Incheon/Seoul port

[CJcruzer]

we will be visiting South Korea on our cruise, port prior to Incheon would have been in Japan.

 

Is there immigration/customs to go through at the cruise terminal? or does the ship just hold onto our passports?

 

I hve a private tour set to start 8:30 AM, we dock at 8 AM -concerned if we have to go through some procedures, or can we just walk right off the ship straight to meet our guide.

 

Thanks

[mycouch]

Last year we had a stop in Incheon onboard the Ovation of the Seas. There was nothing around but concrete and some stairs and bridges to the ship. 8 customs officers came onboard the ship and checked every single passport. The cue went all around inside the ship. Some of the guests made it off the ship at 11 a.m. Many missed their self organized tours. The ship tours where the first getting off the ship of course. Not sure if it is easier now but it seems kind of risky.

[CJcruzer]

Last year we had a stop in Incheon onboard the Ovation of the Seas. There was nothing around but concrete and some stairs and bridges to the ship. 8 customs officers came onboard the ship and checked every single passport. The cue went all around inside the ship. Some of the guests made it off the ship at 11 a.m. Many missed their self organized tours. The ship tours where the first getting off the ship of course. Not sure if it is easier now but it seems kind of risky.

 

 

 

thanks, what i just realized is that Jeju island is our first South South Korea stop - which means we will not have to go through South Korean immigration at Incheon/Seoul the very next day?

 

 

I do have a ship's tour booked for Jeju - and hopefully in Incheon, since it is the next day after Jeju stop, we can just proceed ff the ship!

[PCWalton1]

Last year we had a stop in Incheon onboard the Ovation of the Seas. There was nothing around but concrete and some stairs and bridges to the ship. 8 customs officers came onboard the ship and checked every single passport. The cue went all around inside the ship. Some of the guests made it off the ship at 11 a.m. Many missed their self organized tours. The ship tours where the first getting off the ship of course. Not sure if it is easier now but it seems kind of risky.

 

 

What time did Ovation dock in Incheon? We will be doing the same next year arriving at 9 am and I just want to figure out what to set as pick up time for our tour.

thanks

[mycouch]

It also docked at 9am. Hopefully they have optimized the immigration process now.

[floridababa]

When getting off the ship in Incheon- is there anything to do? HO HO ? Taxis?

I am on Princess in July and they have not set up excursions there.

We are there 12:00 to 10:00 PM so it would be OK to do on our own or maybe with another couple.

Does Princess provide a shuttle?

[pacrimheather]

It's always interesting to see how different ports handle such matters--even within the same country. I have been to Busan dozens of times--as the sole S. Korean port--, and we always just walked right off.

[Ferry Beach Kayaker]

When getting off the ship in Incheon- is there anything to do? HO HO ? Taxis?

I am on Princess in July and they have not set up excursions there.

We are there 12:00 to 10:00 PM so it would be OK to do on our own or maybe with another couple.

Does Princess provide a shuttle?

 

We were in Incheon in February on a Holland America ship. They did provide a shuttle to the Sino market which is a centrally located area. Korean tourism gave us a map unfortunately it wasn't to scale and wasn't that helpful. We ended up being in Incheon for 2 days since we missed our next port Juju because of wind. We are walkers, and after walking through Sino Market and getting something to eat. We walked to the park up on the hill with a statute of Douglas McArther and a Korean War memorial, it was quite pleasant. The next day we again was dropped off at the Sino Market, this time we walked to the cultural museum then to Chinatown which was neat. It was Sunday and filled with local people. Next to Chinatown is the fairly tale neighborhood filled with Disney figures from Peter Pan to Spider-Man. I do recommend that you copy out a map from a Korean tour book or website before your visit.

[nycnut]

Just returned from Celebrity Cruise. We stopped at Incheon first and Jeju Island the next day. Several immigration officials came on the ship in Incheon and we quickly finished the process. We were off the ship by 7:30 am. Many tour operators were waiting right off the ship. There is no terminal in Incheon. We also had to disembark in groups in Jeju but it was seamless. Very nice terminal in Jeju with internet access. We had great private tours with My Seoul Tour and Funtasy in both locations.

[shipster60]

Just returned from Celebrity Cruise. We stopped at Incheon first and Jeju Island the next day. Several immigration officials came on the ship in Incheon and we quickly finished the process. We were off the ship by 7:30 am. Many tour operators were waiting right off the ship. There is no terminal in Incheon. We also had to disembark in groups in Jeju but it was seamless. Very nice terminal in Jeju with internet access. We had great private tours with My Seoul Tour and Funtasy in both locations.

Did you use Funtasy for Juju? Which part of the island did you tour? I was looking at their site, but can't sort out which would be the best tour?

Edited August 30, 2018 by shipster60
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[sippican]

Interested in DIY from Incheon to Seoul. Can anyone comment on the best way to do this?