Day 1:
Dec 2 (Fri) Honolulu – Seoul
11:50 AM Depart for Incheon on Asiana Airlines flight OZ 231, meal and snack served on the flight. Asiana Airlines was recognized as the first environmentally friendly company within the service industry by the South Korean Ministry of the Environment. It was named the best airline in the world by Skytrax in 2010 and has been recognized as a 5-Star Airline by Skytrax for quality since 2007. It has also been awarded the Skytrax 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating for airline health, hygiene, and cleanliness standards.
Day 2:
Dec 3 (Sat) Arrival Day: Seoul (D)
5:10 PM Arrive at Incheon International Airport. After immigration claim your luggage and wait for your tour escort before exchanging currency and exiting customs. Meet our local English-speaking guide and transfer to our Incheon hotel and a grilled seafood dinner at a local restaurant in Seoul’s main seaport.
Accommodations at Ocean Park Nine Hotel or similar
Day 3:
Dec 4 (Sun) Suwon to Onyang Onsen (B, L, D)
Breakfast at hotel, lunch and dinner at local restaurants. Depart by chartered bus with local English-speaking guide for Suwon and the KBS Suwon Studio – this is an actual working studio where many famous K-Dramas such as Empress Myeongseong and Dongyang Geukjang (Oriental Theater) were filmed. It includes both indoor and outdoor film sets, as well as some attractions specifically for visitors.
Lunch at local restaurant – let’s try Galbi, the beef short ribs that are one of the specialties of Suwon.
After lunch we’ll visit the nearby Korean Folk Village, a 245-acre living museum where you can explore real houses that were relocated from around the country to reproduce a Joseon period village and experience traditional Korean life and culture. It is also a popular film location for period dramas, including scenes from Dae Jang Geum (Jewel in the Palace).
Transfer to Onyang Onsen. We’ll arrive early enough for you to enjoy an experience in a traditional Korean hot spring - Onyang is the oldest hot spring in Korea, more than 1,300 years old!
Dinner at a local restaurant or hotel – local pork barbecue.
Accommodations at Onyang Tourist Hotel or similar
Day 4:
Dec 5 (Mon) Headed to the Naminara Republic (B, L, D)
Breakfast at hotel, lunch and dinner at local restaurants. Depart for Nami Island, which also calls itself the “Naminara Republic”. Birthplace of the Hallyu – the Korean Wave of popular culture when it was used as a film location for “Winter Sonata”, it features spectacular natural views and unique and original sculptures and activities.
Lunch at local restaurant – we’ll try a local Nami favorite, Dakgalbi – spicy grilled chicken and vegetables.
We’ll spend the afternoon at Petite France, a French themed village in the Korean countryside, based upon the book “The Little Prince”, by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. We should be just in time for the seasonal lighting and Christmas decorations!
Dinner at local restaurant – a classic - Beef Bulgogi, whose origins go back 2,000 years to the Goguryeo era, around the time of Christ.
In the evening we’ll enjoy the Lighting Festival at the Garden of Morning Calm, the first light festival in Korea to combine natural surroundings with lights, covering over 330 thousand square meters.
Return to Seoul and our hotel right in the heart of the Dongdaemun shopping area, and just minutes from Myeongdong.
Accommodations at Hotel Skypark Dongdaemun I or similar
Day 5:
Dec 6 (Tue) Experience Seoul and the Seoul Cheonggyecheon Christmas Festival (B, L, D)
Breakfast at hotel, lunch and dinner at local restaurants. In the morning we’re off to Namsangol Hanok Village, for a traditional Korean tea ceremony experience. Korean tea ceremonies are less formal than Japanese tea ceremony, more natural than Chinese tea ceremony, and have roots that go back almost 1,500 years. We’ll follow the tea with a Makgeolli making experience – this sweet rice wine is the oldest alcoholic beverage in Korea and is popular with just about everyone!
We’ll make our own lunch today during our Kimbap making experience – Kimbap are Korean seaweed and rice rolls that are sometimes called sushi but can contain many kinds of foods. We’ll also get a chance to experience trying on Hanbok here – traditional Korean clothing.
After lunch we’ll head out to Myeongdong for shopping, including the largest Daiso in Korea (8 stories!). Myeongdong is also a great place to try out some of Korea’s many popular street foods!
