A lot of people would be surprised to find out that it’s possible to have a South Korea tour on a budget. Here are five tips for tourists who want to visit South Korea without shelling out too much money.
Money-Saving Tips For Your South Korea Tour on a Budget
1. Keep an eye out for free tourist attractions.
Source: visitkorea.or.kr
Going on a South Korea tour on a budget is fun with all the tourist attractions that are completely free.
K-POP Hub & activities
STAR AVENUE at Lotte Duty Free
Join K-POP Dance Class & SM Town Studio tour
Lotte Young Plaza in Myeongdong has SM & YG specialty shop
Museums:
National Museum of Korean Contemporary History
National Folk Museum
Museum of Admiral Yi Sun-Shin
Agricultural Museum
Seoul Museum of History
Insta-worthy Places:
Ihwa Mural Village
Seokchon Lake
Mt. Bukhansan
Cheonggyecheon Stream
Deoksugung Palace Walkway
Samcheongdong Cafes
Hongdae Mural Street
Hangang Park
Temples:
Bongeunsa Temple
Jogyesa Temple
Check out our visa guidelines to know how you can successfully get a Korean Visa.
Palaces:
Admission is free when you visit during Korea’s “Culture Day”, the last Wednesday of the month, and when you visit wearing a hanbok or Korean traditional clothing.
Gyeongbukgung Palace
Deoksugung Palace
Changgyeonggung Palace
2. Carry your own water bottle.
Source: unsplash.com/@thomholmes
Summers in South Korea can be pretty unforgiving. You’ll have to hydrate often. The same goes with the colder seasons because your body needs water to maintain your temperature. But there’s no need for you to buy a one-use plastic water bottle every time you get thirsty.
Water filtration machines and dispensers are found all throughout South Korea, so carry a reusable water bottle with you at all times. You’ll find them in restaurants, bus terminals, and countless other places where you’d least expect them to be. They’ll save you a lot of money in the long run.
3. Invest in a T-Money card.
Source: visitkorea.or.kr
The T-Money is a card used in paying for subway, taxi, and bus fares. They can also be used to pay in convenience stores. One card costs 4,000 won (about Php 185.00).
The T-Money card has multiple benefits. First, using T-Money to pay for your commuting fare is 100 won cheaper than paying in cash. The base transit fair in Korea is 900 won (around Php 42.00). With a T-Money card, it goes down to 800 won (around Php 38.00). Second, the T-Money card offers discounts for people transferring from bus to bus, bus to subway, or subway to bus. Finally, if you still have some balance left before you leave, you can refund it for a fee of 500 won (about Php 25.00).
Another thing to note is that you usually don’t need a taxi to travel around South Korea. Everything is accessible by riding the train or the bus, which are both cheaper alternatives to the taxi.
4. Eat food from kimbap shops.
You don’t have to worry about looking for kimbap restaurants because there are a lot of them littered around South Korea. Try Kimbap Nara, Kimbap Cheonguk, or Kim-ga-ne! There are a couple of branches found in Seoul.
And, most importantly, the prices of the available dishes range from 1,500 won to 7,000 won (approximately Php 70.00 to Php 325.00). This is the perfect way to try Korean foods without having to shell out too much money.
5. Stay overnight at a jjimjilbang, avail of a guest house, or use Airbnb for lodging.
Source: visitkorea.or.kr
Finally, there’s a way to avoid having to book a hotel room altogether. Jjimjilbangs are Korean saunas, with hot baths, steam rooms, and shower areas. For as low as 7,000 won (approximately Php 325.00), you can avail of a hot bath and a place to sleep for the night.
If you want a cozier place, an alternative to the jjimjilbang is to avail of a guest house or to find a place via Airbnb. There are a lot of places you stay at scattered around the country. If you decide to book a guest house or use Airbnb, prices should range from about 19,000 won to 47,000 won (about Php 900.00 to Php 2,200.00) for 1-2 people per night.
Still afraid to embark on your South Korea tour on a budget? These tips should have you set!
If you want to save even more while vacationing abroad, we suggest you join a group tour. If you’re traveling alone, you’d be paying for the full price of products and services. But traveling with large groups can bring the price down considerably.
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