Seoul for 3 times and I haven't yet to eat any foods which dissapoint me haha...Maybe I am just lucky on this.
This outlet is quite famous among locals and there are a few branches across popular areas too. I had one of their signature drink (banana chocolate blended) but regretted after :( not because of the taste but because of its freezing cold ! I think its better to have hot coffee instead if you are travelling during cold season :) I had this in Ehwa University area.
I love this to the moon and back! I tried the spicy seafood porridge and it's really so delicious and the portion of their seafood is generous too! AGAIN, great choice for autumn :) I had this at Myeongdong area, there are a lot of similar restaurant all over Myeongdong. MUST EAT!
Very typical bean sprout bimbibap with minced beef, strongly recommended by our hotel owner! Super satisfying meal, its near to our hotel in dongdaemun. An old traditional restaurant with no fancy decorations but the food taste is just amazing. Definitely an insider recommendation! Come with soy bean soup, kimchi and chili (must add into the dishes) and mix everything together! Cost about 4000 KRW. <3 <3 <3 LOVE IT!!!
I know I am crazy to have an ice cream when the weather temperature is only at 1-2'c! but this rose design ice cream is so pretty that I cannot think rationally lol..however the taste is actually quite normal so don't waste your money for this (it's not cheap somemore lol)
If you like honey mustard, go ahead to try the new honey mustard pringles chips! It is an exclusive in Korea. There is honey caramel flavour too but I personally prefer honey mustard if compare on both flavours.
Lastly, of course everyone knows that korea is famous for its beauty products and snacks from Lotte Mart! There are too many good stuffs which is hard for me to recommend on this post lol....maybe I will seperate the beauty products review and foods/snacks from lotte mart on a seperate post soon. and yes I carry back all these items shown on the picture above by myself (Don't be shock..because only 1/4 belongs to me ;P)
Thanks for reading and I hope it is helpful for you guys! Any questions, you can ask me through private message or email! I am happy to answer since the purpose of my blog is to help anyone who might in need and to share my travel experiences as I always believe every adventures are different and its good to share as sharing is caring! BYE FOR NOW :)
TILL NEXT TIME............
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Have a great day guys :)
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