Seoul, South Korea

Travel Requirements:

• All U.S. citizens must have a valid US passport in order to enter Korea. If your stay will be longer than ninety days then you are required to get special permission with ROK. The Embassy of Korea does suggest you call them and tell them about your planned trip as well so they can keep you updated with important news.
• For the 411 on all travel requirements in detail you can visit here. (:
• Now you are wondering, I know what I need now....how do I get there? By plane of course! The price will range anywhere from 1,200 - 2,000 dollars or around that area. The more in advance you buy your ticket the better the prices will be. Also the best times to go are times like the off-season. However due to the way American lives are usually planned there is little chance school and work will let you do that. Those plain tickets that range in price are sampled here. One way tickets of course are more expensive but you have options! ^^

A bed to sleep in:

• Well since I am just making an assumption, I am going to assume you are young and adventurous like me to start off with--- here are some Youth Hostels! This place is wonderful for students as well if you want to travel there! Hi Seoul is a site that also offers city guide tips and has actual Korean volunteers show you around after you get some sleep. (: It looks very similar inside and out like a hotel but it is a great place with rooms ranging from 20-30 dollars a night! Reviews are always a great thing before you travel!

• More hostel sites: Here and Here(:
• GUEST HOMES! (For the older or those that want to actually live with Korean natives) Another great and cheap way to stay in Seoul is finding a good guest house! For only $43 dollars a night who wouldn't want to travel? Yim's house has wonderful reviews and prices!^^\
• Also Hotels and Motels are available everywhere in Seoul due to high tourism levels but of course they are pricier and only should be used with those who have high budgets or no budget!

Transportation!

• There are many ways of transportation, the major ways are buses, taxis, and subways stations which all are pretty cheap.
• Many local students get the best of transportation by buying bus passes which you can do if you will be there for a longer period of time. 
• If you decide to take the subway station which is also pretty cheap know how to use it. Since a lot of the place names are in Korean writing it will be hard to know your stop if you are not used to that mode of transportation,
• A safe and cheap method to get where you want is Taxi ! It is only about W1900 per 2km and about W100 every 41 seconds after...This translates to about 2 dollars per 2 km and 10 cents for every 41 seconds after.

FOOD~~~~~

• The biggest thing in Korea that I have heard from the locals is their Korean BBQ's and also their street food~ 
• Of course they have American restaurants like McDonalds there....stay away!! Explore the different food!
  A staple food in the Korean diet of course is white rice!! Soooo anywhere you eat....expect to eat rice! You can ask for no rice...but usually that is considered rude! 
• They also use spice in a lot of their foods! You better have adventurous taste buds because things like live squid is a favorite! ^^

SAFETY:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4G9OZfxfDDM

These are two foreigners in Korea and honestly I take their word for it. Korea is in general a very respectful place.
(language Honorifics) and in general.

IMPORTANT CULTURE NOTES:

• When you meet anyone for the first time remember to be polite and bow, if you reach out to shake their hand they may or may not respond to that greeting. This depends on how accepting of foreigners your acquaintances are. Also if you are shaking hands with someone older than you, you must use both hands! Also use both hands when serving any type of drink, or passing anything.
• This is a very polite country to be very respectful in general....Koreans are also very direct however so they will tell you what they think without thinking it is disrespectful. (Way of dress, height, weights) things we typically would consider rude.
• Here are some points I touched on and a couple extra! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwrJE1BvAqk

TOP 5 Places to visit in Seoul~! ( As chosen by the Korean people living there)

1. Insa-Dong (인사동) - Home to Korean traditional arts and culture. This is a great place to spend some money on souvenirs because of the many shops there is. Insa-Dong is located near some traditional palaces. It is a blast to the traditional with many restaurants and galleries to explore Korea more in dept. 

2. Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Deoksugung - The major palaces in the Northern part of Seoul that really let you explore a taste of what Korea used to be.

3.Nandaemun market and Dongdaemun Markets- These are the oldest open aired markets and one of the biggest shopping districts in Korea. 

4.Itaewon

Itaewon is located in the center of Seoul and it's home to Korea's international community.
English is widely spoken in almost every store and restaurant.
Itaewon is always full of non-Korean residents from Western people to Africans and Middle Easterners.
You can appreciate all kinds of ethnic food in Itaewon such as Indian, Thai, Mexican, American, French, Turkish and etc.
Itaewon is very popular for shopping and dining as well. It's also very foreigner-friendly and gay-friendly.

Itaewon has a gay street, I don't know the name of the street but it's close to Itaewon Fire Station. 

                         

5.  =Lotte World! Kind of like Disneyland with roller coasters and fun attractions.

Of course there is many other locations like the Han River and so on but these are 5 chosen by Korean Natives in a survey. This is a wonderful country waiting to be explored! Travel there and experience something different !

GO WITH A FRIEND>>...meet people! Enjoy your visit!