Snow holidays in South Korea : Alpensia + Seoul
December is always a good time to go on holiday.
With school-going kids, it would be the ONLY time you can take a an extendedreak without the worries of examinations looming. WeSo wead gone for a short holiday in Hong Kong and capped off the month with a trip to South Korea with the extended family.
Why so many holidays y,ou say?
2016 will be the last honeymoon year before both boys hit thimary school. So before the rat race begins, we would like to let them have as much fun as possible. As per our previous holidays, we will beshare our trip itineraryIf you miss our prlastolidays, no fret... links are as follows
.Snippets of Tokyo
Self Drive Perth
HongKong Family Fun
Hang onght as we transport you on an 8-day tour to Seoul and back!
DAY 1: ALPENSIA SKI RESORT 알펜시아리조트 스키장
With school-going kids, it would be the ONLY time you can take a an extendedreak without the worries of examinations looming. WeSo wead gone for a short holiday in Hong Kong and capped off the month with a trip to South Korea with the extended family.
Why so many holidays y,ou say?
2016 will be the last honeymoon year before both boys hit thimary school. So before the rat race begins, we would like to let them have as much fun as possible. As per our previous holidays, we will beshare our trip itineraryIf you miss our prlastolidays, no fret... links are as follows
.Snippets of Tokyo
Self Drive Perth
HongKong Family Fun
Hang onght as we transport you on an 8-day tour to Seoul and back!
DAY 1: ALPENSIA SKI RESORT 알펜시아리조트 스키장
Alpensia Ski Resort |
Bummer.
Playground @ Alpensia |
Snowman |
You can read about it here
.Want a room?
Make your booking here.
DAY 2 : SNOW SLED @ ALPENA
Snowing at Alpensia |
Welcome snow |
Snow @ Alpensia |
Snow @ Alpensia Ski Resort |
Ski @ Alpensia Ski Resort |
Snow sledge at Alpensia |
The whole morning was spent whizzing down the slopes of Alpensia.
A little tip if you are going with your grandparents. Do not tell the operators they are 65 years old and above, or eley will be banned from the slopes. After about 10 rides owe decided to take a break and explore the snow-clad resort.
Very Swee (beautiful).
Winter @ Alpensia |
I forgot who said that.
Biggest snow fight. |
Snowman at Alpensia |
Korea BBQ |
DAY 3: YONG PYONG RESORT 용평리조트, DRAGON PEAK 용평리조트 드래곤피
That said, we were lucky to have help from the locals in getting cabs for us, saving us a hefty booking fee.
YongPyong |
Yong Pyong Resort. |
It was a great decision to head up. Snow greeted us from every angle when we were up in the mountains. It was pure Winter Wonderland. Needless to say, we were awestruck by the beauty.
Dragon Peak |
Winter Sonata |
At 1458 m high, you will feel like you are on top of the world!
View from Yong Pyong |
View from Dragon Peak |
The ski route down Dragon Peak was closed for that day. It meant we could not be the daredevil even if we wanted to. Waco we decided to try the next best thing on YongPyong... snow tube rides.
Snow Tube ride |
There are actually 28 ski slopes in YongPyong, ranging from beginners to experts. If you are there for skiing, you will not be disappointed. For kids, the snow tube rides are just as thrilling. This 200 m ride down features different elevations along the way down instead of an average slopes down.
After spending the whole afternoon up and down the sledge slope, it was time to head back home. The day was short due to Winter, but after 10 rounds of snow tube rides, the kids are exhausted.
DAY 4: MYEONG-DONG 명동, N SEOUL TOWER N 서울타워
Street Food @ Seoul |
We stayed at Myeong-Dong for the second part of our vacation. The N Seoul Tower was within walking distance, so off we went.
N Seoul Tower |
There are 2 ways you can get up to N Seoul Tower... walk or take a cable car. We decided it would too risky to walk with kids, so it is off to the cable car. On the way up, we came across this humassiveile of locks. Initially, we were not sure what it was. Nonetheless, if you want to leave your mark at N Seoul Tower, you could go a padlock of love there.
For the boys, they tried to see if they could spot Singapore, a mere 4653.97 km away.
There are other attractions there such as Hello Kitty Island and Ssentoy Museum & showroom. However, we were too hungry to continue with our sightseeing.
N Seoul Tower |
Time to head back to Myeong-Dong.
If you have not been to Myeong Dong, it is a place where you have streets after streets of similar shops. The most common are beauty shops such as Nature Republic, Etude House, Innisfree, Skinfood, MISSHA and more. This would be the place for ladies to store beauty essentials.
Since we had empty stomachs to fill, we popped into a local restaurant and requested the simmering hot pot the local staff are eating. Stuffed with seafood, it was a delectable treat to end the evening. Finding food would be a breeze as the lanes are lined with restaurants. You can find an array of local, Japanese, or Chand inese pizzas. If you are still hungry, simply buy street food to fill your tummies.
