Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Jeju World Heritage Festival to open restricted UNESCO sites to public

Kim Sang-soo, chief of the walking trail program for the 2021 Jeju World Heritage Festival, stands under the Lava Bridge, or Yongamgyo in Korean, during a press tour held to promote the festival on Jeju Island, July 8. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukBy Park Ji-wonJEJU ISLAND ― In 2007, an area consisting of three sites ― Geomunoreum Lava Tube System, Mount Halla and Seongsan Ilchulbong Tuff Cone, accounting for about 10 percent in the island ― was designated as a UNESCO Natural Heritage site known collectively as “Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes.” It was the first natural heritage site in Korea, while the country has 13 cultural heritage designations.The sites have been protected by the Cultural Heritage Administration since the UNESCO designation, barring all unauthorized entry.However, the restricted areas are set to be unveiled to the public from Oct. 1 to 17 as part of the World Heritage Festival, the administration's annual collaborative event started last year to promote UNESCO-designated cultural heritage and natural heritage sites in Korea which will be held

Jul 14, 2021By Park Ji-won

Jeju World Heritage Festival to open restricted UNESCO sites to public

Airlines to resume flights to Saipan this month

gettyimagesbankSouth Korean airlines will resume flights to Saipan later this month as scheduled despite a recent surge in COVID-19 cases. The Seoul government recently signed a quarantine-free travel bubble agreement with Saipan to allow group tours of fully vaccinated Koreans to such holiday destinations.The government is in talks with Guam and Singapore to sign travel bubble deals in preparation for an increase in outbound travel demand as early as late this year. Among local carriers, Jeju Air Co. resumed flights to Saipan on June 8 in a preemptive measure to absorb post-coronavirus travel demand.Asiana Airlines and T'way Air plan to take off for Saipan from July 24 and July 29, respectively, according to the companies.National flag carrier Korean Air Lines Co. did not operate the route to Saipan. Korean Air and Asiana ― the country's two full-service carriers ― said they are considering reopening routes to Guam, Singapore, Hawaii and Taiwan later this year, while low-cost carriers, like Air Seoul Inc. and Air Busan Co., also said they plan to resume flights to spots such as Guam

Jul 14, 2021

Airlines to resume flights to Saipan this month

7 cycling destinations around the world

Bicycles are parked in front of Allegro Hoi An ― A Little Luxury Hotel & Spa, located in Hoi An, Vietnam. Courtesy of Booking.comBy Jun Ji-hyeBicycle trips give tourists a chance to feel a sense of freedom while pedaling around in cities and among nature. Two-wheeled adventures are also regarded as a relatively safer type of travel amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, as they make less contact with others during the trip. The following destinations have been selected by online travel agency Booking.com, as the cycling destinations most endorsed among Korean travelers.Hoi An, Vietnam Hoi An is a port city located 30 minutes away from Da Nang, one of the hottest travel destinations among Koreans. The well-preserved small city used to be a busy international commercial port from the 16th to 19th centuries, as merchant ships from many different countries, including India, France and China, passed by there. A good way to explore Hoi An is to pedal around slowly, and therefore it is easy to spot bike rental shops around the city. Many hotels also offer free bike rental services.Allegr

Jul 14, 2021By Jun Ji-hye

InterContinental's Wei Lou launches Chinese cold noodles for summer

Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas' Chinese restaurant, Wei Lou, presents a special summer course menu featuring Chinese cold noodles. Courtesy of Grand InterContinental Seoul ParnasBy Jun Ji-hyeWei Lou, a Chinese restaurant located on the 34th floor of Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas, is presenting the special summer course menu featuring Chinese cold noodles until late August.Customers are invited to discover the delicious course menu including the noodles, along with steamed sliced pen shell with Singaporean chili sauce, scallop appetizers, assorted homemade dim sum, deep-fried pork ribs and chef's special dessert.Wei Lou's Chinese cold noodles are packed with seafood such as sea cucumber, shrimps, scallops and jellyfish. A sesame paste is served instead of the usual peanut sauce to be mixed with the noodles so as to deliver their unique flavor.Wei Lou's signature menu, deep-fried pork ribs, is also included in the course. Deep frying pork ribs involves a great deal of time and care. Pork ribs need to be soaked in water for a day to draw out the blood, and then they're marina

Jul 7, 2021

InterContinental's Wei Lou launches Chinese cold noodles for summer

Luxury hotels launch summer-themed afternoon tea sets

JW Marriott Hotel Seoul serves the “Sea Breeze Afternoon Tea Set,” a summer resort-themed selection of homemade desserts and savory dishes, until Aug. 31. Courtesy of JW Marriott Hotel SeoulBy Jun Ji-hyeLuxury hotels here have created a selection of summer-themed afternoon tea sets to offer visitors refreshment amid the hot and humid weather. These afternoon tea sets deliver gastronomic and aesthetic pleasures at once, through a combination of cute desserts designed to evoke a summer resort ambience and savory items offering light meal alternatives.The Lounge, located in the eighth-floor reception lobby at JW Marriott Hotel Seoul, is serving the “Sea Breeze Afternoon Tea Set,” a selection of homemade desserts and savory dishes inspired by a summer resort, until Aug. 31. Nine desserts include berry mousse cake, chocolate baskets and seaside muffin cake, with all desserts coming in different shapes and flavors, conjuring the colorful ambience of a holiday resort. The dessert selection is complemented by nine savory items offering light meal alternatives, includi

