Jeju, the largest island of South Korea, is a typical volcanic island, and one of the world's New 7 Wonders of Nature. It was a result of volcanic activities that began approximately 1.2 million years ago, and in the center of the island is the Mt. Halla, the highest mountain in South Korea at 1,950 meters above sea level, which is formed by a volcanic eruption. Jeju Island, which has an oceanic climate, is often called the Hawaii of Korea. The beautiful Jeju Island not only has stunning scenery of islands (ten views of wonderland), but also inherited the unique folk cultures of the time-honored Tamna Kingdom.
According to the seasonal changes, the climate of Jeju Island can be clearly divided into continental and oceanic climate. In winter it's dry, and the temperature difference is huge; while it's wet and rainy in summer. The annual temperature is 16℃, the highest temperature in summer is 33.5℃, and the coldest time of the year is in January when it is not even less than 1℃, which can be called pleasant weather, and therefore the Jeju Island is called the "Hawaii of Korea".
Standing in the middle of Jeju Island, it is the symbol of Jeju. It's called the first peak of South Korea, and it's been developed as a national park. The Jeju Island is formed in the eruption period of Mt. Halla. There're various kinds of plants on the mountain which are of high academic value. Due to the abrupt change of temperature and windy weather on Mt. Halla, the mountain climbers must be sufficiently equipped.
Located on the flat ground south-east to the Jeju City, Sangumburi is a crater with a circumference of over 2 km, and has been designated as the subject of natural conservation. There are many enjoyable scenes, such as an entrance with stones piled up together, stone pools, craters and so on. If you look at the crater from above up, it looks like a man-made circular stadium.
It's built for exhibition of teddy bears, the toy loved by people around the world for one hundred years. In Teseum, you can find all sorts of teddy bears from all over the world. Visitors can also spend a good time in the museum stores, western restaurants and outdoor parks which share a view of the sea.
It is a large amusement park for dreams, which has a variety of recreational facilities that are suitable for people of all ages, and it's a place both children and adults will linger on with no thought of leaving because of the diversity of its wonderful and exciting recreational facilities. There are also small zoos where you can have a close contact with the animals.
You can't miss the seafood of Jeju Island. The seafood of Jeju Island is not only fresh and delicious, but also rich in nutrition and good for health. Famous seafood of Jeju includes sashimi, jeonbokjuk, grilled jade bream, seafood hot pot and etc. Jeju Island also has a variety of farm products, and the cuisine made of them is incredibly tasty too.
The famous black pork is a delicious food that you can't miss. Raised on the green grassland, the pigs are breathing the fresh air on Mt. Halla every day, which makes the meat quality and flavor even better. The chewy pork is ready to be grilled on the copper net after it's been seasoned with green Chinese onions, garlic, sesame, salt, pepper and other sauces.
Jeju Mawon
Address: 3092, Saekdal-dong, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do
Tel: 64-7381000
Since ancient times, abalone has been the tribute to the Kings, and it has high nutrition value and special effects to restore liver function. The sea area of Jeju is too windy to farm abalone, and therefore the abalones produced here are all naturally grown. It's of the highest value among shellfishes. A large number of them can be fished along the coast of Jeju Island. The Jeonbokjuk of Chimdaebang is the most famous one, at the price of about 20,000 won per bowl.
Seafood Casserole
Address: 312-27, Yen-dong, Jeju-si, Jeju-do
Tel: 0082-7453000
Jade bream is a bathypelagic fish living near the Jeju Island, which tastes pure and light without the fishy smell of average fish. It's rich in protein and inorganic substance, which is suitable for weaklings, and it was a senior tribute to the king of Korea. Coat the jade bream with sesame oil and then grill it briefly on the charcoal, with fragrance overflowing, the grilled jade bream tastes even more wonderful.
Manman King Crab Store
Address: 273-18, Yen-do, Jeju-si, Jeju-do
Tel: 01075207779
There is a great variety of seafood in Jeju Island, and if you want to have a great meal, you should give the most famous seafood hot pot a try. When you enjoy the hot pot, there're all kinds of seafood in the pot over the fire, such as sheng crabs, prawns, jiaji fish, and other seafood of Jeju Island, which taste wonderful being seasoned with a special spicy sauce with South Korean flavor. It is said that at the end, you can cook instant noodles on the pot, because the noodles tastes more delicious with the seafood soup.
Secret Garden Korean Restaurant
Address: 100, Nohyeong-dong, Jeju-do
Tel: 064-712-8899
Open in 1973, the Korean Souvenir Department Store is an old brand mainly visited by foreign customers. The department store offers a variety of goods, such as pottery, leather, Korean souvenir, seaweed, kimchi, clothes, wooden handicraft and so on. The department store is not far from the airport, which makes shopping easy and convenient, and most of the customers here are from Japan.
