Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Hotel packages for those who want late summer bliss

The Sheraton Grand Incheon’s summer package is available until Aug. 31. /Courtesy of Sheraon Grand IncheonBy Kim Se-jeongFor those who think they haven’t had enough of summer before it winds down, hotels still have several offers.Citadine Haeundae Busan The Citadine Haeundae Busan rented a section of the famous Haeundae Beach exclusively for its private beach package guests until Aug. 20.At the beach, guests can have beach amenities for free _ parasol, two sun beds, tubes for adults and children, lifejackets, first aid kits and blankets. The private beach stays open until 5:30 p.m. each day.The package also includes a one-night stay in a hotel room, two beach towels, two boxes of sandwiches and two drinks for each person at the beach.The package costs 180,000 won, excluding tax and service fees. The package doesn’t include breakfast but each room has a kitchen where guests can cook. For more information and reservations, call (051) 662-8000/8888.Grand Hyatt Seoul The Grand Hyatt Seoul’s package, good for families with children, is available until Aug

Aug 10, 2017

Hotel packages for those who want late summer bliss

Indonesia beauty pageant winners to visit Korea

Winners of the Puteri Muslimah Indonesia 2017 / Courtesy of Korea Tourism OrganizationBy Jung Min-hoThe winners of an Indonesia beauty pageant will travel around Korea for about a week, the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) said Thursday.The KTO said it has invited three winners of the Puteri Muslimah Indonesia 2017 to Korea as part of an effort to diversify the country’s tourism market beyond China and Japan.According to the KTO, they will look around some of the popular tourist places in Seoul and PyeongChang from Aug. 12 to 17, and their travels will be aired on Indosiar, an Indonesian TV station.The KTO and Indosiar have planned and coordinated the program together over the past six months.“Women in their 20s and 30s are key marketing targets of the program,” a KTO official said. “We hope it will improve the image of Korea as a luxurious tourist destination.”According to the KTO, more than 17.2 million foreigners visited Korea last year. Nearly half of them were Chinese (8 million), followed by Japanese (2.3 million).

Aug 10, 2017

Indonesia beauty pageant winners to visit Korea

List of events Festivals jazz up hot summer vacation

By Chyung Eun-ju, Park Si-sooAugust is the month for unforgettable summer nights and summer festivals are in full swing all over Korea to cater to beachgoers.Second day of "Busan Beach Festival" in Haeundae Beach on Wednesday. / Korea Times photo by Chun Hae-wonBusan Beach Festival (Thur-Sun)The “Busan Beach Festival” is already under way and will continue until Sunday. Events include “Rock Day,” a star-studded concert featuring K-pop stars such as Coyote, DJ Koo and Daybreak on Haeundae Beach Thursday.Gwangalli Beach will have a dance festival from Friday to Sunday. It will include a music competition featuring foreign DJs and teenage bands, and the “2017 Night Race in Busan,” a run from Gwangalli Beach to Bexco on Saturday night.Opening night "Busan Beach Festival" in Haeundae Beach on Tuesday. / Photo by YonhapKorea Pop Festival (Fri-Wed)The glamorous “Korea Pop Festival” has a star-studded lineup and will be held at Cheongpodae Beach, Taean, from Friday to August 9.Sea the World Festival (Aug. 27-30)The marine sports festi

Aug 3, 2017

Festivals jazz up hot summer vacation [List of events]

Hong Kong: A city of coexistence

People sit at an outdoor restaurant in the Old Town Central in Hong Kong. / Courtesy of Hong Kong Tourism BoardOld town beneath skyscrapers keeps traditions aliveBy Park Jae-hyukHONG KONG ─ Born to a British father and a mother from Hong Kong, my tour guide Stephen Cheung must have been one of the most suitable men to represent the Old Town Central district in this Asian city.The 27-year-old introduced the district as “a place in which East and West, tradition and modernity and Hong Kong and mainland China coexist.”Crisscrossing a labyrinth of one-way roads and thousands of stairs on a steep hill, he showed me the true face of Hong Kong hidden underneath skyscrapers lining up along the coast.The former Police Married Quarters which is now used as a venue for artists and designers / Courtesy of Hong Kong Tourism BoardReminders of colonial periodThe former Central Police Station  / Courtesy of Hong Kong Tourism BoardMost first-time visitors to Old Town Central may be astonished by the busy streets full of high-quality street art, antique galleries and fancy restaurants

Aug 3, 2017By Park Jae-hyuk

Caribbean Bay holds summer festival

A DJ spins music for dancers at Caribbean Bay’s Mega Wave Festival in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, in this file photo. / Courtesy of Samsung C&TBy Park Jae-hyukCaribbean Bay’s signature summer event, Mega Wave Festival, has begun and will take place until Aug. 20.Visitors can enjoy pool with waves of up 2.4 meters, while listening to music played by DJs on a special outdoor stage at the nation’s first water park, next to the Everland theme park in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province.Until this weekend, such famous club DJs as Queenzell, Allzwell and Primate will play music beside dancers on the stage.The champions of the Flyboard World Cup will also perform hydroflying in the wave pool three times a day every weekend. Visitors will be amazed at the acrobatics of the performers who will be decorated with LED lights at night.In addition to Mega Wave Festival, Caribbean Bay is hosting its first barbecue and beer party, running until Aug. 15. The poolside party will offer a menu of six barbeque options and ice-cold beer.Various barbecue options, including pork rib skewers, smok

