📅 Day 1: Departure + Eating Spree
Departure: Left home at 6:15 AM, arrived at the airport at 8:12 AM. Two hours! That was awful! I definitely need to move closer to the city center!!!
A bowl of hot IPPUDO ramen before boarding the plane—perfect for starting the day!
Immigration: Arrived at GimHae Airport, started queuing at 2:11 PM, cleared customs and collected luggage at 2:42 PM.
Airport Bus: Took the airport bus at 3:00 PM directly to the hotel. Remember to buy your ticket near Exit 5 before boarding;
There are many different ticket machines there. However, if you’re taking this luxury airport bus, it seems you can only buy tickets at the manual counter.
There’s only one bus per hour, so plan your time accordingly!
Talking to Ajumma at the counter was hilarious.
My sister: I want to go to Bujeon Market.
Ajumma: Bujeon Markette? (Korean-accented English)
My sister: Yes, Bujeon Market!
Ajumma: (Repeating) Bujeon Markette?
My sister: Yaya, Bujeon Markette! (We also used Korean-accented English)
Ajumma: Ah~ Bujeon Shi Chang~ (The last syllable was drawn out super long, it was hilarious!)🤣
Souvenir Collection: If you have enough time, there’s a counter near Exit 3 after clearing customs where you can collect a souvenir bag.
It contains many small souvenirs and samples.
Apparently, the Seoul souvenirs seem to have changed, while the Busan souvenirs might still be from the old ones, which is why we received the old ones.
All you need is your passport and to fill out a short questionnaire.
🚨 A Luggage Mishap
I always use a 28-inch dark blue suitcase when traveling abroad, but this time I used a light pink 24-inch one, and I forgot!
So I couldn’t find the pink suitcase that was right in front of me.
My mind raced with thoughts like, “What should I do? I didn’t buy insurance this time,” etc… I even walked quite a distance to look for it.
My sister looked at me speechlessly: “It’s right in front of you, why did you walk so far!” Hahaha.
🏨 Arrival at Accommodation
Airport → Accommodation: Take the airport bus, about 40 minutes. Get off at Bujeon Market, 7,500 won (about 23 MYR).
We arrived at the accommodation around 4 PM, just in time for check-in.
This bus fare is really touching, Japan can’t do that 🙂
🍜 First meal in Busan: Songjeong Samdae Gukbap (Naver Maps)
The soup was very light; you can add salt or pepper to taste.
We ordered two options:
① The most basic pork soup rice
② The meat and soup were served separately; the cooked white meat was heated up and served separately.
I personally recommend the second option! If you want a more varied experience, you can soak it in the soup, wrap it around vegetables, or eat it alone.
The meat was also thicker and had a better texture than option ①.
It seemed like a long-established restaurant; there were many elderly locals working there. Kimchi, chives, etc., were self-service.
🌭 Afternoon Tea: Whole-Cheese Hot Dog (Naver Maps)
We ordered an whole-cheese hot dog, which was freshly fried 😋.
I personally prefer the ones just coated in sugar; they’re very crispy, and the sweet outer layer paired perfectly with the salty cheese 💯.
When we first went to order, the staff noticed we were reading the English menu and said something like,
“What do we do? What do we do? They speak English!” They had already prepared a translation app, so cute 😆.
Afterwards, we strolled around the Seomyeon Station area. Korean brands like Musinsa Standard, and Olive Young are all in that area.
🥩 Dinner: CHOPILSAL SEOMYEON (Naver Maps)
Dinner was BBQ, booked through Naver Maps. There’s also a app called Catchtable that allows reservations; many restaurants with long queues have a tablet outside for customers to book or get a number using Catchtable.
This place is said to be the originator of grilled pork skin.
They require customers to order at least 3 servings for the first order, so we ordered one serving of each type of meat (4 servings total), plus a kimchi soup and cold noodles. Everything was delicious.
Pork skin: The staff grills them for you; the fat really splatters everywhere, which is quite satisfying (?).
After grilling the rinds, you can grill the remaining meat yourself.
The accompanying scallion salad/scallion kimchi is very well-seasoned, delicious, and refreshing; not spicy, and crunchy.
The pork skin has a texture similar to a solid jelly—very chewy but not oily.
Paired with the accompanying dipping sauce or soybean powder, the flavor is elevated to another level.
