14 Days Enchantments of Korea

Day 1: At Incheon airport, be met by an English speaking guide. Then be transferred to your hotel. Meals Included: None Day 2: After breakfast, start Seoul city tour at Gyeongbok Palace, the largest of the Five Grand Palaces. Also visit the National Folk Museum¸ located witihin the palace. Then proceed to Bukchon Hanok village, a traditional house concentrated area. Bukchon is called "the street museum in the urban core" having many historical spots and cultural heritage sites of 600 years long history of Seoul. Afterwards, take a stroll at Insadong, where you can find traditional goods, restaurants, teahouses, and cafes. The last stop is at Jongmyo Shrine, a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site. Its main purpose was to hold memorial services of past kings and queens. It is the oldest royal Confucian shrine preserved.  Return to hotel. Meals included: Breakfast Day 3: After breakfast, depart for the Korean Demilitarized Zone (D. M. Z. ), which is the safest war zone existing in the world. South and North Korea are technically still at war, having agreed on ceasefire since 1953. Have a look and experience the war up close and safely as you will never be able to in another country. Head back to Seoul for some free time. Optional entertainment: take the chance to see a Korean traditional performance in the middle of the concrete jungle at the Jeongdong Theater Traditional Show or enjoy the Nanta Show, a non-verbal performance full of traditional rhythm, comedy and drama in the kitchen.  Return to hotel. ​Meals included: Breakfast Day 4: After breakfast, transfer to Suwon Hwaseong Fortress, outside of Seoul, listed as Unesco World Heritage Site. Within the fortress, you can find Hwaseong Haeunggung Palace. Haenggung is a temporary palace where the king and royal family retreated to during a war. Then visit Korean Folk Village to learn the traditional culture through unique features such as farming village, private houses, official districts, Confucian academy, village school, nobleman’s house, and traditional workshop. Return to hotel. ​Meals included: Breakfast Day 5: After breakfast, transfer to Mt Seorak National Park. Seoraksan Mountain is one of the most beautiful mountains in Korea, boasting a variety of colorful flowers in Spring, refreshing clear water streams in Summer, vibrant autumn foliages in Fall, and a scenic snow-covered landscape in Winter. As the mountain changes in color according to each season, a visit to Seoraksan Mountain guarantees a picturesque landscape any time of the year. Depending on the weather and availability, you may even have the chance to take the Cable Car up to get a birds-eye-view on top of the Gwongeumseong region. Then, transfer to Gangneung to visit Ojukheon House, where Shin Saimdang and her son Yi I was born. These figures can be found on the 50,000 Korean won currency and the 5,000 Korean won currency.  ​Meals included: Breakfast Day 6: After breakfast, stop by 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic venues to see where the athletes have competed for this worldwide sports event. Then transfer down to Andong and on the way, check out the unique Buddha statue, Maaekseobulsang. The body of the Buddha has been carved into the rock. Upon arrival at Andong, take a stroll across Korea’s longest footbridge made of wood, Woryeonggyo Bridge. Meals included: Breakfast Day 7: After breakfast, take a visit to Andong Hahoe Village. It is the best-preserved village with its traditional style noble houses. In 1999, Queen Elisabeth II visited Hahoe Village and was welcomed with a Korean traditional Birthday Party Table. Then, transfer to Mt Gayasan National Park and visit Haeinsa Temple. It has a world famous Korean cultural treasure called Tripikata Koreana, which was made during the Goryeo Dynasty to protect the country from the invasion of Mongolian troops by Buddha’s power. Tripitaka Koreana was designated as Unessco World Cultural Heritage.  ​Meals included: Breakfast Day 8: After breakfast, transfer to Gyeongju, the capital of the Silla kingdom from 57BC – 935AD. This beautiful place is known as the “Museum without walls,” as there are 52 designated sites within the city. Visit Gyochon Village, Cheomseongdae Astronomic Observatory, Royal Tumuli Park, Gyeongju National Museum, and Anapji Pond. ​Meals included: Breakfast Day 9: After breakfast, continue your tour of Gyeongju by visiting Bulguksa Temple and Seokguram Grotto (UNESCO Sites). Seokguram Grotto was established in the 8th century on the slopes of Mt. Toham. The grotto contains a monumental statue of a sitting Buddha looking out towards the sea and is considered a masterpiece of Buddhist art in the Far East. Then, head down for Busan. Along the way, stop by at Ganjeolgot. This location is where the sun rises the earliest along the East Coast. You can find a lighthouse as well as one of the world’s largest mailbox. Continue on your way to Busan, the second largest city of South Korea and cross the longest bi-level bridge over the ocean in Korea as you proceed to your hotel.  Meals included: Breakfast Day 10: After breakfast, visit Nurimaru APEC House, located on Dongbaekseom Island, which is noted for its beautiful and natural landscape accented by dense camellia and pine trees. At the Nurimaru APEC House, you can get a spectacular view of Haeundae Beach. Then visit the UN Memorial Cemetery, where UN soldiers from 16 countries, and UN aids from five countries are honored for their death in the battles during the Korean War from 1950-1953. Then stop at Jagalchi Fish Market and the BIFF Avenue. The street is crowded with firstrun theaters, which is rare not only in Asia but Europe as well, and for this reason it holds great potential. Spend some free time at Gukje International Market.  Return to hotel. ​Meals included: Breakfast Day 11: After breakfast, transfer to Namhae, where a German Village was built for Korean residents who returned from living in Germany in the 1960s to earn foreign currency during the modernization of Korea. To build German-style houses, materials were directly imported from Germany. Also visit the House N Garden, which is comprised of themed private gardens such as the perfume, palm tree, topiary, vegetable, windmill, spa, and flower roof gardens. Then proceed to Odongdo Island from Yeosu Port. Odongdo Island is a spectacular spot for ecological education with 70 species of wild flowers that flourish here. Pass by Dolsandaegyo Bridge, a popular tourist destination. If time permits, take a stroll along the Soho DongDong Bridge before being transferred to the hotel. ​​Meals included: Breakfast Day 12: After breakfast, visit Hyangiram Hermitage, where the sight of the sun rising from the southern sea makes it one of the best places to visit in Korea. Then, transfer to Daehan Dawon Tourist Tea Plantation, otherwise known as Boseong Green Tea Plantation. It is the only tourist tea plantation in Korea. The plantation boasts an outstanding landscape with a beautiful cedar forest that stretches from the entrance. The next visit is at Juknokwon, a bamboo forest threaded with paths totaling a distance of 2. 4 km. As you walk though Juknokwon, enjoy the health benefits of a forest bath. Then transfer to Jeonju hotel.  ​​​Meals included: Breakfast Day 13: After breakfast, start your tour of Jeonju Hanok Village, where over 800 traditional hanok houses are located. The village is beautiful for its unique roof edges, which are slightly raised to the sky. At Jeonju Hanok Village, you can enjoy traditional Korean life and traditional foods such as bibimbap, which is the most well-known dish from the Jeonju region. After the tour, transfer back to Seoul. ​​​​Meals included: Breakfast Day 14: After breakfast, check-out from the Hotel and transfer to Incheon international airport with driver only for your flight back home.