Previous post: Scratch Off My Bucket List; Trip to Busan - Seoul (Itinerary + Expenses)
I visited South Korea (SK) with my youngest brother and we went without a tour guide. It's my first time arranging an itinerary for my trip, myself, so it was quite challenging as I had to do research and do a lot of reading. I'm so thankful to fellow bloggers for sharing their experiences visiting SK as their write up helped me tremendously. So I'm planning to do the same, sharing my experience with the hope to help you guys who'd be visiting SK for the first time.
DAY 1 (18th April 2019 - Thursday)
Our flight was at 1.35am from KLIA2 and arrived at Gimhae International Airport (Busan) around 9.00am (SK local time). Upon arriving, we bought and top-up T-Money from 7 eleven. T-Money in SK was kinda like Touch N Go in Malaysia where we only use T-Money to pay for public transport such as subway and bus. Then we head to Busan Station to store our baggage as we'll be heading to Seoul later that night by Mugunghwa Train.
After arriving in Busan Station and stored our baggage, we went to the bus stop near the train station and got on the Busan City Tour bus to go sightseeing Busan. I've read that it costs only ₩ 6,000 but to my disappointment, it costs ₩ 15,000 per person for that bus and we regretted to ride it, we should've ridden a regular bus instead. This is because the bus would bring you sightseeing Busan city for the whole day but we got no time to visit every checkpoint since we would be leaving for Seoul that night. So the Busan City Tour bus would be worth it if you plan to spend one whole day sightseeing Busan.
Taejongdae Park
The first and only stop we went was to Taejongdae Park. There were two options to explore Taejongdae Park, either by riding the Danubi Train or by walking. But since we got no stamina left to hike the road, we went for riding the train. The train would bring you to checkpoints along the road of Taejongdae Park where breathtaking views await you.
We rode the same bus to Busan Station and our Mugunghwa Train to Seoul Station departed around 9.45pm and arrived at Seoul Station around 3.30am. We chose to ride Mugunghwa Train to Seoul because it was the cheapest way rather than taking the bus or KTX Train.
DAY 2 (19th April 2019 - Friday)
I remembered that Day 2 was a nightmare for us. We arrived at Seoul Station around 3.30am so we waited until 7.30am to start moving to Itaewon Timezone Hostel as I've asked to store our baggage at the hostel while waiting for the actual check-in time at 3.00pm. But no one answered the door when we arrived so we went to the famous Itaewon Mosque to get some rest from the freezing cold but unfortunately, the mosque was locked. We were also starving as we couldn't find any restaurant that opened at that hour. Great combination, it was cold and we were hungry.
To go to Itaewon Timezone Hostel from Seoul Station:
Seoul Station --> Samgakji Station --> Itaewon Station. Exit 4, and walk 10mins to reach Itaewon Timezone Hostel.
Changdeokgung Palace
When we finally couldn't bear the cold, we went back to Seoul Station to store our baggage and for some time, we thought to just wait as we were so exhausted but eventually decided to continue with our original plan to visit Changdeokgung Palace and it was worth the exhausting journey. We went for the Secret Garden tour in Changdeokgung Palace and spent almost 5 hours touring the palace. I must say that of all the places we visited on this trip, this palace was the best.
To go to Changdeokgung Palace from Seoul Station:
Seoul Station --> Jongno Sam-ga Station --> Anguk Station. Exit the station and walk along the road, following signboard to Changdeokgung Palace.
We went back to Itaewon for lunch and check-in our hostel. We were so exhausted that we just slept for the rest of the day though initially, we had planned to go to Meyondong Street.
DAY 3 (20th April 2019 - Saturday)
I remembered Day 2 being the most exhausting day because of lack of proper meal and walking non-stop but we got enough rest and energized again on Day 3. I was so excited for Day 3 as we planned to go to Nami Island, the most famous island among tourist who visited SK.