Because of this pork skin, my mom has already booked a trip to Busan with us for 2027, hahaha!
When we went, almost everyone there was Korean, and they were all large groups of six or more, so I’m sure it’s quite famous locally.
📅 Day 2: Culture Village, Seafood Market, and Shopping
🎨 First Stop: Gamcheon Culture Village
We took the bus from Jagalchi Station. I’m so glad I was standing, because the swaying uphill was so bad that sitting would have made me dizzy. Swaying level: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The buses came and went so quickly, it was easy to miss them.
Souvenirs: There are many souvenir shops and handicraft shops in the culture village. It wasn’t crowded on a weekday.
Many souvenir shops sell similar items, but there’s one yellow souvenir shop (Naver Maps) on the right-hand side after getting off the bus and before entering the main street.
I felt this shop sold slightly different items, with more three-dimensional designs. The packaging was also very careful, using bubble wrap to protect the goods, very thoughtful ❤
P.S.: In the photos of my souvenirs, there’s one wrapped up, the black thing is its packaging. I didn’t take a separate picture of its details, sorry 😢
Postcards (Naver Maps): There’s another store that offers postcard mailing services. When we visited, it had just opened, so there were no customers inside, making for a great experience.
You buy postcards and limited-edition Little Prince stamps on the first floor, then go up to the second floor to fill them out. I saw many people writing to their loved ones, but a large number were also writing to their future selves a year from now.
If you go, why not write a meaningful postcard for yourself or a loved one? The second floor is also a great spot for taking photos!
After that, we just strolled around. The weather was great, but the sun was so strong that many of the photos were overexposed and washed out. The vibrant colors weren’t really showing. You might want to come when the weather isn’t so great (hahahaha), when the sun isn’t too strong.
The butter cookie shop opposite the Little Prince landmark was very cute, but unfortunately, they didn’t have mixed flavor packs, so we only bought the original flavor. After making a purchase, they’ll give you instructions that you can take photos on the second floor.
But the photos we took were…well, let’s just say they were terrible, completely overexposed, hahaha.
The photo booth in Gammon Cultural Village also has a Little Prince limited edition theme; collectors shouldn’t miss it.
🐟 Second Stop: Jagalchi Seafood Market
We took a bus down the mountain again, then entered the Jagalchi Seafood Market. The descent was like a rollercoaster, and I thought about how many elderly people or those with mobility issues do this every day – it’s exhausting!
Before entering the market, we tried their specialty fish cakes. They were very chewy, but much sweeter than I expected, so the soup was a lifesaver, helping to cut through the richness.
Afterwards, we headed to the Jagalchi Seafood Market. We originally planned to have brunch there, but we were out in less than a minute. I’m not used to the smell of seafood, and I’m not sure what to order. Next time, I’ll bring my mom to bargain!
Many of the seafood items were things I’d only seen on mukbang videos, so the only thing we ate there was the fish cakes. They were very fresh and sweet, with a great chewy texture.
King crab, wait for me to come back!
🍟 Third stop: BIFF Plaza and BHC Fried Chicken
Afterwards, we walked across to BIFF Plaza and had a seed hotteok. It had a stronger aroma of sunflower seeds than regular brown sugar pancakes.
Since it’s freshly made, the wait can be a little long if there’s a queue. Be patient!
Then we went to BHC fried chicken.
The huge bottle of Coke was so refreshing! In Japan, it’s usually served one glass at a time, and with lots of ice. Drinking it in Korea felt so good!
We only ordered two flavors of fried chicken: one with cheese powder, and the other was Yangnyeom (the menu said seasoned).
Personally, I don’t think the seasoned one is necessary. The seasoning is rather ordinary, only sweet and not spicy.
The first piece was delicious, but it got cloying afterward.
The cheese powder one was really delicious!! It was fully coated, and every bite was crispy. I couldn’t stop eating it.
🛍️ Fourth Stop: Lotte Department Store
Before shopping, you can pick up coupons at the Visitor Center on B1 of the main building. These aren’t all discount coupons; some also come with small gifts after purchase.
We spent almost an hour wandering around looking for this duty-free counter! Because we were inside Aquahall, there weren’t clear signs indicating which building was which (or maybe we were just blind), and all the buildings were connected, so it was easy to accidentally go to the wrong one.
