Cruises In Korea: From Port Of Incheon And Beyond!
I’m recently back from a cruise down the Elbe River in Europe and enjoyed the hop-on-hop-off aspect of the travel. Seeing so many cities but having one bed. It was fantastic actually and made me wonder why I hadn’t heard more about cruise ships in Korea more. The peninsula is surrounded by water after all.
I’ve seen cruise ships in the ocean waters outside of Busan and Jeju Island and wondered, how popular are South Korea cruises? I think they should be more popular.
The world of passenger ship cruises has experienced a surge in popularity, with travelers seeking unique and diverse destinations but it seems like a lot of people overlook Korea. There are some great cruises in Asia that stop in China, Japan, and to a lesser extent, South Korea that could make for a pretty fantastic adventure.
If you’re into cruises, don’t miss taking a cruise to South Korea:
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Major Cruise Lines That Stop In South Korea
South Korea has been purposely building up cruise destinations around the peninsula and have attracted several major cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Princess Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line.
These cruise giants provide passengers with a range of options, from luxury voyages to family-friendly excursions, ensuring there’s a cruise line to suit every traveler’s preferences.
The coastline of Korea is gorgeous and when I brought up Korea to my many on-board mates in Europe, not one of them had realized Korea could be such a great destination for cruising. I think more cruise lines need to spread the love and stop here really.
So, I’m going to get the info out there for more of those cruise-interested travelers. Do NOT overlook South Korea!
Passenger Cruise Ports In Korea
Depending on which cruise line you travel with, you could stop in any one of these cruise ports in Korea. Busan and Jeju are the most popular stops for most of the ocean cruises in Korea.
Incheon New International Cruise Port
- Address: 80 Sinheung-dong 3-ga, Jung-gu, Incheon
- How to travel from the port to tourist sites:
- FREE Shuttle Bus: There is a free shuttle bus that departs from Incheon Port.
- Internal Shuttle Bus: Use this bus to get from the port to the taxi stand.
- Tourist Shuttle Bus: Use this bus to get from the port to the Sinpo International Market or Songdo International City.
- City Tour Bus: The Incheon City Tour Bus departs from Incheon Station, where Chinatown is located, and runs to popular areas like Songdo Central Park, Incheon Art Platform, and Wolmi Traditional Park. You can hop on hop off at any place you want to see.
- Taxi: Taxis get you around efficiently and quickly and go to all of the popular places in Incheon.
- FREE Shuttle Bus: There is a free shuttle bus that departs from Incheon Port.
Sokcho Port International Cruise Terminal
- Address: 136-58 Seorakgeumgangdaegyo-ro, Sokcho-si, Gangwon-do
- How to travel from the port to tourist sites: You can visit everything from the ocean to mountains all from Sokcho Port.
- On Foot: From the port, you can walk to Abai Village, a well-known filming site of the Korean Drama Autumn in My Heart.
- Taxi: Taxi is the best way to get around the region. You can get to the Seoraksan Cable Car or Sinheungsa Temple within 15-20 minutes or the Seokbong Ceramic Museum within 10-20 minutes.
Busan Port International Passenger Terminal
- Address: 206 Chungjang-daero, Dong-gu, Busan
- How to travel from the port to tourist sites: You can get all around the city of Busan from the Busan Port International Passenger Terminal.
- FREE Shuttle Bus: There is a free shuttle bus that departs from the terminal and go to Gukje Market in Nampo-dong and Busan Station. From Busan Station, you can take the Busan City Tour Bus and visit Gwangalli Beach, Haeundae Beach, and Haedong Yonggungsa Temple.
- Course 1: Departs every 30 minutes and takes approximately 15 minutes to get from the port to Nampo-dong.
- Course 2: Departs in intervals of 1-2 hours to get from the port to Busan Station in 5 minutes.
- Bus: If the free shuttle bus is crowded with visitors, take a local bus. Bus 5-1 goes to Nampo-dong every 11-13 minutes. Bus 1004 departs for Busan Station every 10-14 minutes.
- Taxi: A very convenient and fast way to travel, a taxi can get you from the port to Nampo-dong’s BIFF Square or Jagalchi Market in about 20 minutes. You can get from the port to Haeundae Beach, Gwangalli Beach, or The Bay 101 in about 35 minutes.
- FREE Shuttle Bus: There is a free shuttle bus that departs from the terminal and go to Gukje Market in Nampo-dong and Busan Station. From Busan Station, you can take the Busan City Tour Bus and visit Gwangalli Beach, Haeundae Beach, and Haedong Yonggungsa Temple.
Yeosu Expo Passenger Ship Terminal
- Address: 320-66 Expo-daero, Yeosu-si, Jeollanam-do
- How to travel from the port to tourist sites: There are lot of great things to see in Yeosu and the major attractions are all quite close to each other and easy to access from the port.
- On Foot: After the Expo was held in Yeosu in 2012, the entire area around the port was built up. The Sky Tower Observatory, Aqua Planet, and Arte Museum are all within walking distance.
- City Tour Bus: There is a double-decker city tour bus that departs from in front of Yeosu-Expo Station seven times a day at 10:30am, 11:30am, 12:30pm, 2:30pm, 3:30pm, 4:30pm, and 5:30pm. The bus goes to Odongdo Island, Yi Sun Shin Square and other places.
- Taxi: If you want to go further in Yeosu, a taxi is the most efficient and quick mode of transportation.
Jeju Port International Passenger Terminal
- Address: 191 Imhang-ro, Jeju-si, Jeju-do
- How to travel from the port to tourist sites: The nearest tourist attractions from this port are in Jeju city, which can be reached in 5 minutes by bus or taxi.
- Bus: There’s a bus in front of the port passenger terminal to get to Jeju Dongmun Traditional Market or Hoetjip Street. Buses are available near the West Pier via peirs 6 and 4 of Jeju Port. The bus interval can be rather long at 30-40 minutes, bus is an efficient way to travel. If you can get to the bus stop in good time, it’s only a 5-10 minute ride to the traditional market.
- City Tour Bus: There is a city tour bus in front of the port passenger terminal to get to the Dongmun Traditoinal Market, Gwangdeokjeng Pavilion, Yongduam Rock, and Halla Arboretum. The city tour bus operates at 1 hour intervals from 9:00am to 7:00pm.
- Taxi: Taxis are the easiest and most convenient way to travel and provide the fastest mode of transportation. You can get further faster even to places like the Manjanggul Cave or Seongsan Ilchulbong, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, within an hour with taxi. The taxi stand is in front of cuirse piers 7 and 8.
Korea has done a lot in recent years to build up their cruise port infrastructure to make it more attractive to foreign travelers. I hope people start jumping on the opportunity to stop in Korea this way. See the seasides of Korea. You won’t regret it.
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