Nami Island
I loved how they decorated and made the procedure to go to Nami Island as if we're going to another country with the immigration wannabe officers standby to check our tickets as if it was our passports. Nami Island was beautiful, I loved the place. You should get the map of the island to make it easier to go around and search for activities, eateries and photo spots. There were too many beautiful spots for photos and there's one restaurant that served halal food so we ate there. There's also prayer room on the second floor of a library next to the prayer room.
To Nami Island from Itaewon;
Itaewon Station --> Taereung Station --> Sangbong Station --> Gapyeong Station. Exit 1, go to the bus stop and ride Gapyeong Tour Shuttle Bus to Nami Island
Petite France
We spent almost 4 hours on the Island. We were contemplating either to continue our trip visiting Petite France or straight to Seodaemun Prison History Museum but since the museum would take long hours of journey, we decided to just go to Petite France and would go to the museum the day we'd go back to Busan. Petite France literally just a town with the concept of being in France, a bit similar to Bukit Tinggi in Malaysia, but with more exhibitions and theatres to look for.
Myeong-dong Street
We decided to stop by at Myeong-dong Street before heading back to the hostel. Myeong-dong Street was food heaven. There were so many street foods to try and we tried a few cum made it our dinner for that day. There were also shops along the street but since we just wanted to buy souvenirs, we didn't go to any of the shops. I've read that Myeong-dong Street also got souvenirs such as keychain or fridge magnet but we couldn't find any that night. We just ate.
To Myeond-dong Street From Gapyeong;
Ride Gapyeong Tour Shuttle Bus to train station. Gapyeong Station (Line Gyeongchun) --> Sangbong Station --> Hoegi Station (LINE 1) --> Dongdaemun Station )LINE 4) --> Myeong-dong Station
Next post: Scratch Off My Bucket List; Trip to Busan - Seoul (Part 2)
Till then,
Lya.
I visited South Korea (SK) with my youngest brother and we went without a tour guide. It's my first time arranging an itinerary for my trip, myself, so it was quite challenging as I had to do research and do a lot of reading. I'm so thankful to fellow bloggers for sharing their experiences visiting SK as their write up helped me tremendously. So I'm planning to do the same, sharing my experience with the hope to help you guys who'd be visiting SK for the first time.
DAY 1 (18th April 2019 - Thursday)
Our flight was at 1.35am from KLIA2 and arrived at Gimhae International Airport (Busan) around 9.00am (SK local time). Upon arriving, we bought and top-up T-Money from 7 eleven. T-Money in SK was kinda like Touch N Go in Malaysia where we only use T-Money to pay for public transport such as subway and bus. Then we head to Busan Station to store our baggage as we'll be heading to Seoul later that night by Mugunghwa Train.
To go to Busan Station from Gimhae International Airport:
Ride the Busan - Gimhae LRT to Sasang Station. From Sasang Station, take metro Line 1 to Busan Station.
After arriving in Busan Station and stored our baggage, we went to the bus stop near the train station and got on the Busan City Tour bus to go sightseeing Busan. I've read that it costs only ₩ 6,000 but to my disappointment, it costs ₩ 15,000 per person for that bus and we regretted to ride it, we should've ridden a regular bus instead. This is because the bus would bring you sightseeing Busan city for the whole day but we got no time to visit every checkpoint since we would be leaving for Seoul that night. So the Busan City Tour bus would be worth it if you plan to spend one whole day sightseeing Busan.
Taejongdae Park
The first and only stop we went was to Taejongdae Park. There were two options to explore Taejongdae Park, either by riding the Danubi Train or by walking. But since we got no stamina left to hike the road, we went for riding the train. The train would bring you to checkpoints along the road of Taejongdae Park where breathtaking views await you.
We rode the same bus to Busan Station and our Mugunghwa Train to Seoul Station departed around 9.45pm and arrived at Seoul Station around 3.30am. We chose to ride Mugunghwa Train to Seoul because it was the cheapest way rather than taking the bus or KTX Train.
I referred to Miszdae's blog (click) on how to book Mugunghwa Train. Or you can ask her to book for you.