Dinner at local restaurant – tonight it’s a classic comfort food, Seolnongtang – a white ox-bone soup with brisket and other cuts of meat boiled for as long as an entire day. This dish is a Seoul specialty!
After dinner we’ll take a stroll through the Cheonggyecheon Stream walkways to enjoy the illumination and Christmas displays of the Seoul Cheonggyecheon Christmas Festival before returning to our hotel.
Accommodations at Hotel Skypark Dongdaemun I or similar
Day 6:
Dec 7 (Wed) Temples, Kimchi, and Non-Verbal Entertainment (B, L, D)
Breakfast at hotel, lunch and dinner at local restaurants.
We’ll start off the day with a visit to the K-Style Hub Korean Traditional Food Museum and find out all that you even wanted to know about Korean cuisine!
Next, we’ll head to Jogyesa Temple, the chief temple of the Jogye Order of Zen Buddhism in Korea. After our visit, we’ll have a special temple meal experience nearby for lunch and discover the 1,700-year-old tradition of Korean Buddhist cuisine - no animal products can be used, every meal must be completely organic and local and flavored only by natural ingredients.
After lunch we’ll head to nearby Insadong. This popular shopping street is filled with tea houses, arts galleries, craft and souvenir shops and delicious street food vendors. In Insadong we’ll take a tour of the Kimchikan, a museum devoted to everything Kimchi, a staple food at any Korean meal. Then we’ll enjoy a Kimchi making experience and learn how to make our own!
Dinner at local restaurant – tonight we enjoy Bossam, thin slices of velvety boiled pork belly wrapped in cabbage with fresh, crunchy kimchi and seasonings.
We’ll finish the day with Nanta! This non-verbal comedy is the longest running show in Korean history, and since it is almost completely non-verbal it can be enjoyed by people of all languages.
Accommodations at Hotel Skypark Dongdaemun I or similar
Day 7:
Dec 8 (Thu) Lotte Mall Tower and Jjimjilbang (B, L, D)
Breakfast at hotel, lunch and dinner at local restaurants.
This morning we’ll get a spectacular view of Seoul from the observation deck of the Lotte World Tower, the tallest building in Korea and the sixth tallest building in the world. We’ll also have time for shopping at the Lotte World Mall, a 244,000 square meter shopping and entertainment complex that surrounds the Lotte World Tower (Ala Moana Shopping Center is 220,000 square meters). It is attached to the Lotte World amusement park.
Lunch at local restaurant – indulge yourself with Chimaek, Korean fried chicken and beer!
After lunch we’ll get a chance to relax at a local Jjimjilbang, a traditional Korean bathhouse that’s usually open 24 hours (and is sometimes used as a cheap overnight accommodation). Jjimjilbang are a big part of Korean culture, and you’ll run into people of all kinds and ages, relaxing just like you!
Dinner at local restaurant – we’ll warm up on our last night with Black Chicken Samgyetang. A ginseng chicken soup made with a whole chicken for each of us, this dish is made with a special breed of chicken that has black bones and flesh. Seen as a healing meal (in addition to being delicious!), Samgyetang is thought to be effective for a wide range of ailments and is thought to increase the blood circulation in the internal organs and help restore energy and appetite.
Accommodations at Hotel Skypark Dongdaemun I or similar
Day 8:
Dec 9 (Fri) Headed for home! (B, L)
Breakfast at hotel, lunch at local restaurant. Stop at a Lotte Mart on the way to the airport for last-minute shopping.
We’ll have lunch in Incheon, the birthplace of Jajangmyeon, to experience this popular dish of noodles with black bean sauce. Once a common meal among laborers at the piers, this dish is now popular all over the country.
8:20 PM Depart for Honolulu on Asiana Airlines flight OZ 232, meal and snack served on the flight.
**Arrive at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport on the same day at 9:30 AM**
Welcome Home!
Note: Air and Land Itinerary are subject to change.
Departure from Honolulu with air $3,299.00
Departure from US Mainland without air $2,399.00, contact us for air pricing.
PLEASE CONTACT MAIN OFFICE FOR TOUR DETAILS: 808-979-0111 or email us at hnl02@jtbusa.com.