Let me preface this post by saying I am by no means a China/South Korea travel expert. This blog post is really just a visual one to show you all the beautiful places we went to see! I do have a few tips to share though. I started writing this as one post and realized this will be superlong.
Unless your kiddo has an adventurous food appetite or loves seafood, it will be very difficult to travel with kids to China. Korea is a little more manageable.
Everywhere takes forever to get to. It may be close in kilometers or miles but there are SO many people there.
If you are black or brown in China, be prepared for people to ask for pictures. I have heard the same for people with light hair and/or light eyes. I did not get stopped, but only once in South Korea.
Hire a driver or do a tour. Do not attempt China alone. They do not make it tourist friendly. My friend warned me and when I went, I totally understood what she meant. I would recommend the same for South Korea, but it is slightly easier.
For China - Negotiate, negotiate, negotiate. if you go to some of their flea markets, be prepared to get your negotiation on. My luggage broke and I got a new one from $50 USD to $20.
Take lots of money. You can some good stuff for low in China. Also have a luggage with space. I did not check a bag, so I was limited on space. In South Korea, everyone swears by the black snail cream.
If you do not have global entry, consider using mobile passport. It’s free and saved a ton of time!
Keep your belongings safe (moreso applies to China). I think this goes for any major city, but just wanted to remind you that it applies for here too.
For South Korea, using a card is totally fine. For China, cash is almost a must. I personally feel that getting cash out while you are in the states and using one of their machines to exchange is easier. My friend got cash from the ATM, but had a few issues.
To round it out for a solid 10, if you are in Seoul/Shanghai, see all the places I am listing in part 1 and part 2 of these blogs.
JK, one more, social media is blocked in China if you are on any of their WiFi networks. Super sucks! There is a way around it, but it’s totally over my head.
Seoul, South Korea
It reminded me of an ultra modern NYC, very clean, and the people were very kind.
Tombs in South Korea
The tombs we visited were beautiful, who knew visiting tombs could be so interesting. The tombs we toured date back to 1600s (give or take 100 years). The trees were super cool on the grounds! Following the tombs we had korean BBQ. You do not dine with shoes on at the place we visited. So comfy.
Jogysea Temple
An ancient temple that is surrounded by all the modern buildings of North Korea. There’s so many beautiful colors!
Bukchon Hanock Village
A 600 year old traditional style Korean village located at the top of the hill. There are several shops, food, and art galleries. Please note that most of the shops are closed on Monday. It is located at the top of a hill. I enjoyed the walk over and saw lots of cute little parts of the city and really nice skyscrapers. You can rent hanboks (traditional Korean costume) and wear them around the village. People actually live in this village, so there are people who ensure the tourists are quiet plus lots of signage asking people to be quiet.
Seoul City Hall
It was located across from the hotel. Very cool vertical garden, actually the world’s largest!
Gyeonbokgung Palace
We arrived in perfect timing to see the changing of the guards ceremony. Such a neat experience! Having tea in the palace is an absolute must experience. It is gorgeous!!! It was the only palace that was not closed on Monday, but I think it is a main one. If I ever go back, I’d love to do a palace tour.
Dine of the Floating Island
This was totally neat. We dined at an Italian restaurant that had a million courses (I think like 9). Very delicious and had a Korean spin on Italian food, I had a really tasty filet among many other food items. One thing I noticed is that all the meals in Korea came with a ton of courses. It was raining, so we could not go out on the floating tables, but still got beautiful vies of the area and the restaurant area itself was on a make-shift island.
N Seoul Tower
My favorite part! You take a cable car to the top of the tower and you can look down at all of Seoul. There are padlocks of love along the fences, benches, trees, everywhere! Loved ones seal a lock symbolizing the endless love for those who hang them. This place you can spend hours at. On the ride up, you can stop at Hello Kitty Museum/Store and grab a fancy flavored popcorn and drink. There is a place to eat and/or snack at the top. The views are majestic!
The flight over to China was Asiana Airlines! They serve real dinnerware guys, no plastic, and the food was very tasty!
Shanghai
Best skyline I have ever seen!
Tibetan Dining Experience
This was my first time having the food, and it was extremely tasty! The restaurant was packed and it was located near the Bund. I tried lots of tasty flavored veggies and meats.
The Bund from the Classic Side
The buildings on this side of the Bund definitely have European flare. We hung-out at a rooftop spot and got great views of the city overlooking the Han River. Craziest part is that at 11 PM, the lights on the building shut off.
I will take a pause here and share more pictures in Part 2 of this post. It will feature more of the ancient gardens! Stay tuned.
Thank you for reading!!!