NLT-141010-YK50487 [Oct 29, 2014,  from America]
We (I am American Caucasian and my wife, Shiony is Filipina) stayed in the Sunbee Hotel for four nights, which was centerally located to lots of shopping and eating places. It was a five star "in our book". I enjoyed all of the Korean food and especially their Soju wine. The Novaland Tour guides were very knowledgable and explained every stop we made with great detail. The planned program was also excellent and tailored to our desires. I wanted to see the DMZ area and found it to be the highlight of our stay for me. Korea is very modern and very clean. We felt safe as the Koreans were very friendly and extremely helpful when we got lost. But that is how you see new places and meet different people. In all, we were very pleased as this was our first time in Asian countries. Bob E, from California, USA
NLT-140812-YK36004 [Sep 2, 2014,  from Australia]
Hi Joanna,rnrnWe just got back to Melbourne on the last weekend. We stayed for another 8 days in Seoul exploring the place on our own after the tour completed before we headed back home.rnrnThe itinerary was very well planned as it allowed us to visit different places from the historic sites to cultural sites, from mountains to beaches ... We enjoyed everyday of the tour and very satisfied with your service before and during our trip. You were very accommodated, promptly responded to our emails and always tried to meet our expectations.rnrnMy husband and I had a great time and we were very happy with the services which were provided by you and the tour guides, especially by Mrs Kim Hyun Sook (in Busan) and Mr Lee Soobok (in Seoul). As we enjoyed learning Korean history and culture, Mrs Kim changed the itinerary for the 2nd day in Busan slightly to allow us going to the cultural museum so we could wear the traditional costumes. After visited the Jagalchi fish market, Mrs Kim took us to a restaurant and ordered the food for us (as we could not speak Korean) before she went home. On the last day in Seoul, before dropping us off at the hotel, Mr Lee drove us to Gangnam to give us a quick site seeing about this wealthy & famous area in Korea. Both of them were very flexible, punctual. friendly, patience and provided exceptional services. rnrnThe transfers were very smooth and the staff very punctual, polite, friendly and professional. We did not have any problems in waiting or looking for them.rnrnThe hotels were good and clean. The hotel rooms at Ever Hotel and the Sunbee Hotel were spacious. The food in Ever Hotel was fantastic. We just had a small problem with the Sunbee Hotel in relations to our room access. For whatever reason, our card was deactivated every night after we came back so we was unable to get in our room. We had to go downstairs and asked for our card to be reactivated every night. Apart from that, everything else was fine.rnrnWe had a funny drama to tell you about our own transfer from Jeju airport to Ever Hotel. We gave the address to the taxi driver, however, he dropped us off at Amber Hotel. We tried to point the hotel's name and address to him but he insisted that it was the right place. He could not speak English and we could not speak Korean, we ended up just paid him & got out of the taxi. We came inside Amber Hotel & asked the reception. People did not seem to know the address very well in Korea. She called Ever hotel & told us that our hotel was not far from Amber Hotel & we could walk. She tried to show us the way & quite confused with left & right. She ended up told us that our hotel was on the left. rnrnWe pulled our luggages and tried to look for the hotel. We walked for awhile and could not find anything so my husband went to a convenient store asking for directions. Again, the people in there could not speak English well. They called Ever hotel & asked for direction for us. They told us that keep walking & the hotel would be on our right hand side. One person said left hand side, one said right. We kept walking again & we finally found it on our left hand side. It was quite nerve breaking at the time and at the same time quite funny when we thought about it.rnrnOverall, the trip was very enjoyable and fun. He had a great time and were very satisfied with the services. We will put positive feedback about Novaland Tours on the website. rnrnWe are considering of visiting Japan sometimes next year. Do you have any suggestions as to which parts of Japan are worth it for a visit?rnrnThank you for your service and we are looking forward to get in touch with you in the future for other Asian trips.rnrnKind Regards,rnrnKathy
NLT-140723-YK39512 [Aug 11, 2014,  from America]
