Smooth currency exchange in Incheon
林夏那子
a year ago
I'm a college girl who goes to Korea once every two months🇰🇷
Usually, when traveling to Korea, I exchange yen for won in Myeongdong, where the rate is good, but this time I realized I wouldn't have time for that, and I was troubled by the poor rates when exchanging in Japan or at the airport. In such a situation, creatrip's exchange service acts on your behalf with only a pre-reservation fee (which is refunded later). As for the crucial exchange rate, it was better than at the exchange office in Osaka, and it was very useful. 😊 Although the plane arrived early, they came promptly. I was able to contact the staff through LINE, which made me feel secure, so if you can arrive early, I think it's smooth to contact them via LINE. Additionally, if you exchange more than 50,000 yen, you get a Tmoney card, which is beneficial! In Korea, cash is essential for loading money onto the Tmoney card, and you can't ride the bus without a balance on your Tmoney card. Furthermore, if you receive beauty treatments in Korea, especially at salons rather than clinics, many places offer benefits like 10% off if you pay in cash! Also, in local places like the underground shops at Gangnam Station, it's basically cash-only, so this service that allows you to exchange money advantageously is really recommended 🥰
(The attached photo is a picture of the meeting place for currency exchange at creartrip.)
↑Art Makeup Salon Location
With this cash, I headed to an art makeup salon in Incheon by bus. Here, I got scalp art makeup, Smp. It was 500,000 won for three sessions, which is truly a bargain! I researched various salons in advance, contacted them, and finally made a reservation at this salon. I am very satisfied with the results! In any case, when leaving Incheon, I recommend loading extra cash onto your Tmoney card at Incheon Airport. I've been in trouble before when I couldn't take the bus due to insufficient balance. 😢 You can charge it at the airport, stations, or convenience stores.
After finishing my art makeup session at the salon, I headed to the area near Seoul Forest, a place I've always wanted to visit, by taking a bus and train. Seoul Forest is close to the popular spot Seongsu. There, I enjoyed shopping♪ I bought sunglasses at the trendy sunglasses shop, Blue Elephant, which is as popular as Gentle Monster, and also got pajamas at a specialty pajama store! The sunglasses at Blue Elephant are less than 5000 yen each, and they offer a wide range of styles from bold to easy-to-wear, making them very accessible! The pajama store was full of Japanese people, but they had cute designs for around 3000 yen😍 If I were traveling with friends, I'd probably have tea at a cafe, but... since I'm almost always alone, I completely ignore trendy Korean cafe information!!!😢
↑Blue Elephant's Shop
↑Cute Pajama Store
After finishing shopping, the next step is beauty treatments! This time, I visited the famous Plan S Clinic known for its lip injections. There were many Japanese people at Plan S Clinic! The last time I went to the Praden Clinic, there were also many Japanese people. Anyway, it's reassuring because Japanese is understood!! At Plan S Clinic, I had the titanium lift, lip injections, Botox, prescription diet medicine, aftercare for the titanium lift, and arm lip injections at double strength. The total was a little over 100,000 yen... but it's a good deal! I hope my face becomes smaller 🥺 I hope the fat under my chin disappears 🥺 During my previous visit to Korea, I had a titanium lift only under the chin at a place called U-Line Clinic for about 88,000 yen!! I'm not sure about the results, but I'm satisfied for now! ← This is the most important!!!!!!
↑Plan S Clinic, just steps from Konan Station Exit 10!
After that, we headed to Toyoko Inn Gangnam... but before that!! We went to Olive Young, which is open late at night! However, since this is a budget trip, we took a flight with no checked luggage, so lotions and liquids are a no-go🙅♀️. Therefore, we bought lots of face masks, food, and supplements! With this, it feels like being in Korea even while in Japan! Afterward, we strolled around, buying shoes at the Gangnam Station underground and checking out YOMATO, famous for cheap clothes, before finally heading to the hotel... Exhausted! And very hungry.
Huh? Wondering about meals?? For those of you thinking that, I bring meals from Japan to save on travel expenses. (Haha) It's baked sweet potatoes, mandarins, and bananas. I pack these in my backpack and eat them on station platforms when I get hungry during travel. Money disappears into beauty expenses 💸 It's all about saving. This is the best effort of a struggling college student, it's reality. The areas to cut costs are food, transportation, and accommodation! Taking a taxi for transportation is out of the question 😤 Transportation is by walking, bus, or subway!!!
↑This drink is intense. It will make your stomach rumble.
I recommend the Japanese hotel chain, Toyoko Inn! They speak Japanese and offer breakfast! Most hotels near Gangnam cost about 10,000 yen, so around 9,000 yen per night is reasonable. I've had scary experiences with cheap and strange hotels, so if it's at the level of Toyoko Inn, there's no problem. I really wanted to stay in a room for six people to save on accommodation costs, but my parents stopped me.
After a good night's sleep and recharging, the next day I had a small breakfast and headed towards Incheon by bus and train for an art makeup touch-up! It was completed in about an hour, and I arrived at Incheon Airport with plenty of time before my flight. In the past, I had an experience at Incheon Airport where the gate was far, and I didn't have time for a tax refund, so I ran through Incheon Airport until my lungs were about to burst, so now I make sure to arrive 3 hours early 🫡 Incheon Airport is wider than I thought, and even though it says Terminal 1, sometimes you have to take a train between Terminal 1 and 2, so be prepared for that. Well, this time I had too much time! I stopped by Olive Young at Incheon Airport, had some ice cream 🍨 (← I recommend the liquid nitrogen ice cream shop on the 4th floor of Terminal 1!), reported out of boredom, and finally boarded the flight! However! Despite arriving so early, the plane was delayed by 2 hours. Exhausted and headed home 😢
Overall, I was able to do everything I wanted on this trip! I was satisfied!!! As soon as I got back, I was already thinking about what to do next, because Korea is such an attractive country 🇰🇷. I still don't understand Korean, but with the NAVER app, NAVER Map, and translation app, I can manage! I think it would be more convenient and fun if I could talk to locals like salon staff or bus drivers, but for now, I'm busy with my university studies. I'll work hard at studying and my part-time job, and plan to visit Korea again! I need to save money! Isn't it amazing that you can travel abroad in about 2 hours for less than 30,000 yen round trip!? You can go with just a backpack, and the food is cheap and delicious. (I don’t eat because I have no money) Many Koreans around are beautiful, and it's inspiring. If you go with friends, there’s so much to do like eating, going to cafes, shopping, wearing hanbok and taking pictures, taking purikura, having a caricature drawn, getting beauty treatments cheaply, shopping all night at Dongdaemun, going to casinos, going to clubs…?? There are countless things to do!! Everyone, please try visiting Korea! You might get hooked once you visit!?!?!?
That's it, a solo trip to the limit by a Korean-loving college girl!