We saw a sign pointing to the back of the wine counter on B1 of the main building, but it turned out to be Aquahall’s Wine Week, so there were many places selling wine. We spent so much time looking there, and it was incredibly stupid of us. I completely exhausted my energy looking for this counter.
However, we did buy quite a few souvenirs, including Kodak clothing, and must-visit items from Korea like SPAO and Wacky Willy, which somewhat consoled us, haha.
Afterwards, we went to a Baskin-Robbins in Korea and asked the staff what flavors were exclusive to Korea. It turned out that almost all of them were different from the Japanese ones; the Busan flavors were mostly fruit-based.
In the end, we ordered a purple sweet potato rice cake flavor and a green tea mochi, which are worth trying.
On the second day, we only bought a few things.
At Olive Young, we bought a bottle of Taylor’s Deep Water, which is supposed to help with constipation.
However, it causes stomach pain, the kind of pain that wakes you up in the middle of the night—it’s uncomfortable.
And it feels more like a laxative , like you’re getting diarrhea (you know what I mean).
🥩 Dinner: MICHIN MAKCHANG (Naver Maps)
It’s about 2 kilometers from Lotte Mall, seriously awful 😂😂😂.
We chose this place because of online recommendations. Since it’s quite far, they offer free instant noodles and bingsu (shaved ice).
We ordered half diaphragm and half grilled beef intestines. The portions were huge overall.
The meat was springy and crispy, and the side dishes were refreshing when eaten raw or cooked.
Towards the end, we saved 5-6 pieces for fried rice with the crispy rice crust—I don’t believe it could be bad!
The whole restaurant was full of locals; we were the only foreigners, we needed a translation app to communicate.
Personally, I don’t think it’s a must-go. I believe there aren’t many bad grilled beef intestine restaurants in Korea.
So just check nearby restaurants with high ratings and go there!
📅 Day 3: Haeundae + Shopping Spree Day
🍜 Breakfast: Noodles
We originally planned to get up at 9 am and leisurely head to Haeundae, but we naturally woke up at 7 am.
So we found a noodle shop, one of the few that was open as early as 7 or 8 am. They mainly sell knife-cut noodles.
The price was very cheap, 3,500 won (about 10 MYR) a bowl. I believe you can hardly find a bowl of noodles for that price in Malaysia now.
The portion was very large. I personally prefer the jajangmyeon (black bean noodles) to the soup noodles. The noodles were very chewy and springy, and the flavor wasn’t too salty. The spicy stir-fried pork was also good, but on the sweeter side.
The overall environment was nice, with many elderly people in the shop.
☕ Dairt Coffee (Naver Maps): Sea View and Kaymak
After breakfast, we headed to Haeundae Beach.
Before taking the capsule train, we went to Dairt Coffee.
The Kaymak is a must-try! The bread itself is fragrant, but paired with honey and slightly solidified buffalo milk, the texture and flavor are elevated and transformed.
I personally didn’t like the tiramisu; there was too much cream and the alcohol flavor wasn’t strong enough.
The view from the second-floor window was beautiful, but the sun was also very strong, and there was no ventilation.
It got hotter and hotter the longer we sat, and I felt like I had heatstroke, so we quickly finished our food and left, hahaha.
🚂 Capsule Train
We booked the Cheongsapo to Mipo direction, so we went directly to the furthest point and walked back.
We prefer a sunny day to a sunset, so we booked the 11:30 AM train.
Tickets were booked on Klook Travel, one capsule for 2, total cost 103.71 MYR.
Tips: Many people arrive earlier than their booked time, there are long queues at the entrance.
If you arrive at your booked time, don’t queue! Just walk to the front (marked “Check-in”) and show your ticket to the staff to enter.
They will scan your ticket and take your photo before boarding, 10,000 won per photo.
Many online reviews recommend taking the Mipo to Cheongsapo direction,
but the journey is quite long and there are no obstructions, so I think it’s not that much different.
🦀 Haeundae Market: My First Experience with Grilled Eel
We walked from Mipo to Haeundae Market, following the waterfront. Haeundae Market has more seafood restaurants than snack stalls.
We randomly chose a shop with lots of human faces on it, haha.
We ordered soy-marinated crab and salt-grilled eel.
