Seoul Tours and Trips

I was stunned to learn, halfway through, that we were experiencing the maiden voyage of this tour. Everything was seamlessly smooth, as though the tour had run a hundred times. I've always enjoyed Trafalgar tours, but I have newfound respect for their expertise. Sung was an excellent guide, providing interesting background and ensuring comfortable travel for all. The sites visited were all wonderful. Rooms, meals, and travel accommodations were all great.

I’ve done over a dozen tours with Collette and this one was my favorite for many reasons: The hotels were super clean and modern; more included meals and right balance of free time. The tour manager was very informative and sent us helpful information two weeks prior to departure. Visits and stories from Hiroshima bomb survivor and North Korean defector will stay with forever. Finally, I feel Collette’s small group tour offers better experiences and value.

The tour was very good with a wide range of experiences across historic and modern South Korea. The visits to the War Memorial in Seoul and the UN War Cemetery in Busan were very moving. The tour director Sung was excellent, professional, diligent with an excellent command of English and knowledge of western customs and sense of humour. The driver, Mr Seo for the Andong to Busan sector was also excellent with exceptional driving skills and an engaging personality. We would recommend this tour to others. Suggested areas for improvement are as follows: •We did not receive the advance notification email from the tour director as we were on the move and the email went to our home email rather than our travel email. To cover all contingencies, it is suggested that a note from the tour director be left at the hotel to be passed on when Trafalgar guests check in. •It would have been preferably not to have two provided meals on the first day in Andong. The lunch spoilt our appetite for the exquisite Be My Guest dinner. •The hotels were above average for South Korea but the hot breakfast food was frequently cold and the practice of removing plates and placing the used cutlery on the table was considered to be unhygienic. •We had mixed feelings about the Novotel hotel in Seoul which seemed quite expensive and not good value for money. The breakfast sitting arrangements created intrusive monitoring. After a toilet blockage we were advised not to place toilet paper in the toilet. There were no signs to this effect nor something we would expect in a relatively new and expensive five- star hotel. •We were disappointed that the coaches used in Seoul had brown tinted side windows which distorted the colour of the scenery. •After leaving the tour we visited a number of areas in Seoul which could be included as options in future tours. oGangnam precinct around COEX Mall has a variety of sites to see oQuality craft souvenirs from Bukchon Hanok Village souvenir shop with an Observatory

Korea is an interesting country and the itinerary covers the main features. Fast paced, I think you need to be reasonably fit to cover the sometimes irregular terrain and changing weather conditions; take a raincoat if travelling in spring. Nikky, our Guide was enthusiastic and a 'speedy' walker. Accommodation was excellent.

South Korea is an amazing country to visit as a tourist having: modern high quality, across the board infrastructure; beautiful scenery; cherry blossoms every where in season; fascinating historical cultural sites; first class museums; unique and vibrant food culture both in restaurants and on the street; excellent coffee; welcoming, friendly and helpful people; signs and explanations in English on public transport and at tourist sites; safe, crime free environment. A fascinating, inspiring and memorable trip.

We saw quite a bit on this trip, but so many things were scheduled right down to the minute. It would have been nice to have a little bit of free time at some of the sites, even if it was just half an hour to shop for a minute or grab a drink. There were so many temples and shrines that it was a bit overwhelming. I absolutely did not like the overnight at the monastery. It was so difficult to sleep on a mat on the floor when you are old and the food was not that good. It was a relief to get to a rest stop the next morning to get some food and coffee. The tour was conducted in English and Spanish and then we had so many different tour guides coming on and off (Japan) and people joining and leaving the tour at various times. I do have to say that the tour guides worked their butts off wrangling all the people around, and they all had an immense knowledge of history and traditions. It was disappointing that we did not get to do the ferry from Busan to Japan. We had to fly which took time away from exploring Busan. It would have been nice to have more than half a day there. There were also many changes on the first day as to going to the DMZ. We specifically chose this tour for those sites and we ended up going to neither. The substitutions were ok though, but it is not what we signed up for. The english guide is not listed below, but I would rate her five stars on both language and satisfaction (Sohey Ahn). The bus drivers were all excellent.