If you are not limited in time and health, you can take advantage of going to Japan and Korea in one trip, but if you only have a few days, this is not a good choice.
Many tour companies offer attractive programs, inviting tourists to explore both Japan and South Korea in one trip, helping to save money, with the reason that these are two neighboring countries and both are attractive destinations in Northeast Asia.
However, it would be a mistake to choose both in a short trip, because it would be very tiring and there would be no time to comfortably experience what these two countries can offer. In addition, you also need to consider the following:
Visas for both countries are required.
Visas to Japan and Korea are not too difficult to apply for, but the waiting time is often long. The procedures are sometimes a bit complicated if you do not have much experience applying for visas or your passport does not have many entry and exit stamps.
To visit two countries in one trip, you will have to prepare two visa applications and submit them to each place, and if one of the two countries refuses, your original plan will not be possible.
The ancient Todai Temple, a place many Vietnamese tourists visit. Photo: Trinh Hang
Have to travel long distances
To travel to both Japan and Korea, you will have to take at least three flights: Vietnam - Korea, Korea - Japan, Japan - Vietnam. Each flight is only a few hours, but adding the time to get to the airport, check in at the airport, wait for take-off and landing, and get your luggage, the total time will be about 24 hours. Not to mention, if you travel through many provinces in each country, you will also spend many hours on domestic flights or trains and inter-provincial buses, easily losing strength and patience due to sitting on trains and vehicles for too long.
This is quite different from the cross-country itineraries in Southeast Asia or Europe. In Southeast Asia, you can easily take a trip from Singapore to Malaysia because the two countries are both located on the Malay Peninsula and share a common land border. Tourists can quickly travel between the capitals of the two countries in just a few hours by car. You do not need to apply for a visa because both countries have a visa exemption policy for short-term Vietnamese tourists.
Or if you go to Europe, you can also visit several countries in one trip because many countries are small in area, have adjacent borders, and have very developed public transportation, taking very little time and cost to travel from one country to another. Just apply for a Schengen visa, you are allowed to travel to more than 20 member countries without any other procedures.
Need to exchange two currencies
In each country, you will have to spend a different currency with different exchange rates (Japanese Yen and Korean Won). If you use a payment card, you may be confused by the two exchange rates when spending money, and if you use cash, you will have a bit of trouble carrying two stacks of bills. In fact, tourists often have to carry a certain amount of money because in many cases, it is not possible to pay by card, for example, to buy bus tickets, buy small items or buy street food.
This does not happen if you travel to several European countries in one trip, because then you only need to carry one currency, the euro.
South Korea's tourism development is largely based on its entertainment industry. Photo: Trinh Hang
Get acquainted with two different cuisines
If you are a fan of Japanese and Korean cuisine, eating on a cross-country trip will be simpler. However, if you are only familiar with Vietnamese food, it will not be easy for you to adapt to the dishes of these two countries in just a few days. Difficulty in eating is also the reason why tourists easily get tired and lose joy on a long trip.
Korean food has many spicy, hot, sour, and salty dishes; Japanese food has many raw dishes; the common characteristic is that they have less green vegetables and less fruit than Vietnamese cuisine. Therefore, many tourists do not feel comfortable eating a meal that is completely different from their usual meals at home.
It is difficult to experience both cultures deeply.
Although Japan and Korea are neighboring countries, they are quite different in terms of history, culture, architecture, and landscape. Each country has its own unique features and requires a lot of time to experience and explore. In a short trip, you will not have enough energy to see each place carefully. It is a pity to visit too few places, but if you visit too many places, you can only take photos, check in, and then get on the bus to continue. This will be a bit of a waste, because when you spend more time experiencing, you will feel how interesting these two cultures are. Some tourists who have been to Japan even return 4-5 times to "see it all". Similarly, many tourists who have been to Korea want to go a few more times.
So, if you have a long trip, you can visit these two countries at once, but if you only have a few days, spend it all on one country that you like.
Trinh Hang
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