Highlights
- Explore the grand Gyeongbokgung palace in Seoul
- Learn techniques for South Korea's signature dishes in a Seoul cooking class
- Shop with locals at the bustling Jagalchi Fish Market in Busan
- Relax and learn about village life on Udo and Jeju Islands
Brief Itinerary
| Day | Highlights | Overnight |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Arrive in Seoul, Optional Insadong Tour | Seoul |
| Day 2 | Seoul Gyeongbokgung Palace & Cooking Class | Seoul |
| Day 3 | Train to Busan, Jagalchi Fish Market | Busan |
| Day 4 | Haedong Yonggungsa, Haewundae Beach & Gwangalli Food Tour | Busan |
| Day 5 | Fly to Jeju, Udo Islands | Jeju Island |
| Day 6 | Seongsan Ilchulbong Village & Tea Tasting Tour | Jeju Island |
| Day 7 | Return to Seoul, Depart |
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive in Seoul, Optional Insadong Tour
Welcome to Seoul, the dynamic South Korean capital with more than nine million residents. Meet your driver at Incheon International Airport to transfer directly to your hotel, with an approximately one-hour drive. Depending on your arrival time, spend the rest of the day exploring the city, or rest after your journey.
Head to the Insadong neighborhood for an optional three-hour tour of its tea houses, shops, and restaurants, walking along cobblestone streets lined with ginkgo trees. Or, walk through Myeongdong, a skincare and cosmetics hub. For lunch or dinner, head to Gwangjang Market to taste some of the city's best street food while moving among a crowd of locals. Take your pick among dishes such as dak gangjeong (fried chicken), mandu (dumplings), and kkochi (skewers). End the night with skyline views at Seoul Sky, an observation deck with a glass floor above the city.
Day 2: Seoul Gyeongbokgung Palace & Cooking Class
Today your private guide will customize a day around Seoul according to your interests. Some of the highlights you might consider are the Gyeongbokgung palace to learn about the culture and history of the Joseon Dynasty. The complex was built in 1395 and restored in the 19th century and is considered among the most beautiful of Seoul's five grand palaces. Follow your guide to see some of its more than 50 buildings and 7,700 rooms spanning 90 acres (40 ha). Then learn more about the former hanoks (traditional wooden homes) of the royal family and high society with a stroll in Bukchon Hanok Village.
For lunch, let your guide lead the way to try dishes such as bibimbap, mixed rice typically served with egg, sliced meat, vegetables, and sauce, or samgyetang, a ginseng chicken soup with dried jujubes, chestnuts, and garlic. Then, in a cooking class, learn more about South Korea's classic flavors, such as kimchi and savory pancakes. At the end of your food tour, return to your Seoul hotel to get ready to travel to Busan tomorrow.
Chat with a local specialist who can help organize your trip.
Day 3: Train to Busan, Jagalchi Fish Market
Busan is today's destination, where you'll board the KTX high-speed train traveling south for about three hours and then meet your driver for a transfer to your hotel. Ease your way into the city and feel the laid-back atmosphere on Dadaepo Beach. Then join your local guide for a food tour of Jagalchi Fish Market, among South Korea's largest. Weave through narrow alleyways lined with stalls to pick your fish on the main floor, and then head up to the market's second floor to select a restaurant to turn your selection into a meal, such as grilled, served raw, or transformed into seafood pancakes.
After the food tour, arrive in BIFF Square, a central shopping and dining district, for another culinary adventure through street food. Browse among vendors selling tteokbokki (simmered rice cakes) and mandu dumplings, gimbap (slices of rice, vegetables, fish, and meat rolled in dried seaweed sheets), and hotteok (brown sugar and nut-filled pancakes). After a full day of food adventure, return to your hotel for the evening.Day 4: Visit Haedong Yonggungsa, Haewundae Beach & Gwangalli Food Tour
With your guide and driver leading the way, see Busan and the surrounding area today. About 20 minutes east of the city, arrive at Haedong Yonggungsa and walk the grounds of a 14th-century Buddhist temple with views of the rugged East Sea coastline. Then travel a bit farther south to the Sky Capsule to admire more scenery along the shore. For lunch, try local specialties such as jangeo-gui grilled eel or bibim dangmyeon, boiled glass noodles with pickled radishes, fish cakes, and vegetables. Spend the afternoon at Haeundae Beach, a popular summer surfing spot.
Head back to the city as the sun sets for a food tour around Gwangalli Beach with a chance to experience the area's nightlife and see views of the Gwangan Bridge. Return to your hotel and pack up your bags to get ready to fly to the islands tomorrow.
Day 5: Fly to Jeju, Udo Islands
Start your day with an approximately one-hour flight to Jeju Island, a volcanic atoll where you'll spend the next two nights. After settling into your hotel, take a 15-minute boat ride to Udo (called "Cow Island" because of its shape) off Jeju's northeast coast. There, rent a bicycle or scooter to travel around the island to explore beaches and sea caves.
Learn about the island's unique foods, such as sweet hallabong tangerine, black pork barbecue, abalone porridge, and peanut ice cream when you get hungry. Stay on Udo Island as long as you'd like, and then return to Jeju Island to see views over Seongsan Ilchulbong (Sunrise Peak), a peak that seems to emerge directly from the sea on the eastern side of the island.
Day 6: Seongsan Ilchulbong Village & Tea Tasting Tour
Get another view of Sunrise Peak this morning on your way to Seongeup Folk Village. Spend the morning exploring the town of 3,000 thatch roof and lava rock homes passed down through generations. Learn folk songs and words in the local dialect, and see dol haruebangs ("grandfather made of stone" statues), which you can also take home in miniature form. For lunch, travel to the south of the island to Seogwipohang Port and Chilsimni Street.
Chilsimni Street near Seogwipohang Port is lined with more than 40 restaurants and cafés to taste local specialties like haemul ttukbaegi (hotpot seafood stew), grilled fish, and sashimi. Jeju Island is also one of South Korea's most important tea production areas, and in the afternoon, tour Seogwang Tea Plantation. Learn how tea is harvested, explore a small museum, soak up sweeping views of tea fields, and end the tour with a tea ceremony.
Day 7: Return to Seoul, Depart
Enjoy your last morning in Jeju Island, and then catch a flight to Seoul. Depending on your departure details, explore more of Seoul before you transfer to the airport to go to your next destination.
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