Korea in late December

Greetings,
I'm considering a trip to Korea between Christmas & New Year's. Yes, I know it will be cold, and I'm ok with that. I've been to Korea twice before (Sept & Nov of last year), so if I go, I will likely want to travel all around the country (by train), rather than just staying in Seoul. I'm wondering a few things:
1) From the research that I've done it looks like Jeju is basically shut down during the winter months (most stuff is not open, or has very limited hours). While I certainly have no plans to go to a beach, does any one know whether its worthwhile to go to Jeju, or will I be wasting my time?

2) Are there any benefits to going in late December? Any special events, or attractions which are nicer to visit in winter ?

thanks!

Hello Netllama

Just a quick response,

Jeju, isn't really worth it in my opinion, I went there once, but never again, I had planned to stay 5 nights but I left on the 3rd day as I was bored out of my mind! and I went in the summer 2008.
The best times to visit Korea are early Spring and in Autumn.

Not many benefits in going in late December, just very nippy, Freezing winds from Siberia.

Oh one more thing, if you are going to be there for new years eve, get ready to have one of the most boring party of your lifetime!.. You see, Fireworks are banned there!.

@crimsonking23 Thanks for your reply. Although I'm not sure that I follow why the lack of fireworks makes New Year's boring?

I'll have a go at question 1. Personally, I really enjoy Jeju. I've gone twice and am going again in September. Previously, I went in mid-October and then again in early February this year. I don't think Jeju ever really closes, as even in the winter many Koreans head there for slightly less cold weather. They also get a lot of tourists from Japan and China.
I usually go for the outdoors stuff, though, so to be honest, I don't know how schedules of the paid attractions are affected. I'd be surprised if any of the main attractions were completely closed at that time of year, but they might have reduced hours from the summer. I guess it depends what you want to do there. I go mainly for the hiking as there are a lot of beautiful spots around the island, and I would say it definitely warrants a trip.

@JasonInJapan thanks! I should have commented originally, that nature, hiking & outdoorsy stuff definitely interest me. Historical or cultural points of interest are also on my list. Could you elaborate on the beautiful spots on Jeju that you'd recommend?

thanks!

I don't know how many days you plan to spend on Jeju, but I'd recommend at least 3 if you're going to be doing any outdoor activities.
Hallasan (the highest mountain in South Korea) is a nice hike in the centre of the island and is worth doing if the weather cooperates. There are a few different trails you can take, but I believe a few of them are currently closed to allow them to recover. I took the Seongpanak Trail which starts on the east side of the mountain. I think it took me about 6 or 7 hours total up and down, and I'm a steady but not a fast hiker. You can catch a bus from Jeju City Bus Terminal that drops you off right at the trailhead on highway 1131.
I'd also suggest going to Seongsan on the east coast which has a huge caldera(?) that is quite interesting and you can walk right up to the top to look inside. From Seongsan you can also take a short ferry (maybe 15 minutes, usually about once an hour although that may be a lot less at that time of year) to Udo Island. Upon arrival on Udo, there's a place that rents mountain bikes and scooters which you can use to explore the island. Definitely worth checking out.
Finally I'd suggest walking a section of the Jeju Olle Trail. This is a trail that almost encircles the island and is broken into stages of different lengths that usually take about 5 to 9 hours. I've walked most of two sections. The first was in the southwest of the island, starting from Sanbanggul and the Yongmeori Coast. Yongmeori is a beautiful section of coast and from here I walked counterclockwise towards Seogwipo. The other section was in the southeast and I started at Pyoseon Beach and walked clockwise, also towards Seogwipo. The nice thing with these trails is that other than the odd tour group, they're relatively deserted (which is a nice treat if you've ever hiked in a Korean NP on a weekend) and you get a wide variety of scenery.
Here's a link to the official Jeju Olle site - it's in Korean but you can see a map of the different sections. When you arrive at the airport in Jeju City you can pick up an English map just inside the arrivals area.

[https://www.jejuolle.org/main/main.jsp]

Here's another link from the Korean Tourism Office:

[http://visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_4_12_13.jsp]

Jason

Awesome, thanks for the recommendations!

I don't get the Jejudo hate. I had a lot of fun during my visit there. Definitely has plenty to offer and plenty to keep you entertained. I can't imagine it would be quite as pleasant in winter though.

Skiing might be an option if they've had some decent snowfall up at Muju. Worth a look.

New Year's in most cities is still a lot of fun. Even though it's not the 'real' New Year for Koreans, there will still be fireworks and plenty to see and do. Any foreigner bar is going to have a wild party going too.

hey guys me too will be going to korea on late dec till early jan 2012... is there any events that will be held during this period of time?.