Useful country information

Train & ferry travel to and within South Korea

	Seoul to Busan (Pusan) by KTX high-speed train

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Travel from the UK & Europe to South Korea by Trans-Siberian Railway

Ferry travel from Russia to South Korea - Vladivostok to Donghae.

Ferry travel from China to South Korea - Beijing to Seoul via Tianjin/Qingdao.

Ferry travel from Japan to South Korea - 'Beetle' ferry from Hakata to Seoul.

Train travel within South Korea - including Seoul-Busan KTX high-speed trains.

Hotels in Seoul, Busan & South Korea

On other pages... 

Train travel to North Korea:  Trains from Beijing & Moscow to Pyongyang.

Europe to South Korea without flying

It's perfectly feasible to travel from the UK to South Korea overland using the Trans-Siberian Railway via either Moscow, Vladivostok and a ferry from Vladivostok to Donghae in Korea, or via Moscow, Beijing, then a ferry from Tianjin in China to Incheon in Korea.  The journey will take about 14 days.  See the Trans-Siberian page for details of the London - Vladivostok & London - Beijing journeys, then see the Vladivostok-Korea or China-Korea sections below.  You can also travel from Japan to Korea, using a ferry from Hakata to Busan.

Ferries between Vladivostok & South Korea

A weekly ferry links Vladivostok with Donghae in South Korea, run by DBS Ferry, www.dbsferry.com.  The ship is the 1993-built 'Eastern Dream', equipped to a good standard.  The service is relatively new, starting in 2009.

Vladivostok (Russia) ► Donghae (Korea)

The ferry sails from Vladivostok on Wednesdays at 15:00, arriving Donghae at 10:00 on Thursdays.

Vladivostok (Russia) ► Donghae (Korea)

In summer from March to November, the ferry sails from Donghae at 15:00 on Sundays, arriving Vladivostok at 13:00 on Mondays.  In winter from December to February, the ferry sails from Donghae at 15:00 on Mondays, arriving Vladivostok at 13:00 on Tuesdays. 

Fares & how to buy tickets

Fares start at €150 one-way in economy class with a berth in a shared sleeping room, rising to €310 for a deluxe cabin.  See the official site, www.dbsferry.com/02_ticket/ticket03.asp for details & booking, or you can now book at reliable UK ferry booking website www.aferry.co.uk/dbs-cruise-ferry-uk.htm.  Alternatively, you can call DBS Ferry in Seoul on 00 82 2 5485502.  Ask for an English speaker, reserve your place by phone, and collect and pay for the tickets at the ferry terminal in Vladivostok.

Train connections...

For information on train travel from London & Moscow to Vladivostok, see the Trans-Siberian page.  Donghae has both rail and bus links with the rest of South Korea.  Trains link Donghae with Seoul (Seoul Cheongnyangi station, not Seoul main Station) 6 times a day, journey time around 5 hours 55 minutes, see www.korail.go.kr (Tip for finding train times: Use 'Cheongnyangi' as your origin/destination, not 'Seoul').

Ferries between China & South Korea

There are several ferry services from China to South Korea, including one from Tianjin to Incheon twice a week, and one from Qingdao.

Beijing (China) - Seoul (Korea) via Tianjin

• Air-conditioned high-speed trains link Beijing and Tianjin frequently, taking just 30 minutes, see details here.  However, the port is actually at Tanggu, some 50 km east of Tianjin itself, so it's better to take a direct train from Beijing South to Tanggu, journey time 55 minutes, with trains every hour or two.  Beijing to Tanggu costs 92 RMB soft seat, 78 RMB hard seat.  You can check train times at www.chinatravelguide.com.  Bus 102 runs from Tanggu station to the ferry terminal, journey time 50 minutes.

• Ferries run by Jinchon Ferry sail from Tanggu International Ferry Terminal (50 km east of Tianjin) to Incheon twice a week, taking 25 hours.  Departure from Tanggu is at 11:00 on Thursdays & Sundays, arriving Incheon at 14:00 next day.  In the other direction, the ferry sails from Incheon at 13:00 on Tuesdays arriving Tanggu 14:00 Wednesdays and at 19:00 on Fridays arriving Tanggu 20:00 Saturdays. For sailing dates and times, see http://byferryfrom2japan.com/en/korea-china or http://visitkorea.or.kr/ena/GK/GK_EN_2_3_2.jsp.  The ferry operator's own site (www.jinchon.cn) is only in Chinese or Korean.  The ferry fare in economy class is 888 RMB + 60 RMB tax.  You should arrive at the ferry terminal 2-3 hours before sailing time.

• Trains link Incheon and Seoul frequently, 39 km, journey time 58 minutes.

