inchon korea

[zula]

We will be visiting Korea (Inchon) for just one day on our upcoming cruise in March. Is there anyting to see or do in Inchon or should we go to Seoul?

 

Regards,

Sonja

[Acrusa]

We will be visiting Korea (Inchon) for just one day on our upcoming cruise in March. Is there anyting to see or do in Inchon or should we go to Seoul?

 

Regards,

Sonja

 

We are doing the Oceania March 11 cruise out of Bejing.We arive in the port of Inchon and that is the port for Seoul.Check your Ittinarry for the tours the crusie line offers.

[CruisingGoddess]

Don't know what cruise line you are on but we are on Ocean Princess' 4/1 sailing and they canceled the stop at Inchon because of the tensions with North Korea. Very disappointing. You may want to double-check with your cruise line that you are still making the stop.

 

If we stopped there, we were planning to go to the DMZ.

[Acrusa]

Don't know what cruise line you are on but we are on Ocean Princess' 4/1 sailing and they canceled the stop at Inchon because of the tensions with North Korea. Very disappointing. You may want to double-check with your cruise line that you are still making the stop.

 

If we stopped there, we were planning to go to the DMZ.

 

We are on Oceania Nautica March 11 they told me they wont cancel this stop unles the state Department issua's a warning. And so far they have not stopped Americans from comming to Korea.

They have a few tours and one of them goes to the DMZ

[StaringAtTheMoon]

The DMZ tour isn't particularly interesting, although you do get to go around the meeeting table in the armistice building at Panmunjom, half of which is on the other sidfe of the border so you can say that technically you set foot in North Korea.

 

If you want to get a glimpse of Korean history and culture, see if your ship offers a tour of any of the Chosun dynasty royal palaces, like Kyongbok Palace or Changdok Palace, which also includes the Secret Garden ("Biwon" in Korean).

 

If you want to DIY, you can catch a cab from the port to the East Incheon subway station on the Red line, which takes an hour and 20 minutes to get you into Seoul city center. You can transfer to the Blue line and get off at Samgkachi Station to see the massive Korean War museum or get out at Chungmuro Station to visit the Hanok Folk Village, which recreates the houses and customs of 19th-century Korea.

 

Kyongbok Palace and the National Museum are located at Kwanghwamun Station on the Orange line.

[Put Me On A Boat]

Does anyone know where cruise ships dock in Incheon? Specifically, the ms Amsterdam. We'll be there on Oct. 13 and I really don't feel like a one and a half hour ride into Seoul. Is there anything at the dock? Is there a shuttle into town?

[trabeler]

Does anyone know where cruise ships dock in Incheon? Specifically, the ms Amsterdam. We'll be there on Oct. 13 and I really don't feel like a one and a half hour ride into Seoul. Is there anything at the dock? Is there a shuttle into town?

 

Incheon is a VERY busy port, but not geared to cruise ship traffic. I've never arrived into this port as I've always arrived by air. However, there is very little "touristy" type things to do in Incheon and I doubt there'll be anything interesting right at the dock. Hopefully someone who has personal experience with the port can chime in if I'm off base on this.

 

If your cruise line offers a "Seoul on your own" type tour, that might be a good option since you'll take a direct bus to town. Using public transportation, although relatively easy, will probably take 1.5 hours total due to the number of stops. A direct bus can probably get you to the edge of Seoul in around 45 minutes, or an hour or so if they go into downtown near city hall. Traffic can be horrible during rush hour, however.

 

As mentioned previously, a tour of the DMZ might be of interest as an alternative.

 

If you post some info on any excursions that are being offered, I'd be glad to help give you any suggestions on them. I lived in Seoul for three years and wandered all over the city during that time...

[Put Me On A Boat]

 

If you post some info on any excursions that are being offered, I'd be glad to help give you any suggestions on them. I lived in Seoul for three years and wandered all over the city during that time...

 

I will appreciate your input.

This is what is offered by HAL:

1. The DMZ & the Third Tunnel, appr. 7 hrs, $149 pp. Visit the DMZ. Visit the Third Tunnel and access this tunnel via a sloping shaft. Lunch. Bring passport, the drive to the DMZ is 75 min. each way.

