Every guide about Trip planning for a trip to South Korea, in one place.
What five days in Korea actually covers: four days built around Seoul, palaces, neighbourhoods and food, one day outside the city, and what you are trading away by skipping Busan or Jeju.
The numbers to save before you land in Korea: 112, 119 and the 1330 tourist helpline, plus how pharmacies and clinics work, what to do about a lost passport, and the language gap.
Why insurance matters in a country with excellent hospitals and no free care for visitors: the medical limits to look for, the hiking and ski clauses, and what a claim really involves.
How entering South Korea works: who needs a visa, what K-ETA is and who is currently exempt, the arrival paperwork, passport validity, and the official sources to verify your own nationality against before you fly.
The Korean manners that actually matter to a visitor: two hands, shoes off, chopstick rules, pouring for others, how age shapes conversation, quiet trains, and why nobody expects a tip.
How Korea's high-speed KTX works: the main routes and journey times, how to book as a visitor, standard versus first class, the slower cheaper trains, and the rail passes worth buying.
How to get from Incheon Airport into Seoul: the AREX express and all-stop trains, the limousine buses, taxis and late-night arrivals, and which one fits where you are staying.
Which Seoul neighbourhood to book: Myeongdong, Hongdae, Insadong, Gangnam, Itaewon and the hanok quarters, what each is actually like at night, and the one thing to check before you pay.
One is the biggest in the country, outdoors, an hour from Seoul. The other is half indoors, on the subway, with an island in a lake. They suit different days.
Subways children can read, theme parks in the city, bathhouses families use routinely, and food that turns out to be far less alarming than the reputation.
Jeju has been the Korean honeymoon destination for generations, and Seoul does the other half well. Where to spend the nights and what actually works.
Planning a first trip to South Korea? Here is when to go, how to split your time between Seoul, Busan and Jeju, the K-ETA and visa basics, what to book ahead, money and etiquette, and the rookie mistakes to skip.