I don’t think the soy-marinated crab is necessary. Although it wasn’t fishy, it also lacked the natural flavor of crab. It’s better to eat it at a shop specializing in soy-marinated crab.
The grilled eel is a must-order!! I actually don’t like the typical Japanese grilled eel; it’s soft and the sauce is too sweet.
But since we were there, we had to try it. Surprisingly, the meat was firm and bouncy, with no fishy taste, and paired with sesame leaves, it was a perfect match! The texture was completely different from what I usually eat, definitely worth a try!
🛍️ Shinseagae Department Store
In Busan, I found Shinseagae to be a better shopping destination than Lotte.
It has many trendy brands popular with young people, not just designer brands.
You can get a free membership card at the visitor center on the 3rd floor, which offers up to 5% discounts five times a month.
However, not every store participates in this promotion, so it’s best to inquire beforehand or scan the QR code provided at the counter.
I bought a The North Face White Label windbreaker.
Since in Japan only goes up to XL, I asked the staff what their largest size was.
They said 2XL! I asked if it would fit me.
They scanned me from head to toe, then gave me a very confident reply: “No problem!”
I randomly pointed to one, and they brought me a 2XL from the warehouse.
As soon as I put it on, I wanted to buy it immediately, I can’t believe I can get plus-size clothes in person without ordering online! It’s so awesome!
Normally, you have to order plus-size clothes online, those who know, know.
In Shinsegae Department Store, there’s a store called SHINSEGAE FACTORY STORE that sells a lot of out-of-season designer clothes.
You can try your luck at finding bargains.
Some items have the discounted price clearly displayed, others don’t. There’s a machine in the store where you can scan the code on the label to see the discounted price. The video is just a demonstration.
After shopping, we went back to the hotel. After dropping off our purchases, we immediately headed to Lotte Mart.
🚌 A small blessing about transfers: In Korea, there are no extra charges for transfers within half an hour on public transportation.
But I don’t know if this applies to all transfers, so far, none of my transfers have been charged extra. That’s really great.
🎒 Luggage Essentials Recommendation | Free Your Hands
A week before my trip, I bought two travel bags on Amazon.
Although we didn’t buy much for this trip, this foldable travel bag was definitely the most worthwhile item I brought.
From the first day to the last, we left empty-handed and returned fully loaded to the hotel, all thanks to it.
Its shoulder straps aren’t thin, so it doesn’t strain my shoulders at all.
The double zipper design gives me peace of mind, and I can even lock it if necessary.
I basically didn’t use the bags provided by the stores; I just put all my purchases in.
I don’t like carrying a lot of things in my hands, so this kind of bag that can be carried on the shoulder or by hand is really friendly for long walks.
The length of the shoulder strap is just right; it doesn’t dig under my armpits.
When folded, it’s about the size of a 500ml water bottle, which is a bit large for a foldable bag.
But, I love its thick fabric, its structured shape when full, and its ability to stand upright, this minor drawback is completely acceptable.
It can be attached to the luggage handle, so you don’t have to carry it by hand all the time—super effortless!
If you’re looking for a lightweight, durable, comfortable shoulder bag that can stand firmly on your luggage,
I highly recommend bringing one with you.
TRIWONDER Boston Bag（Amazon Japan）
Dinner: THE MANJOCK (Naver Maps)
For dinner, we went to a pig’s trotter specialty shop near the restaurant. The environment was very clean and tidy ✨.
Guess what the bean sprout soup in the photo tastes like?
I really didn’t expect it at all—it’s salty, that’s true, but the soup is ice cold!!!
Not room temperature, but the kind with ice cubes, ice-cold to the core! I was genuinely shocked, hahaha.
Bean sprouts are good for cutting through greasiness, but that ice-cold soup was really hard for me to handle.
And after drinking it, I suddenly remembered the kimchi soup that came with the grilled beef intestines we had the day before was also ice cold! I really can’t handle it 🤣
However, the pig’s trotters were completely unaffected, tender and flavorful. We ordered the boneless ones, and we couldn’t stop eating them.
Plus, there was a hot water bag at the bottom to keep the trotters warm, a thoughtful little detail that definitely added points ❤
They also had dry cold noodles, which were very delicious, very flavorful but not greasy, even better than the soup cold noodles 👍
📅 Day 4: Return Trip and Summary
🚎 Airport Bus Horror Story
We took the airport bus. You can use your card tap to board directly; no separate ticket is needed.
