My boyfriend and I will be traveling around South Korea for 11 days in October. I will be visiting some extended family in Seoul, so we will need to spend several days there, but in general we are more interested in spending time outside cities, seeing mountainous and rural areas, and eating delicious food.
Our itinerary, at this point, is as follows:
Fri 10/15 arrive Seoul
Sat 10/16-Sun 10/17 Seoul
Mon 10/17 Seoul -> Seoraksan
Tues 10/18 Seoraksan
Wed 10/19 Seoraksan -> Seoul
Thurs 10/20 Seoul
Fri 10/21 Seoul -> Jeonju
Sat 10/22-Sun 10/23 Jeonju area (incl. possible side excursions to Boseong, Damyang, Yeosu, or Gwangju)
Mon 10/23 Jeonju -> Gyeongju (is there a direct way, or will we have to go via Gwangju and Busan?)
Tues 10/24 Gyeogju area
Wed 10/25 Gyeongju -> Busan -> ferry to Fukuoka
We are hoping that this will allow us to spend time in the different geographical areas of the county, and to see city, country, mountains, and temples, but I am a bit concerned that in our attempt to achieve that balance we have inadvertently reproduced the typical tourist itinerary. I want to make sure we feel like we're getting a bit "off the beaten track," and experiencing a bit of quietness and nature, to the extent that that's possible in Korea. So, here are my questions:
(1) We are very interested in seeing the autumn foliage, and Seoraksan sounds like the most beautiful place to do so. However, it sounds like it can be a total zoo at this time of year. We have planned to go on a Monday/Tuesday, in hopes of avoiding some of the crowd, but what can we expect on weekdays in mid-October? Might Jirisan be a better choice? Seoraksan looks incredibly beautiful to me, but if Jirisan is also quite beautiful and substantially less crowded, perhaps it would be a better option. In Seoraksan, is there a particular area that might be a little less well-trod, yet still very beautiful? We are considering staying at the Green Yard Hotel in order to enjoy the Osaek hot springs, but would welcome other recommendations as well.
(2) We would like to stay in a hanok, and were considering Jeonju, Hahoe, or Jirye Art Village. We are leaning toward Jeonju, given that it seems there may be more to do in that region and the food is supposed to be very good, but I'd love some more opinions. The newish Rakkojae in Hahoe Village (http://www.rkj.co.kr/andong/main.asp) looks especially appealing (though expensive!), and I wonder if anyone has been there and could report back. If you had to pick between these three hanok villages, which would you pick, and why?
(3) We had considered going to Jeju or Ulleungdo, but ultimately decided against both to give ourselves more time to explore mainland Korea. However, it would be nice to get to a closer island or at least to the coast, if time permits. Are there any islands you recommend that could easily be incorporated into our itinerary as a day trip (perhaps along the west or southern coasts)?
Thanks in advance for your help!