Dear Joanna, rnThank you for reminding me that I wanted to send you some feedback on the tour you arranged for me and my husband. I will respond to your questions below in a different color. We had a good time overall. On our last morning in Seoul there was confusion about where we were to get breakfast. We ate at the hotel and that turned out to be a good idea because of our different departure times at the airport. rnrnHope this is helpful. We will keep your company in mind when we travel to Asia again.rnrnJanernrnrnrn1. How is our service throughout your tour from any aspects you feel? Such as our travel consultant, tour guide’s, drivers or others’ attitude; hotels, transportations, scenic spots’ arrangement; and any other words you would like to say to me. rnrnTravel consultants--quite patient and helpfulrntour guides--both guides were friendly, informative and well spoken. You should employ them again. rn rndrivers--all the drivers except the the one picking us up at Seoul train station (who didn't show up) were businesslike and efficient. The driver in Busan brought us all bottles of frozen water on a very hot day--greatly appreciated.rnhotels--all of the hotels were far above our expectations for cleanliness, size and quality of breakfast food. We wonder now if we could have chosen 2-star hotels and still gotten quality. rntransportation--the minivans were comfortable.rnscenic spots--DMZ tour was good and fixed, so you can't change itrnSeoul tour--all was quite good except we did not need to be taken to the market. On our last day in Seoul we discovered a new museum that was quite wonderful. I don't know the exact name but it was the museum of modern culture. That might be a good sight to add to your list of sights. In addition, instead of the market maybe a trip to the part of Seoul made famous by the K-pop singer PSY Gangnam Style.rnBusan tour---the morning was goodrnafternoon had several destinations that were not that goodrn- the beach was not worth going to since we were at a hotel right on the beach and even if we had been in a different hotel, it probably would have been in the same area rn-the blue condominiums were interesting to look at from a distance, but we did not need to go up close to look at themrn-the film building was also beautiful from afar but perhaps not worth a stop.rnrnrn rn2. Where can we improve to be better and stronger?rnI think that you could change the Busan tour up a bit and make the afternoon different. Perhaps a trip to the fish market that included lunch there instead of the restaurant we went to. rnrnrn rn3. Any other valuable comments, travel experience and happy moments you may have.rnThe hotel clerks in Gwangju were very helpful in getting me local transportation information to go to a pottery festival in Gangjin and to a historical village in another part of the region (I can't remember the name of the place but it is one of the famous villages).
NLT-140725-YK37893 [Aug 11, 2014,  from America]
Hi Joanna,rn rnI am sorry for not having replied earlier, as I am in the Philippines visiting relatives.rn rnI now know the difference between private tour and coach tour. The private tour is certainly more convenient and comfortable. Please thank Mr. Jung and Mr. Kim who were our guides in Busan, Gyeonju and Ulsan. Mr. Jung was knowledgable and helpful. Mr. Kim was also helpful, but his English is not as good. I appreciated the history he presented of the region, but the girls wanted some more advice on shopping. The drivers who picked us up in Seoul were also very helpful and I would like to thank them for their service. Although we were apprehensive at first, we were glad that the people who were assigned to pick us up came at the designated time.rn rnThank you for your service. We will consider you again next time we plan a trip to Asia. rn rnYours truly,rn rnRichard Lim
NLT-140728-YK36454 [Aug 11, 2014,  from United Kingdom]
Thank you Joanna,rnI really would appreciate that.rnI would also like to say in Busan - my guide Suh, Hyang Kyung and driver were fantastic.rnI really enjoyed the tour, they are both great!!!rnNow looking forward to the KTX to Seoul rnrnrnHi Joanna,rnApart from the slight hiccup at Jeju airport, I felt the tour was very well organised.rnI have a few criticisms tho,rnThe Seoul tour:rnWhat a waste of time going to the Amethyst factory! All they wanted to do was sell us their over priced items! I would remove this from your tour!rnThe Jeju tour:rnI felt was not catered for the elder generation. I am 60 years old and think I'm fit but could not do the climbs in the time allocated. So felt I had missed out on the wonderful viewsrnThe Busan tour:rnAbsolutely fantastic, I have already commented on my guide & driverrnTransfer by KTX - a little more info would be helpful. Like the train goes further on and only stops at Seoul.rnThe last Seoul tour:rnVery good, he was very funny and entertaining and did appreciate receiving my Jeju taxi refund.rnI can,t praise the hotel Sunbee high enough, when coming back after Jeju & Busan tour it was like coming home. rnMy conclusion on the tour you organised:rnIt was a wonderful experience, just wished it was better tailored to my age.rnThank you Joanna
NLT-140604-LK33218 [Jul 28, 2014,  from America]
