^^ Incheon’s tidal flat land as seen from the AREX train.
On coming to Seoul one is most likely to land at Incheon International Airport, hailed as one of the best airports in the world. IMO, it’s a very good airport but they could be better if they would only have the family room like the one at Narita Airport. Total comfort for a traveling mom with a baby!
The Arrival area of the airport is on the ground floor while the Departure is on the third floor. There are buses outside the airport that will take one anywhere to Korea. It takes about an hour and a half to go to central Seoul. The fare is 9,000 won one way.
I wouldn’t recommend taking the taxi as it would cost more than 50,000 won (about US$50.) A cheaper option to go to Seoul is to take the Airport Express or “AREX”. The Airport Express train will only take the passenger to Gimpo Airport (which is still outside Seoul). From the Gimpo Airport subway station, one can take the subway line 5 to Seoul.
Last March, my son and I hitched a ride with my husband to the airport to pick up his co-worker, who was coming from Pakistan that time. On the way back to Seoul, my son and I took the AREX express train which travels non-stop to Gimpo Airport. The fare is only 3,200 won. We were lucky to be there about 5 minutes before the scheduled 6 PM departure. They depart every hour. We then transferred to the Gimpo Airport subway station. It is about 1,100 won to from there to the station nearest us in Seoul. The train is super comfy, fast and has a space for luggages.
Taking the AREX and the subway to and from the airport costs a little less than 9,000 won. The limousine bus to and from Seoul is 18,000 won. A 50% difference. When not to take the AREX? If you’re not confident of the subway system in Seoul. Call me if you get lost! LOL
I’d suggest getting a transportation card. It’s convenient. It will save you money and it’s a good souvenir too!
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
This is really helpful, since I am travelling to Seoul for the the first time and I am on a budget. Checking on your site is even now more useful than my friend there in Korea who is my source of information. Haha.
I glossed over an article in the Korea Times a few weeks ago regarding some controversy behind the AREX, you probably noticed the train was empty, compared to airport trains in other international airports such as HK. Anyway I read that this train was built and is being run by Hyundai in a Build Operate and Transfer scheme, and it seems like people don’t use it as much as they expect.
If they built an express train from the COEX then I’d probably use it, other than than I still prefer taking the Airport Limo Bus.
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Hi Emil! The Airport Express from Incheon to Seoul Station will be in operation next year. I enjoyed taking the AREX, however I’d prefer my husband picking us up. The last time I traveled, my husband couldn’t pick us up because I arrive on a Monday morning. I took the limousine bus, fell asleep and missed my stop.
the AREX was really helpful on my day-trip to Seoul last year…
i’m kind of confused though; the train that took me to Gimpo from Incheon did not stop at the stations in between, however the train from Gimpo to Incheon had to stop at every station from Gimpo to the airport
Hey Betchay,
I need your help. I am flying to Seoul in a few weeks time. I am a backpacker and I will only stay in a backpacker. I made some research but I want to ask you this: Where is the best area to stay, meaning best area when it comes to accesibility:
Seogyo-dong Mapo-gu
Iksun-dong, Jongno-Gu
Myeongryun-dong 4
As per your article, you mentioned about Banana Backpacker and it is located in Iksun-dong but it seems that I get some nice comments from the area of Seogyo-dong. I am confused. Please help.
Thank you so much!
Hello! I am Maggie from Manila and my friends and I will travel to Seoul from November 28-Dec 2. We have a Korean Officemate who will be there at the same time but on business trip so he won’t be able to accompany us most of the time. We have a rough outline of our itinerary already but we also want to check which other areas to explore. Specifically, we want to know where to buy the T-card and the ticket for te 1 day Seoul City tour. Hope you can help us. Please respond in my email add: maggie111884@yahoo.com. Salamat!
Hi Maggie! You can find more info about the Seoul City Tour bus from this website: http://en.seoulcitybus.com/
You can purchase the T-card from the convenience store just outside the arrival area at the airport.
hello,
it is my first time to korea for 2 days only. whats the best travel from incheon airport to Sangdaewon-Dong Jungwon-Ku Sungnam-shi Kyunggi-D? what are the tour attractions on this area? thank you very much.
hi betchay,
im ivy and i want to visit korea when i go home to the philippines for my yearly vacation (im living in the US but not an immigrant yet, just on dependent visa) i have several questions for u and i hope u wont mind. 1. do i need to get a visa going there for a 3 day vacation departing from cebu? i always have my stop over at incheon everytime i go home to cebu. 2. which place in s korea have more english speaking people? just in case i need questions and all? 3. are there tours wityh english speaking guides available? thank u so much for ur time. ur website really is a good source of info…. by the way i love to eat too…which foor would u recommend me to try and which should i avoid? thanks again
nice tips. dami ko na natutuhan dito sa blog mo. gustong gusto ko na talaga magpunta korea.
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