 

2. Incheon Highlights, appr. 3.5 hrs, $59. pp. First drive 20 min. to Yeonan Pier & fish market. Continue to the serenity of Wolmido for 40 min. In Chinatown see a 0.8 mile street. Nearby is Modern Architecture Museum. Finally, stop at Sinpo Market for 30 min.

 

3. Art & Seoul Apr. 7.75 hrs, $149. pp. A 90-min. drive brings you to the National Museum for just over an hour stop. It is near Yongsan Park. See the War Memorial of Korea. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant and a folk song performance. Discover the Hanok Village, Insadong.

 

4. Incheon Private Touring 4 hrs, $600 per vehicle. Bring local currency as credit cards may not be widely accepted.

 

5. Korean Folk Village & Dance Performance. Approx. 6.5 hrs, $144. pp.

Visit the Korean Folk Village & highlight is the Farmers' Dance and Shaman's Dance. A Korean bbq lund and traditional pancakes are served at the village before you drive bck to the ship.

 

6. The Best of Seoul Approx. 7.5 hrs, $119. pp. View Seoul from a motor coach, beg. with an 80-min. drive. Pass th Blue House, some time to stroll around at the Gyeongbok Palace & Folklore Museum. Don't miss Insa-dong Street. After lunch, stop at the South Gate Market for 30 min., then drive 90 min. back to the ship.

 

This will be our 3rd stop in So. Korea, after Busan and Jeju City. Have you found that credit cards may not be widely accepted?

 

Thanks for your input. It would help if the cruise lines let you know ahead of time if there are shuttles, but I know they want to sell their tours.

[trabeler]

1. The DMZ & the Third Tunnel, appr. 7 hrs, $149 pp. Visit the DMZ. Visit the Third Tunnel and access this tunnel via a sloping shaft. Lunch. Bring passport, the drive to the DMZ is 75 min. each way.

 

This is interesting if you're a history buff. My father was stationed in Korea during the Korean War so I found it interesting to see first hand. Many varieties of this tour are offered in Korea as you can see the fence, panmunjom, dorasan train station, a lookout post, etc, etc. If I remember correctly, the tour I did was around $70 and did not include panmunjom or lunch but did do the fence, lookout tower, and tunnel. $149 isn't too bad for a cruiseline excursion since it also includes transportation from the ship (my price was from downtown Seoul).

 

2. Incheon Highlights, appr. 3.5 hrs, $59. pp. First drive 20 min. to Yeonan Pier & fish market. Continue to the serenity of Wolmido for 40 min. In Chinatown see a 0.8 mile street. Nearby is Modern Architecture Museum. Finally, stop at Sinpo Market for 30 min.

 

If you're going to Busan and Jeju before, you can get enough of smaller city sightseeing there. Busan has a huge fish market as well and it'll be much closer to the port so you could see that there.

 

3. Art & Seoul Apr. 7.75 hrs, $149. pp. A 90-min. drive brings you to the National Museum for just over an hour stop. It is near Yongsan Park. See the War Memorial of Korea. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant and a folk song performance. Discover the Hanok Village, Insadong.

 

The National Museum is impressive if you like history museums. The War Memorial area also has a huge museum as part of the complex. To me, the museum is far more interesting than the memorial, so you might try to get clarity on what exactly is planned. The war museum / memorial is a huge complex with both inside exhibits and a large outside area full of tanks, artillery, etc. If you're a military buff, it's worth a visit.

 

Folk songs are intersting if you haven't experienced one before. Insadong is a nice area of arts/crafts shops, fancy stationery (homemade paper), pottery shops, etc. A good collection of interesting items for sale and display.

 

4. Incheon Private Touring 4 hrs, $600 per vehicle. Bring local currency as credit cards may not be widely accepted.

 

Not sure why you'd want to hire a private driver just to tour around Incheon. Four hours wouldn't be enough to go to Seoul and see anything.