Jul 1, 2021

Luxury hotels launch summer-themed afternoon tea sets

Philippines, Modetour collaborate on 'Reboot Philippines' promotion

The Bellevue Resort at Bohol in the Philippines / Courtesy of Philippine Department of Tourism KoreaBy Jun Ji-hyeThe Philippine Department of Tourism Korea (PDOT Korea) is carrying out the “Reboot Philippines ― Korea's Favorite Vacation Spot” promotion until July 28 in collaboration with Modetour Network, Korea's second-largest travel service provider.The promotion is aimed at selling tours to the Philippines at special prices. According to PDOT Korea, the government of the Philippines is actively reviewing the introduction of a “Green Lane” policy, an agreement that eases travel restrictions between countries whose people have completed their vaccinations.This joint promotion will introduce a variety of tours to popular resort destinations such as Cebu, Boracay and Bohol, as well as golf tours to Manila and Clark.The promotion will consist of various types of tours, from packages to independent travel. Departure dates will be after October.During the promotion period, tours to Cebu, Boracay and Bohol are discounted 50 percent on a first-come-first-served basi

Jul 1, 2021

Philippines, Modetour collaborate on 'Reboot Philippines' promotion

Korea signs 'travel bubble' accord with Saipan for vaccinated tourists

South Korea's Vice Transport Minister Hwang Seong-kyu, right, shakes hands with Saipan's governor Ralph Torres after signing a "travel bubble" agreement in Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapSouth Korea signed a "travel bubble" deal with Saipan on Wednesday to exempt fully vaccinated people from mandatory quarantine upon entry into each other's territory.Saipan, a U.S. commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, is the first partner of South Korea's travel bubble initiative announced in early June.The agreement was signed in a ceremony here by Seoul's vice transport minister Hwang Seong-kyu and Saipan's governor Ralph Torres. It is expected to take effect in late July or early August after relevant preparations.Under the agreement, visitors are required to receive full COVID-19 vaccinations, authorized by their health authorities at least two weeks ahead of trips.They also have to carry official certificates of vaccine shots and submit documents showing the negative result of a coronavirus test conducted within 72 hours prior to departure.Only those on group trips arranged by travel agencies

Jun 30, 2021

Korea signs 'travel bubble' accord with Saipan for vaccinated tourists

Korea Gourmet Week to be held in 5 cities in July

Poster for Korea Gourmet Week / Courtesy of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural AffairsBy Park Ji-wonDuring Korea Gourmet Week, 130 Korean restaurants in five cities will offer 30-percent discounts on their food. The event will be held in Seoul and Busan July 1-14, and Daegu, Daejeon and Gwangju July 8-21, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korean Food Promotion Institute. The participating restaurants are all designated as “safe restaurants,” a label given to restaurants that follow certain hygiene precautions, such as installing protection shields between seats.Customers who order signature menu items from the restaurants on the spot or by phone can get the discounts.The event, aiming to support the pandemic-hit restaurant industry, will be held on the sidelines of K-sale, or Korea's “Donghaeng Sale,” a nationwide sale held from June 24 to July 11, for which online marketplaces and offline stores are providing discounts up to 90 percent on various products in order to boost the nation's economy.

Jun 29, 2021By Park Ji-won

Korea Gourmet Week to be held in 5 cities in July

Fear of unsanitary Chinese imports triggers 'eat safe kimchi' campaign in Korea

Kimchi / gettyimagesbankSome kimchi suppliers launch the campaign to certify eateries serving locally-processed kimchiBy Kang Hyun-kyungVideo footage showing a naked man submerged waist deep in a pool filled with cloudy water and cabbages at an unspecified kimchi factory in China caused an uproar among Koreans in March.Disturbed by the video, Korean consumers have started to boycott kimchi produced in China and to look more carefully into how the food they eat has been made before it ends up on dining tables here.Kim Ji-sook, who owns a small eatery selling home-cooked meals to office workers in downtown Seoul, said some of her customers have begun to ask her about the origin of the kimchi she serves in her restaurant.“I don't lie; I tell them our kimchi was produced in China. But after hearing my answer, they don't eat the kimchi,” she told The Korea Times.She said that the video, highlighting unsanitary kimchi production conditions in an unspecified mainland Chinese plant, was a true game changer shaping her customers' consumption of kimchi. Her restaurant has more kimc

Jun 27, 2021By Kang Hyun-kyung

Fear of unsanitary Chinese imports triggers 'eat safe kimchi' campaign in Korea

3 suggestions for relaxing Saipan getaways this summer

Managaha Island that can be reached in 10 minutes by boat from Garapan, the downtown of Saipan, is a small and precious resting place. Courtesy of Marianas Visitors AuthorityBy Jun Ji-hyeWith Saipan being cited as one of the candidates that could potentially sign a “travel bubble” agreement with Korea, domestic air carriers are moving to resume their international flights there. Asiana Airlines will resume operating flights between Incheon and Saipan on July 24, 16 months after they were suspended due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, while T'way Air is ready to operate flights there from July 29. Travel bubbles refers to a partnership between two or more cities or countries that have managed to curtail COVID-19 infections to allow quarantine-free air travel in both directions. Saipan, one of the three inhabited islands in the Marianas that consists of 14 islands, has a population density of about 378 people per square kilometer, which is 43 times lower than the population density of Seoul, which means one person could hypothetically enjoy a space alone up to 43 times l

Jun 24, 2021By Jun Ji-hye

Travel & Food