Jeju Day 1

(Courtesy of LookatKorea)

Jeju Day 1

Hi guys! It is September!!! We only have 2 weeks left in Korea! It has been quite the adventure. For our Chuseok holiday (Korean Thanksgiving), we had a five day weekend so off to Jeju! The Jeju post will be split up into five parts. Well let me start off by saying... do not go out with your coworkers, have your boss buy you a bottle of Bacardi, and have to go on the ferry the next day... VERY BAD combo... just ask Alan... hehehehehehhe ;). 

After dragging Alan out of bed, wow that's a first... We made our way to the ferry terminal for our 9:00 am ferry. Good thing we picked up our tickets beforehand because there was a huge line so would I highly recommend you do so. We took a taxi, were dropped off at the International Ferry terminal and boarded our gigantic ferry. If you have read our Island hopping post, this ferry is much larger in size. We got economy tickets which will group you into a room big enough for 10-15 people. Thats pretty much all you get, so bring a mat, pillow, and blanket to make yourself a nice bed for the 4-5 hour ride. Also, try to get there early so you can claim some space for yourself, otherwise you maybe left with very little room. If you get seasick like me, your best bet is to just try and go to sleep for the duration of the trip. Other class tickets are available for purchase as well, which will get you a private room if you like your personal space. 

Alan's alive ;)! After what seemed like forever, we finally docked and got off the ferry. There is no system for exiting the ship. Once you hear the first announcement close to the 4 hour mark, start packing up and get yourself to the exit (where you boarded the ship). If you wait until the ship has docked you will be in line forever. Passengers will start lining up an hour before. Once off the ship, make your way out of the ferry terminal and either inline for taxi or bus. By the time we got off the ferry, the line for the taxis was so long and we didnt want to wait. We decided to hike up the road. Keep in mind taxis will turn you down if your destination is close by. It might have been worth the wait at the line, but we didn't know if they were turning customers away there as well. After getting turned down by about half a dozen taxis, we finally got into one and headed to our rental car company. We rented from KT Kumho and highly recommend it. Check out our ride below!

Gwakji Beach

Once everything was sorted out, we were on our way to our first destination, Gwakji beach. We decided to travel west of the island hitting the two famous beaches along the way before checking into our hotel. The first one was Gwakji beach. Both beaches had black volcanic rocks, clear blue waters, and nice sand. Gwakji is a lot less populated so if you like the calm I suggest stopping here.

Hyeopjae Beach

About 30 minutes away from Gwakji is Hyeopjae beach. This one is a more well known and a lot more populated both in people and amenities. Restaurants line the beach with a couple convenience stores along the main road. Great view of the nearby island, Biyangdo. 

Hotel Familia

After the beaches we headed to the south of the island where our hotel was located. We chose this location because it was the center point of everything we wanted to see in Jeju. Familia hotel is located near Jungman area, close enough for a drive into the busy Resort area, but far enough to get away from the crowd. This hotel is brand new, clean, and family owned. It was a great stay and we definitely recommend it. Simple breakfast is provided everyday, which consist of toast, cereal, juice, coffee, boiled eggs, and soup of the day. However, keep in mind there is no onsite restaurant for anything other than breakfast. 

Part 2 of our Jeju adventure will consist of a day tour of Seogwipo and Jungman resort area.