Gyeongbokgung

2 months in South Korea : itinerary and budget

South Korea is fascinating especially for its cultural aspect. If, you too, are planning a trip there, then this article will probably help you for your upcoming travel because of my experience feedback !

Unlike his neighbours of South East Asia, South Korea has developed well very fast over the last 50-60 years. It has usually been compared to Japan, and it is true there are some similarities but we can feel each of them keep their own identity !

I spent 2 whole months (March – May 2022) there which allowed me to have a nice overview of this country culture !

I share here my itinerary, optimized as usual, to explore a ton in a certain amount of time without rushing too much so you can also be inspired !

This journey as been made without a car !

Gamcheon Village
Gamcheon Village – Busan

THE ITINERARY

D1-D7 (7 nights) : Quarantine in Seoul
D8-D22 (14 nights) : Seoul
D23-D25 (3 nights) : Sokcho
D26-D28 (3 nights) : Gangneung
D29-D30 (2 nights) : Andong (+Hahoe Village)
D31-D33 (3 nights) : Gyeongju – April 5th to April 7th 2022 FULL CHERRY BLOSSOM
D34-D38 (5 nights) : Busan (+Jinhae)
D39-D41 (3 nights) : Suncheon (+Boseong)
D42 (1 night) : Mokpo
D43-D51 (9 nights) : Jeju Island
D52-D53 (2 nights) : Gwangju
D54-D56 (3 nights) : Jeonju – April 28 to May 7th 2022 JEONJU FILM FESTIVAL
D57-D58 (2 nights) : Daejeon
D59-D61 (3 nights) : Seoul

The pace is quite relaxed !

My favorite place goes to Gyeongju ! I intentionally display dates for future trips because it was the full cherry blossom there at the time. Also, I should mention that Seoul reached its full cherry blossom the week after.

A honorable mention goes to Jeju Island ! It is true there are some beautiful heavenly beaches but I particularly loved the atmosphere that came out of this island, really different from mainland.

However, my trip was full of surprises and reflecting on that now, I would have changed few things. Especially at the end of the traveling where there were less to visit on the west side of the country, mainly because I didn’t have a car. There may be several places but unfortunately too far away from each other.

Jinhae
Jinhae

THE BUDGET

Let’s take a look on my budget ! How much does it cost ? (During my stay 1€ = 1340 wons)

I will not include quarantine in my final budget but just for record, my 7-day quarantine costed me 630 €.

Airplane : 502 €
This is a round trip ticket Paris-Seoul with 1 connection in Amsterdam flying with KLM airline.
Accomodation : 850 € 
I was mainly in hostels (breakfast included or not) and in double room with my brother who joined me in Jeju Island.
Nourriture : 1000 €
J’ai gouté à pas mal de nourriture coréenne, j’ai vraiment privilégié la cuisine locale sauf à la fin du voyage où la nourriture occidentale commençait vraiment à me manquer. Et j’y ai inclus dans cette catégorie les cafés !!! Comment ne pas y résister… Par contre, l’addition monte très vite ! I tried so much korean food, I really focused on local food except the end when I missed western food a lot. And I included in this category all cafés !!! How not to resist … But, it is very expansive at the end !!
Transportation : 300 €
Within city public transport (taxi, metro, bus, t-money) : 140 €
I bought Korea Tour Card for 4000 wons, it is basically a T-money for tourists supposed to include additional benefits/discounts. Completely USELESS. I only use this car for public transport. All the times I tried to benefit discounts with this card on selected shops, merchants didn’t know about this card. Besides that, at the grand Seoul Station, the information desk had no idea this card and the vending machine to buy this card !
Buy yourself a simple T-Money for 2500 wons and on top of that, a much nicer souvenir !
In-between cities transportation : 160 €
I mainly used inter-city buses of Korea ! Extremely efficient and on time ! Also on that budget is included 1 ferry ticket Mokpo-Jeju and a return flight Jeju-Gwangju !
Miscellaneous : 45 €
I bought a 2-month SIM card with CHINGU MOBILE that I recommend at 1000 % and costed me 30000 wons (22 €) for the 2 months ! Yes you read right ! Whatever operator you want to go for, I advise you to take all included : text messages, calls and data. Because I had to call for several reasons and I was right to take everything included. Because you may find SIM car only for data for example, but what if you only have a phone number ? You will just not be able to call.
And then… laundry ! From 1000 (very budget-friendly) to 6000 (too expensive) wons, usually included in accommodations.

Finally, for activities, it is up to everyone but overall this is very reasonable prices (compare to western countries).

Total budget : 2195 €

Sokcho
Yeonggeumjeong – Sokcho

Here you go with this new travel feedback !! I hope this will help you for your upcoming trip to South Korea.   
If you are looking for more inspirations : Iceland, Guatemala, Peru or even Argentina

Share your travel feedback as well !

See you soon,
So.

4 comments

  1. Janice

    Hi.. can you also post or write on your detailed itienrary in Seoul for 14 days? I am searching for ideas since we will be staying in Seoul for 9 days. I prefer to spend all those days in Seoul rather than visiting other province since this would be our first time in South Korea. I am currently preparing our itinerary based on the Discover Seoul Pass app and on the map of Seoul that I got from travel expo. Thank you.

    Reply

    1. Wander & So

      Hi Janice, I will try to come up with what I did for 14 days in Seoul. However I didn’t plan much, I experienced life there by wandering in neighborhoods. Also, I was at a school to learn Korean which took half of my time!

      Reply

  2. tayettz

    your itinerary is just a wow. i wish I can stay longer too. reading your blog makes me excited to go back. nwys, can you share where you stayed in Andong ang Gyeungju? and also, how did you go around with your luggage? would love to hear from you soon. 🙂

    Reply

    1. Wander & So

      Hi! I am happy you enjoy my blog, I really appreciate it!
      I stayed in a hostel for both places in the center nearby attractions and shopping areas. As for my luggage, I traveled with a carry-on size backpack for convenience in planes, buses and walking! I hope that helps.

      Reply

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