Jeju Island 2-Day 1-Night Detailed Guide: Weekend Special Forces Trip

Jeju Island has recently gained popularity again due to the Korean drama "Meet You After Sweet and Bitter," so I embarked on a weekend special forces trip—flying straight to Jeju after work on Friday and returning home in the early hours of Monday. Though exhausting, it was super fun! 🥳 💥Preparation: 1⃣️Ningbo ✈️ Jeju Island 💰1200 2⃣️Cash: Our group of four exchanged 400,000 KRW at the bank, equivalent to RMB 2,100+, and had 50,000 KRW left. It's better to withdraw more cash, as we found it to be the most cost-effective option. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China offers the best exchange rate. 2⃣️Data SIM Card: We bought both data and phone SIM cards. The data SIM was the most convenient, as it could be activated immediately upon arrival. The phone SIM had activation time restrictions, which was inconvenient. 3⃣️Private Car Rental: After finalizing our itinerary, we booked a private car for a day (9 hours) for 820 RMB on an online platform. 4⃣️Hotel 🏨: We stayed at the Bolton Hotel. Though the rooms were small, they were very clean as the hotel had recently opened. It's right across from the duty-free shop, making shopping and exploring very convenient. 💥Day 1⃣️ Private Car Tour: Udo Island - Sunrise Peak - Woljeongri Beach - Hamdeok Beach Due to time constraints, we chose the eastern route of Jeju Island. The wind on Udo Island was incredibly strong, but the scenery was breathtaking. The ferry ticket cost 10,000 KRW per person. After arriving, we rented electric bikes for a round-island ride, also 10,000 KRW per person. Sunrise Peak offered the most stunning views—a perfect spot for photos ⛰️. You can hike up the mountain and choose the free route. The Moumoon Café in Woljeongri was beautiful and very popular ☕️. Only cash was accepted there. At Hamdeok Beach 🌊, we mainly took photos and enjoyed the sunset, marking the end of our first day. 💥Day 2⃣️ The second day was dedicated to shopping. Both Shilla and Lotte Duty-Free shops were within walking distance. Before going, we found a Korean cashback service, which made shopping with a gold card super cost-effective! The staff at the duty-free shops all spoke Chinese, so communication was easy. Note: Don’t take photos of the messy areas outside the duty-free shops ‼️ In the afternoon, we visited Chilseong Street, which had some local Korean brands and popular stores. Some shops offered instant tax refunds, which was very convenient. Most staff could communicate in Chinese. For souvenirs, we bought some bagel chips and gummies. I particularly liked the Loopy gummies! We also tried the famous local tangerines 🍊. 💥Local Restaurant Recommendations: Grandma’s Noodles: The noodles were actually mixed by a grandma. Gang Dae Gam: The local black pork in Jeju was delicious, but the beef offal wasn’t to our taste. Fried Chicken: Instead of the chain BHC, we chose a local fried chicken shop filled with Korean uncles, which must be the authentic local flavor. It’s right across from BHC on Chilseong Street. Excluding shopping, the trip cost about 3,000 RMB per person. Communication was almost seamless, and most restaurants had Chinese menus. When in doubt, we used translation apps.