Beijing (China) ► Seoul (Korea) via Qingdao

• There are now a range of fast daytime D-category trains from Beijing South station to Qingdao taking just over 5 hours.  To get the ship the same day, allowing for check-in time, take the train which leaves Beijing South at 07:10 arriving Qingdao at 12:22.  You can check times at www.cnvol.com.

• The ship sails from Qingdao at 16:00 on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays, arriving Incheon at 10:00 next day. The one-way fare for the most basic berth is about 110,000 won or 750 RMB.  The operator is Weidong Ferry - see www.weidong.com for sailing dates and fares and check-in times.

• Traveller Wendy Bishop reports:  "It seems to be impossible to buy the Qingdao-Incheon Weidong ferry tickets in Beijing, but it feels a bit risky turning up in Qingdao and hoping to be able to get tickets there.  However, we didn't have any problems buying tickets 4 hours before departure though (late August) - the ferry company sells the tickets from its office 100m or so from the terminal."

• Trains link Incheon and Seoul frequently, 39km, journey time 58 minutes.

Seoul (Korea) ► Beijing (China) via Qingdao

• Trains link Seoul & Incheon frequently, 39km, journey time 58 minutes.

• The ship sails from Incheon at 17:00 on Tuesdays, Thursdays & Saturdays arriving Qingdao at 09:00 next day.  The one-way fare for the most basic berth is about 110,000 won or 750 RMB.  The operator is Weidong Ferry, www.weidong.com for sailing dates and fares.

• There are a whole range of fast daytime D- and G-category high-speed trains taking just 5½ hours to Beijing South station.  You should be able to make the train leaving Qingdao at 13:45 arriving Beijing South at 18:05.  You can check times at www.cnvol.com.

Ferries between Japan & South Korea

There are several ferry services between Japan and South Korea.  The suggested options are:

• Japan Kyushu Railway 'Beetle' service from Fukuoka (Hakata) to Busan.  The 'Beetle' is a fast jetfoil, taking just 2 hours 55 minutes and running 4-5 times a day. It's also one of the few ferry companies with a website in English, www.jrbeetle.co.jp.  The fare is about 13,000 Yen (£100) one way, from 24,000 Yen (£185) return.

• Kampu Ferry Service from Shimonoseki (international port terminal) to Busan.  These are conventional ferries with cabins, sailing overnight and departing daily at 18:00 arriving 08:30 next morning.  Fares around 9,000 Yen 2nd class (with tatami mat sleeping place), 12,000 Yen (£92) 1st class (with bed in a western-style or Japanese-style cabin with shower & toilet), deluxe cabins and suites also available.  It's 10% cheaper to buy a return ticket, but still reportedly cheaper to buy another one-way ticket back when you get to Korea.  Website www.kampuferry.co.jp, but Google language tools can help you translate it.

• Camellia Line Hakata to Busan by conventional ferry, www.koreaferry.co.kr (only in Korean).  Sails overnight (22:00-06:00) in one direction, by day (12:30-18:00) in the other.  One-way fares from 80,000 Won, or from 1000,000 Won with cabin berth.

Inclusive train+ferry tickets between Japan & Korea:  Japan Railways offer inclusive train+ferry fares from Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima, Nagasaki and other stations in mainland Japan to Busan using either the Kampu Ferry from Shimonoseki or the fast Beetle jetfoil from Hakata.  For information & prices, see this page which traveller Louise Rouse has helpfully translated from this original Japanese page.  For example, Tokyo to Busan costs around 29,260 Yen.  Tickets are sold from 1 month before departure up to 2 days (ferry) or 7 days (jetfoil) before departure, so don't try to buy a ticket on the day of travel.

Traveller Wendy Bishop travelled from Korea to Japan:  "Although we came across tantalising information about a bargain ticket that combined train travel in Korea and Japan plus the connecting ferry ride, it proved impossible to find, despite enlisting a Korean friend to phone around.  There is a kiosk at Busan International ferry terminal that sells Japanese rail passes for any last-minute purchase, but it's not open all the time the terminal is open - it wasn't when we left about 8am."

To reach Korea from Japan...

• Take a train across Japan to Hakata-Fukuoka or Shimonoseki.  Hakata is the end of the high-speed 'shinkansen' line from Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima - see www.hyperdia.com (English button upper left) for train times and fares within Japan.

• Take the 'Beetle' from Hakata to Busan or the overnight ferry from Shimonoseki to Busan.  To check Beetle times and fares, see www.jrbeetle.co.jp.

• For train service between Busan and Seoul, see www.korail.go.kr.