DAY 5: GYEONGBOKGUNG PALACE 경복궁,
HONGDAE (HONGIK UNIVERSITY STREET) 홍대
Seoul subway |
Seoul has a very efficient subway system. You can probably head anywhere you want using the subway. As usual, do your research before your trip. You do not want to end up in Busan.
Train to Busan |
A quick snap before our next destination.
Official Photographer of TheWackyDuo |
First stop... Gyeongbokgung Palace.
We were there to catch the changing of guards ceremony.
The event was free and lasted for about 15 minutes.
You can be a part-time guard, too, if you want. Either that or take a snapshot with the natural guard after the ceremony at the gates.
Our next destination is Hongik university street. This is the hip and happening street filled with food and fashion. Time to leave our mark at Hongik University Street.
Graffiti @ Hongik University Street |
Catch me Doll |
Even though we are semi-pros at UFO catching. It was almost impossible to catch a doll at Catch me Doll. Warning: The catchers are rigged. After about 10 tries in various machines, we decided it was time to move on as we think we donated enough to the economy.
Back to Hongik University Street to search for the others. It was really crowded!
Most of the stuff sold at Hongik university were things you probably can get in Singapore, except for a free hug from a Korean Guy.
Free Hug |
After Hook, we stopped at Lotte Shopping centre and headed to the supermarket section. Lots of fresh fruits await.
DAY 6: NORYANJIN FISHERIES WHOLESALE MARKET 노량진 수산시장,
COEX MALL (코엑스몰)
There are 2 sections of Noryangjin Fishery Market. First is the old school section in an open-air wet market.
There is a modernised market located next to the old school market. So we headed to that section to choose our lunch.
Noryangjin Fishery Marke |
To get a meal at the market, simply choose your catch, pay for it, and someone will bring you to a restaurant to cook it. A guy followed us even though we did not ask him to. Cooking is a separate cost and will be determined by how you decide to have it cooked.
The seafood itself is relatively cheap. You could get a dozen oysters at about $12!
Time to dig in!
While the rest of our group headed shopping, we decided to visit the COEX Aquarium instead to search for
Co-Ex Aquarium |
DAY 7: LOTTE WORLD 롯데월드
We are almost coming to the end of our trip. Since it was the last full day in Seoul, we decided to head down to LOTTE World for a fun day.Looking for tickets to LOTTE World?
Get Discounted Tickets from Klook here
Lotte World |
Back to LOTTE World
This was our first trip to LOTTE World. At first sight, the interior looks impressive as each floor entices with various rides and attractions. To start our exploration, we headed outdoors to check out the rides first.
Pirate Ship |
Unlucky for us, we started donating to the economy AGAIN. Honestly, you can skip the UFO catchers in Korea. Compared to Japan, they are mostly rigged and dependent on luck rather than skill. We did try the carnival games at Lotte World and won some small token prizes. However, Lotte world was not so generous with its prize payout compared to Ocean World HK.
Lotte World Seoul |
BBQ Korea |
SERIOUSLY!
Korea Hot Pot |
Myeong Dong Cathedral |
The Myeong Dong Cathedral was built in 1898 in the style of Gothic ala Gotham City.
Myeong Dong Cathedral |
After a few bites, after it cooled down (they said to eat it when cool), our verdict was that it tasted like a softer version of Sara Lee. Not sure if queuing half an hour for it will be worth the wait.
Seoul King of Castella |
DAY 8: From MYEONG DONG to SINGAPORE
Good Bye Myeong Dong |
Our last day was spent travelling to the airport. We were there 2.5 hours earlier but clearing the customs was a nightmare. We were removed with less than 5 minutes to boarding. It was a close shave that we did not miss our flight, but it added another point to the experience column.
The holiday was curated by my sister. After planning for holidays for almost a decade, it was great to just relax and have a worry-free holiday. Thank you, sis!
Missing Korea already, especially the snow.
Goodbye Korea |
Thanks so much for your post. i really appreciate it. when exactly did u go as my family are planning to go the 2nd week of December!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a fun family hoilday! Can you share the itinerary with me?
ReplyDeleteHi Mummy Bunny . We did exactly as the above post :)
DeleteHi, Can share with me you went to Korea in December on which week? I want to see snow as well like you did
ReplyDeleteMy Instagram shows snow on 16 Dec . But it was not snowing the day before and two days after
DeleteHi, can you share the hotel stayed at Myeongdong? Thank you.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I could not recall the name of the Hotel...
DeleteHi hi, thanks for your great Sharing on Korea holiday.
ReplyDeleteMay I check with you where to book for bus ride from
1) Seoul airport to Alpensia
2) Alpensia to Seoul ?
Thank you in advance!
Try Booking from here https://www.indiway.com/en/prod/incheon-airport-alpensia-resort-shuttle-bus
DeleteHello! What a beautiful write-up! Can u tell us which dates in Dec was this holiday? We are keen to go, just unsure of the dates to book. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHello! What a beautiful write-up! Can you tell us which dates in December was this holiday? We are keen to go, just unsure of the dates to book. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteIt was on 1st week of Dec.
DeleteWhere did you buy the red and blue jacket for the kids? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteUniqlo :)
Delete