DAY 2 (19th April 2019 - Friday)
I remembered that Day 2 was a nightmare for us. We arrived at Seoul Station around 3.30am so we waited until 7.30am to start moving to Itaewon Timezone Hostel as I've asked to store our baggage at the hostel while waiting for the actual check-in time at 3.00pm. But no one answered the door when we arrived so we went to the famous Itaewon Mosque to get some rest from the freezing cold but unfortunately, the mosque was locked. We were also starving as we couldn't find any restaurant that opened at that hour. Great combination, it was cold and we were hungry.
To go to Itaewon Timezone Hostel from Seoul Station:
Seoul Station --> Samgakji Station --> Itaewon Station. Exit 4, and walk 10mins to reach Itaewon Timezone Hostel.
Changdeokgung Palace
When we finally couldn't bear the cold, we went back to Seoul Station to store our baggage and for some time, we thought to just wait as we were so exhausted but eventually decided to continue with our original plan to visit Changdeokgung Palace and it was worth the exhausting journey. We went for the Secret Garden tour in Changdeokgung Palace and spent almost 5 hours touring the palace. I must say that of all the places we visited on this trip, this palace was the best.
To go to Changdeokgung Palace from Seoul Station:
Seoul Station --> Jongno Sam-ga Station --> Anguk Station. Exit the station and walk along the road, following signboard to Changdeokgung Palace.
We went back to Itaewon for lunch and check-in our hostel. We were so exhausted that we just slept for the rest of the day though initially, we had planned to go to Meyondong Street.
DAY 3 (20th April 2019 - Saturday)
I remembered Day 2 being the most exhausting day because of lack of proper meal and walking non-stop but we got enough rest and energized again on Day 3. I was so excited for Day 3 as we planned to go to Nami Island, the most famous island among tourist who visited SK.
Nami Island
I loved how they decorated and made the procedure to go to Nami Island as if we're going to another country with the immigration wannabe officers standby to check our tickets as if it was our passports. Nami Island was beautiful, I loved the place. You should get the map of the island to make it easier to go around and search for activities, eateries and photo spots. There were too many beautiful spots for photos and there's one restaurant that served halal food so we ate there. There's also prayer room on the second floor of a library next to the prayer room.
To Nami Island from Itaewon;
Itaewon Station --> Taereung Station --> Sangbong Station --> Gapyeong Station. Exit 1, go to the bus stop and ride Gapyeong Tour Shuttle Bus to Nami Island
Petite France
We spent almost 4 hours on the Island. We were contemplating either to continue our trip visiting Petite France or straight to Seodaemun Prison History Museum but since the museum would take long hours of journey, we decided to just go to Petite France and would go to the museum the day we'd go back to Busan. Petite France literally just a town with the concept of being in France, a bit similar to Bukit Tinggi in Malaysia, but with more exhibitions and theatres to look for.
Myeong-dong Street
We decided to stop by at Myeong-dong Street before heading back to the hostel. Myeong-dong Street was food heaven. There were so many street foods to try and we tried a few cum made it our dinner for that day. There were also shops along the street but since we just wanted to buy souvenirs, we didn't go to any of the shops. I've read that Myeong-dong Street also got souvenirs such as keychain or fridge magnet but we couldn't find any that night. We just ate.
To Myeond-dong Street From Gapyeong;
Ride Gapyeong Tour Shuttle Bus to train station. Gapyeong Station (Line Gyeongchun) --> Sangbong Station --> Hoegi Station (LINE 1) --> Dongdaemun Station )LINE 4) --> Myeong-dong Station
Next post: Scratch Off My Bucket List; Trip to Busan - Seoul (Part 2)
Till then,
Lya.
It must be so cooooool when we finally scratched off that one thing which has been sitting in our bucket list after such a long time! XD For more adventure, jyeah!
ReplyDeleteYeap, finally I got the chance to scratch it off after so so long hihi
Deletethose views *mata love love haha
ReplyDeleteThank youu <3
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