 

5. Korean Folk Village & Dance Performance. Approx. 6.5 hrs, $144. pp.

Visit the Korean Folk Village & highlight is the Farmers' Dance and Shaman's Dance. A Korean bbq lund and traditional pancakes are served at the village before you drive bck to the ship.

 

I'm not sure what this tour is. There is a historical park in the center of Seoul (near Yongsan on the top of the hill with the Seoul Tower)... that place has a historical park where they have dancing performances. If you're into that sort of thing, it might be interesting. I had a dinner there plus a performance as part of a company team-building thing once. It was nice, but not my style.

 

6. The Best of Seoul Approx. 7.5 hrs, $119. pp. View Seoul from a motor coach, beg. with an 80-min. drive. Pass th Blue House, some time to stroll around at the Gyeongbok Palace & Folklore Museum. Don't miss Insa-dong Street. After lunch, stop at the South Gate Market for 30 min., then drive 90 min. back to the ship.

 

This is an interesting collection. The Blue House is the Korean president's home (like the US White House). The palace area is nice and so is Insadong (see my comments above). South Gate Market (Namdaemun) is a large outdoor/indoor market... lots of different things for sale at good prices. Food, knick-nacks, clothing, cookware, etc, etc. Quite an interesting collection and a place where the locals shop. I used to enjoy wandering around the market.

 

This will be our 3rd stop in So. Korea, after Busan and Jeju City. Have you found that credit cards may not be widely accepted?

 

Thanks for your input. It would help if the cruise lines let you know ahead of time if there are shuttles, but I know they want to sell their tours.

 

Credit cards are not widely accepted, at least they weren't when I was last there (about 2 years ago). Korea is still a primarily cash society unless you're in major stores. ATMs are very plentiful, however.

 

Let me know if there is anything else I can help with.

[Put Me On A Boat]

Thank you so much for the information! I hope it helps others, too.

[JLT]

Great information, Trabelar. Thank you so much. Susan: This information from Lyle on our roll call may explain why we can go to the Village from Inchon:

 

Suwon is generally considered to be a satellite city of Seoul and is connected by regular subway and commuter trains. Suwon is 19 miles to the south of Seoul or 20 miles east from the city center of Incheon. There are a few attractions within Suwon that serve as major draw cards, with the World Heritage Site of Hwaseong Fortress and the Korean Folk Village just outside town being amongst the most notable:

1) Hwaseong Fortress is the official fortress of Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, from the latter days of Joseon Period (1392-1910). The fortress began construction in 1794 and finished in 1796. Of the 41 buildings at the fortress, more than 30 have been fully restored. The total circumference of the fortress walls is 3.4 miles and includes 4 main gates, observation towers, command posts, sentry towers, beacon towers, and floodgates. There are four gates, the north gate called Janganmun, the south gate called Paldalmun, the east gate, Changryongmun, and the west gate, Hwaseomun. Admission 1,000 won.

2) The Korean Folk Village is a living museum and it has an area of about 243 acres in a natural environment. There are more than 260 houses representing traditional Korean homes from the late Joseon Dinasty. About twenty workshops with various handicrafts such as pottery, baskets, winnows, bamboo wares, wooden wares, paper, brass wares, knots, fans, musical instruments, iron wares and embroidery are practiced. It has an art gallery, sculpture garden, and both the World Folk Museum and the Korean Folk Museum. The area is so big that it would take the whole day to see everything. If you are pressed for time, don't miss the Farmers' Harvest Dance. Admission is free.

[trabeler]

JLT - Thanks for the details on the folk village. I didn't realize that it was in Suwon. That would be a quicker trip (by bus) from Incheon.

 

I haven't been to the Suwon folk village, but that area, in general, is more picturesque than Seoul. I looked up the folk village in some of my travel guides and it certainly looks like you could spend most of a day there. Suwon also has the closest thing to Disneyland in Korea... "Everland" (http://www.everland.com/MultiLanguage/english/index.html).

 

I forgot to mention that a good site to get Korea travel info, including online tour books, is: http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/GK/GK_EN_2_7_4.jsp