It runs once an hour, so plan your time accordingly.
Note: If you’re departing from the airport, you need to buy a ticket in advance at the counter.
For travel from the city center to the airport, either T-money or card are acceptable.
However, Busan drivers are incredibly reckless! If I were a judge, I would sentence them to prison!!!hahaha
They would slam on the brakes even when there were no cars in front of them; they would weave in an S-shape even when there were no cars blocking their way.
I don’t understand; maybe the drivers have driven too many mountain roads.
Also, I don’t understand the Korean tax refund system.
In just a few days, we encountered at least three different refund method
- Immediate tax refund for purchases over 15,000 won
- Cash refund at the airport with the tax refund form
- Credit card payment, with immediate cash refund. However, they charged an even higher deposit than the tax (deducted from my card).They said the deposit would be automatically refunded after check-in at the airport. But I haven’t received it yet, and I haven’t found any refund record.
Finally, before boarding the plane, we ate a piping hot beef bone soup to end the trip.
The beef bone soup not only filled me up but also soothed my motion sickness and nausea—a lifesaver! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
These matcha waffle cookies were such a delightful surprise!
I first saw them at Shinsegae Department Store and wanted to buy them, but I thought I’d get a membership card first and buy them later.
But then I got so caught up in buying other things that I completely forgot about them… I was so regretful! 😭
Then I found them again at Gimhae Airport! They were a lifesaver! Haha~
If you happen to be passing by, don’t miss them! They have a crunchy clam-like texture, just like a cookie.
They’re probably not available in Japan yet, but if you want to try them, you can check them out on Qoo10~
I’ve put the link here, you can check it out if you’re interested:
OSULLOC Matcha Waffle Cookies
✨ Summary and Rating
I give this Busan trip 4.8/5.
Deductions:
Partly because the bus driver on the last day made me motion sickness and nausea.
Another part is that Seomyeon district is really dirty. People of all ages and genders spit everywhere, and you can see someone urinating in every corner.
When it’s windy, you can even smell a strong odor of urine, especially around Seomyeon Station where the ground is sticky.
Aside from these two points, the overall experience was good; the people were both irritable and friendly (both).
This trip cost approximately 3500 MYR, including flights, transportation, accommodation, and shopping. I didn’t particularly skimp on expenses; I bought everything I wanted.
I topped up my T-money with 30,000 KRW, leaving me with 6700 KRW.
We only used cash for the seed hotteok at Biff Plaza; everything else was paid for with Wise and Revolut.
Using cards is very convenient; all records are saved.
It’s so convenient that even some small vendors accept cards, which I really love!
If you haven’t registered for Wise yet, you can get a free Wise card by registering with my invitation link!
For Revolut, you need to pay for a physical card and complete tasks to receive a cashback.
Other:
✈JinAir: Round trip from Tokyo Narita to Busan, 30,890 JPY per person (approx. 867 MYR).
Includes 15KG of luggage and 10KG of carry-on luggage.
Accommodation: 4 days 3 nights at Urbanstay Seomyeon, 10,196 JPY per person (approx. 286 MYR).
We stayed in the “head-to-head room” shown in their photos on their website, which was very cheap.
The room wasn’t large, but not so large that we’d fight over it; it was fine for two people.
Overall, the environment was clean, the room was average, but the location was really great.
ESIM: Using Klook Travel’s own 4-day unlimited data plan, costing 1,132 JPY (approx. 32 MYR).
You can use it directly by scanning the QR code they sent. The operation is simple; just follow the steps.
If you don’t have a Klook Travel account yet, enter my invitation code [8WPAQ] to receive a coupon!
Translator: Papago, much more accurate than Google Translate. Its product photo translation accuracy is also very high.
Maps + Restaurant Reservations: All reservations can be made directly through Naver Maps.
Tmoney Top-up Instructions
I used Tmoney through Apple Pay this time and topped up 30,000 Korean Won.
Note: Each top-up requires opening Tmoney, then [Card Details → Scroll down to open Turn On Service Mode → Insert into the machine to top up with cash].
Cash top-ups are only possible at the machine. For mobile top-ups, it seems a Korean bank card is required.
We’ll be back in 2027! See you next time!
2025/11/4 – 2025/11/7
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