rodlim

We just did Busan and were shocked at the beautiful sights we saw. I lucked upon a tour operator that I found on the internet, but ended up seeing more than I expected for sure (since I didn't know what to expect). We saw a mountain temple, the urban beach in Busan, an island hike with glass see through bridge, the tiered old homes that looked like santorilli (Sp?), and the international market. This far far far exceeded my expectations. It was my families favourite port of the cruise.

We ended up lucking upon a husband and wife tour team who were delightful. Don't know protocol here, so apologies if this is inappropriate. Her contact is jinee225@naver.com Delightful! We had a break from cruising (last was British Isles 3 years ago) but cruises 15+ cruises before kids, and with young kids and this honestly was one of my most unexpected surprises!

Enjoy!

We just left Busan and heading in, we had zero expectations. Three days before the port I booked a tour, and having cruised a lot, I was STUNNED that this city actually was once of the best excursions I have ever been on. We had a private van, and avoided the herds. We went to the oldest mountain temple in Busan with gorgeous views. We hiked along the coast to the wide sandy beach in the city. We went out to a far island via van to beautiful cliffs and a see-through walking bridge (like in Jasper, Grand Canyon). We went to this hill side old village that reminded me of Santorilli (sp?). It was newly renovated for tourists and it was amazing to walk the narrow valleys and take part in all of the photo-ops. We then went to the fish market, and the international market for shopping. It was one after another show stopping stops. Probably my favourite port so far in Asia. Quite the surprise! Message me if you want further details etc.

We were just in Hong Kong. The front of the taxi says "4 persons" or "5 persons". We fit 5 people from Hong Kong disney to Kowloon with all of our luggage, they bungled the trunk closed and said this was "Hong Kong style" lol. You shouldn't have any problems,.

One tip I learned in Bangkok which I was shocked at (was just there in early March) is that the temples are open at night, and you can walk in and have the place to yourself. Its stunning at night. We did a food tour that was incredible, it would not have been able to navigate the different stalls and restaurants selected for us without expertise!

I have always booked flights on my own, as the specific details on time of day and layovers etc are much more controllable if you do it yourself. Its harder these days to predict when prices go up and down so you have to watch it carefully and get an idea of what price ranges the flights you are on fluctuate. I would personally wait and see for sure. If your arrival window is tight to the cruise disembarkation, and you are a worrier, then its safer to book with the cruise line as they will wait for you.