Aug 3, 2017By Park Jae-hyuk

List of events Festivals jazz up hot summer vacation

N. Korea defector-turned-entrepreneur seeks tofu rice globalization

Dewbab’s tofu rice set menu, comprised of tofu rice, “dongchimi” juice and sauce. / Courtesy of DewbabBy Choi Ha-youngKang Min, 31, was one of the “kkotjebi,” or homeless children in North Korea. As a starving child, he used to steal other people’s tofu rice while roaming the streets, but now he operates a tofu rice restaurant in Goseong, Gangwon Province, in South Korea after defection.Along with the restaurant, he launched a food brand “Dewbab,” a compound word combining “dubu” meaning tofu in Korean and “bap,” rice. Like a hamburger set menu composed of a burger with ketchup and soda, the restaurant offers a set menu ― a tofu rice ball instead of a burger, “dongchimi” (watery radish kimchi) juice in place of soda, and spicy sauce for the rice instead of ketchup.“South Koreans are so accustomed to artificial tastes which lead to many diseases. I invented the fusion food to make something healthy,” Kang told The Korea Times. He launched the restaurant June 23 in the border area betwe

Aug 2, 2017

N. Korea defector-turned-entrepreneur seeks tofu rice globalization

Airport offers storage and courier services for prohibited items

By You Soo-sunThose traveling outside of Korea are now able to keep their goods they are prohibited from carrying on the airplane. The Incheon International Airport launched a new storage and courier service Tuesday for items prohibited on the aircraft, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs.Travelers no longer have to discard the prohibited goods detected at the security checkpoint, a common source of disputes between airport employees and travelers that has caused significant delays in security checks.There were over 2 million prohibited items detected in 2014 and 2015 each. The number further rose to over 3 million last year. On an average day, 120 people had goods that were confiscated and then discarded or donated elsewhere. “Most passengers abandoned their personal goods due to the costly and timely procedures of the previous service,” a ministry official said. “About 130,000 passengers are expected to use the storage and delivery service a month, which will reduce the passengers’ discomfort and enhance the quality of secu

Aug 1, 2017

'Subway tour guide' published in four languages

 / Courtesy of Korea Tourism OrganizationBy Jung Min-hoA “Subway tour guide,” which provides information about interesting places near some subway stations in Korea, has been published in four languages ― English, Japanese and traditional and simplified Chinese, the Korea Tourism Organization said Tuesday. / Courtesy of Korea Tourism OrganizationAccording to the KTO, the guidebook focuses mainly on popular attractions that tourists can reach in 10 minutes by foot from each station. It includes information such as history of the attractions, which exit to take and other spots they might want to visit in the neighborhood.The KTO said the guidebook is to help foreign visitors who use the subway as their primary means of transportation during their trip.The guidebook also has maps as well as information on how to better use the country’s metro system.Those interested in the guidebook should search “Korea Travel Books” on either the Google Play store or Apple store.A KTO official said the guidebook will help tourists make the best use of the subway,

Aug 1, 2017

'Subway tour guide' published in four languages

Britain gets a taste for Korean food

/ Korea Times file By Jacob LotingaNottingham, The United Kingdom ― Korean food is gaining recognition in British cities outside London and the southeast, thanks to expatriates who have opened restaurants in the past five years.South Koreans from cities including Seoul and Pyeongtaek have established flourishing businesses in the U.K., serving much-loved Korean dishes to local people, tourists and Asian university students.Jang Ho-sung, from Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, opened an Asian supermarket called Fresh Asia in Beeston, Nottinghamshire, supplying imported food that Chinese and Korean students at nearby Nottingham University would otherwise have struggled to find. Building on this success, Jang now helps his wife run Korea House, a restaurant that opened in November 2015 in an area that has many Chinese eateries.Jang said Korean food had increased in popularity within “the last couple of years,” gaining prominence not only in London but in Birmingham, Sheffield, Manchester, and Edinburgh, Scotland’s capital.He said more than 80 percent of customers at K

Jul 31, 2017

Ananti Cove sets new leisure trend

An aerial view of Ananti Penthouse in Gijang County, near Busan / Courtesy of Emerson PacificPremium oceanfront resort woos city residents longing for rest in nature By Lee Hyo-sikBUSAN — Ananti Cove, a premium oceanfront resort complex near Busan, became an instant sensation upon its July 1 opening. Many holiday goers from across the country have been flocking to this luxury resort and hotel compound to see what it can offer and how different it is from conventional lodging facilities.The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, according to Tak Ji-young, a communications manager at Emerson Pacific Group, which operates the 75,837 square-meter site in Gijang County, on the outskirts of Korea’s largest port city. The KOSDAQ-listed company is widely known for its Ananti chain of resorts and golf courses.“Since the opening, we have had many more visitors than previously expected,” Tak said. “People take photos of our facilities and splendid views of the sea, and upload them on blogs and social media platforms. Many more are inspired by these posting

Jul 27, 2017

Travel & Food