Transportation: 7 minutes by taxi from Jeju Airport
Address: 908-5, Nohyeong-dong, Jeju-do
The Jeju International Airport Store is the only duty-free shop in South Korea for native shoppers. Every tourist in Jeju Island can go shopping there. The Jeju International Airport Store sells over 4,000 china and foreign branded products, but no souvenir of native product of Jeju Island is available. There are various selections of famous foreign and china products, as well as liquor, tobacco, etc. You can make reservation for required products. And there are a lot of Korean cosmetics. You can purchase not only with cash such as yen, dollar, won and so on, but also with credit card or traveler's check.
Transportation: 2nd floor, Jeju International Airport Departure Lounge
Address: 2002, 2, Gonghang-ro, Jeju-si, Jeu-do
Located in the Jungmun Resort in Jeju Island, the famous Korean natural sanatorium, the Lotte Duty Free Shop (Jeju Branch) is the biggest chain duty free shop in Korea. It's a giant complex with over 500 rooms, an international convention center, swimming pools, golf facilities, and a casino. It's located in the sixth floor of the main building of the Jeju Hotel. The duty free shop offers all kinds of famous brand-name products, which can satisfy all kinds of customers and let visitors enjoy shopping and the tours at the same time.
Transportation: Take Limousine Bus 600 to Lotte Hotel Jeju (about 45 minutes)
Address: 2812-4, Seakdal-dong, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do
The Shilla Duty Free Shop in Jeju is characterized by southern atmosphere and beautiful views. The Shilla Duty Free Shop is 20 to 30 percent cheaper than other overseas duty free shops. 90 percent of the customers are visitors from Asian countries such as Japan and China, but there are also many Koreans who will go shopping there when they are on a trip, go sightseeing or study in Jeju Island. It sells over 500 world famous brand-name products, such as CHANEL, HERMES, GUCCI and so on. Assortment of popular fashion, inexpensive brand-name products, and much different sales promotion will certainly make your trip a rewarding experience.
Transportation: Take the bus from Jeju International Airport to Shilla Duty Free Shop every five minutes.
Address: 252-20, Yen-dong, Jeju-si
Located in Chimdaebang in the east of Jeju Island, the Sky Hotel is a good choice for accommodation when you are travelling in Seongsan Ilchulbong, Sopjikogi, Cow Island and so on.
26 guest rooms in Western or Korean style offer you different views, and they are all up to your choice.
Room charges: 50,000 won for average rooms and 70,000 won for guest rooms with Internet service.
Location: 298-56, Goseong-ri, Sonsan-eup, Namjeju-gun, Jeju-do
Transportation: Take No.600 airport limousine at the Jeju International Airport → Get off at the World Cup Arena → Take intercity bus at the intercity bus terminal, which is next to the Emart, to the Seongsan Ilchulbong → Get off at the South-east T-junction → Take a cab (about 5 minutes needed)
Located near the filming area of Dae Jang Geum, the hotel has more than ten years of history, so the facilities are somewhat out-of-date, but it has a certain market because of the cheap price.
Guest room charges: 30,000 won for rooms in Korean or Western style
Location: 3967, Sangmo-ri, Daejeong-eup, Namjeju-gum, Jeju-do
Transportation: Take No.100 bus at the bus terminal at the Jeju International Airport and get off at the intercity bus terminal → Take intercity bus to Sangmo-ri → get off at the Sangmo-ri stop and take a cab which takes about 5 minutes.
Near the seaside, the Wahaha Guest House offers seaside fishing and garden barbecue, which is characterized by the relaxing and comfortable atmosphere.
Guest room charges: 60,000 won for multiple layer guest room (for 4 to 5 people), 40,000 won for average guest room (for 1 to 3 people), 10,000 won for multiple people room. In peak season (during July 20th to August 20th), 100,000 won for multiple layer guest room and 60,000 won for average guest room.
Transportation: Take No.100 bus at the Jeju International Airport → Get off at the intercity bus terminal → Take intercity bus to Pyoson → Get off at Pyoson station and call for taxi service or just take a cab.
The most popular and common transportation in Jeju Island is the bus, and there is a wide range of it. In addition to the airport bus, there're also city buses, intercity buses, tour buses and so on. The tourists need to know that except for the limousine bus at the airport that offers multiple languages service, other buses broadcast only in Korean. There are quite many and complex bus routes, so if you want to try it out, you can take the airport buses with seats that connect the airport and urban area.
You have to know that the taxi with black body is the most common one. And if there is a colored pattern on the body, it means the driver of the taxi has a good driving quality and can be called a model driver, so it is safe to take. Taking taxi here is convenient with the starting price of 2,000 won every 2 kilometers.
There are many interesting islands around the Jeju Island, and the only way for the tourists to get there is by ferry. You can get to the passenger terminal by bus from the airport or the Jeju long-distance bus terminal, and from the passenger terminal you can get to Flying Island, Kapado, Cow Island and so on by ferry.
If you travel a lot, you can choose the car rental service in Jeju Island. It's rather easy and the conditions are not demanding, as long as your age and driving age meet the requirement and you have the international driver's license. There's special car rental service in the Jeju Airport, which is pretty convenient in general.