Train travel within South Korea

All major towns and cities in South Korea are linked by an efficient railway.  For train times and fares visit www.korail.com. In addition, Seoul and Busan (older spelling Pusan) are linked by a new high-speed train service known as KTX.  The KTX runs on a new high-speed line built using French TGV technology.  Trains run frequently, taking just 2 hours 35 minutes.  The fare is 45,000 won (£25) one way 2nd class, 63,000 won (£35) 1st class.  For times, fares and online booking of KTX trains, see www.korail.com. Right:  The high-speed KTX train from Seoul to Busan. Photos courtesy of Shigeyuki Kaneko.

KTX first class

KTX second class

For train times, fares & online tickets see www.korail.com.

• Korail.com works best in internet explorer, you may encounter problems buying tickets in other browsers such as Firefox or Safari. 

• Booking opens 1 month before departure.  Click English top right.  Ignore the KR Railpass booking page that appears and click 'Booking' at the top then select 'Book online'.  When buying tickets, UK travellers will find the UK listed as 'England', just bite your lip if you're Scottish, Welsh or from Northern Ireland...

• The high-speed KTX trains between Seoul and Busan are highlighted in pink.  But if you are not in a hurry, the much slower non-high-speed Saemaul or Mugunghwa trains are cheaper and use the old route winding around the hills rather than through them.

• After booking, you must exchange your internet confirmation for a ticket at the station before departure.  You will need to show your passport.

• You can buy tickets at the station, but trains are busy on Fridays and Sunday evenings, so buying in advance is a good idea.  Trains are also busy around the two main 3-day national holidays, the lunar new year and Chuseok (meaning harvest, the 15th day of the 8th lunar month) as people travel home at these times.

The South Korean Railpass...

Believe it or not, there a railpass for Korea, giving 3, 5, 7 or 10 consecutive days unlimited travel over the whole Korail network, including both their high-speed KTX and regular trains (but excluding tourist trains & city metro trains).  For details and to buy a pass online, see www.trainticket.com, a subsidiary of Rail Europe 4A.

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Hotels & accommodation in Seoul & South Korea

Other hotel sites worth trying...

• Check reviews on Tripadvisor.com's South Korea page.

• www.booking.com is my own preferred hotel booking system (Hotels Combined being a search/comparison system).  It has a simple interface, a good selection in most countries worldwide, useful online customer reviews of each hotel, and decent prices, usually shown inclusive of unavoidable extras such as taxes (a pet hate of mine is systems that show one price, then charge you another!).

Backpacker hostels...

• www.hostelbookers.com:  If you're on a tight budget, don't forget about backpacker hostels.  Hostelbookers offers online booking of cheap private rooms or dorm beds in backpacker hostels in most cities at rock-bottom prices.

Travel insurance & health card...

Get travel insurance, it's essential...

Never travel overseas without travel insurance from a reliable insurer, with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover.  It should also cover cancellation and loss of cash (up to a limit) and belongings.  An annual multi-trip policy is usually cheaper than several single-trip policies even for just 2 or 3 trips a year (I have an annual policy myself).  Here are some suggested insurers.  Seat61 gets a small commission if you buy through these links.

In the UK, try Columbus Direct or use Confused.com to compare prices & policies from many different insurers.

If you have a pre-existing medical condition or are over 65 (no age limit), see www.JustTravelCover.com.

        If you're resident in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the EU, try Columbus Direct's other websites.

    If you're resident in the USA or Canada, try Travel Guard USA.

Get a spare credit card, designed for foreign travel with no currency exchange loading & low or no ATM fees...

It costs nothing to take out an extra credit card.  If you keep it in a different part of your luggage so you're not left stranded if your wallet gets stolen, this is a form of extra travel insurance in itself.  In addition, some credit cards are significantly better for overseas travel than others.  Martin Lewis's www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money explains which UK credit cards have the lowest currency exchange commission loadings when you buy something overseas, and the lowest cash withdrawal fees when you use an ATM abroad.  Taking this advice can save you quite a lot on each trip compared to using your normal high-street bank credit card!

You can avoid ATM charges and expensive exchange rates with a Caxton FX euro currency Visa Card, or their multi-currency 'Global Traveller' Visa Card, see www.caxtonfx.com for info.

Get an international SIM card...

Mobile phones can cost a fortune to use abroad, and if you're not careful you can return home to find some huge bills waiting for you.  I've known people run up a £1,000 bill in data charges just by leaving their iPhone connected during a simple trip to Europe.  However, if you buy a global SIM card for your mobile phone from a company such as www.Go-Sim.com you can slash the cost by up to 85% and limit any damage to the amount you have pre-paid.  It cuts call costs in 175 countries worldwide, and you can receive incoming calls and texts for free in 75 countries.  It's pay-as-you-go, so no nasty bills when you get home.  It also works for laptop or PDA data access.  A Go-Sim account and any credit on it doesn't expire if it's not between trips, unlike some others, so a Go-Sim phone number becomes your 'global phone number' for life.