Good Morning Lillian – I forgot to mention that almost all of our tours were private so we REALLY got a good deal! Thanks again SharonrnrnThe arrangements were the very best. The guides always called the night before and the driver always at the airport or train depot at the correct times. (Our plane was 3 hours late in arriving in Seoul because of a missed connection in Los Angeles which was a fault caused by United). This really gave us trust in Novaland because we came into a country we knew nothing about…….and could have easily felt stranded. rnrnThe hotels were extra helpful especially Hotel Sunbee. The people all over Korea would help us with directions or answer our questions. My daughter Jill even started reading the Korean Symbols…I was very proud and the guides impressed. rnrnThe guide in Gwangju and driver went over and above what they needed to do. We went to the Orphanage but it was really another facility where Jill was brought to when she was abandoned in 1969. The reason she was then sent to Seoul was because she could be adopted so this was the procedure then and still exists in Gwangju. We went through that Shelter for children, which has 53 children right now ages 1 day – about age 16. This had never been done before but since Jill and I were there from theUS they were most kind in showing through the facility with the rooms of children and volunteers coming in and caring for them. The guide also gave Jill her email in the event that she can discover more about herself from the files in Seoul. rnrn We loved JeJu, it was beautiful and the Coach Tours were perfect. We enjoyed Busan especially seeing theYonggungsa Temple. rnrnOur favorite guides were “Yoon” taking us to Mt Seorak, seeing the woman divers and taking us for a delicious lunch with mackerel and “Charlie” going to DMZ. He sang original Korean Folk songs to us + Elvis’s Houndog! rnrnIf there was a highlight spot it probably was making Kimchi in the private home in Seoul. It was so much fun getting our pictures taken in the Hanbok and making the Kimchi and then having the most delicious lunch. The hostess couldn’t pronounce “Refrigerator” so we had fun teaching her with our 5 fingers for the syllables. (It was a Refrigerator + a freezer but we didn’t want to add to the confusion J) We carried the kimchi to JeJu, Gwangju and back to Seoul because it needed to be refrigerated. My Kimchi made it to Minnesota but Jill’s cracked open a bit and soiled some of her clothes which just added to the adventure along with the cab driver having difficulties finding the correct road and since the guide knew where to go we just walked about 8 blocks! So ends the saga of the kimchi except now I can’t find anyone who wants to eat it with me!rnrnWe definitely would recommend Novaland Tours to anyone. You do an exceptional job. When we go to VietNam we will contact you.rn rnThank-you for giving us a safe and very happy journey.rnSincerely, Sharon Wesbrook
NLT-140720-YK39276 [Jul 27, 2014,  from New Zealand]
Hi Melody,rnrnThanks for the note above. We had a good stay in South Korea thanks to you and your tour guides. All three of them were, punctual, very good and they made our stay in Seoul and Busan indeed memorable and enjoyablernrnTommy, Kim and Chul although one different to the other were all good, accommodating and spared no pains to make us comfortable and happy. We were taken around to see all the places you have mentioned and explained all the historical and cultural aspects of life and work of the Korean people. South Korea has alway interested me for its rapid development from abject poverty to what they are today - one of the leading industrial powers in the world. rnrnThe tour guides - Tommy a biology graduate, Kim a history teacher and Chul a former police officer, typified to me the average character of the people of South Korea as a hard working and honest people who are happy and happy in what they did as tour guides. Their knowledge of the country, its history were excellent and they were all very patriotic people who loved their country. We also enjoyed the eating places they took us to and the Korean food. That was an experience!rnrnMy wife and I are very happy and certainly will recommend your services and also the tour guides - Tommy, Kim and Chul to our friends. rnrnHowever I have to say that the quality of the hotels you have chosen were below our expectations, but served our purpose as just overnight stopovers. Maybe this is one area you can improve. They were not 3 star hotels although the staff were good and courteous. rnrnAll in all we had a happy and contented stay in Seoul and Busan. We will certainly remember the memories and endeavour to return one day again. rnrnI am now spending 5 weeks in Sri Lanka and will be very busy for the next few days with a trip to India also in the cards. rnrnThank you again and kind regards,rnrnSarath & Theja Bulathsinghala
NLT-140717-YK36915 [Jul 21, 2014,  from America]
Hi Joanna,rn I was happy with your service including the tour arrangements and the tour guys. Everything works very well. We are now back to Guangzhou, our home town. Thanks again for everything!
NLT-140518-TK36552 [Jul 19, 2014,  from America]
Dear Tina:rnrnPlease, let me first apologize to you. I have had your e-mail for a long time and I had lots of opportunity to answer it but I have been lazy. I am sorry. So, let me answer each of your questions in order:rnrnrn1. My brother and I love our tour guides in Korea and Beijing. Luwei and Mandy were great and fabulous. They treated us like family so much, we called them “mom and dad.” They were great and bent over backwards to meet what we wanted to do and where we wanted to go while sticking with the schedule. In Korean, Young treated us the same. We again had a great time with him. We went to the baseball game with him and he would take us to great places to eat while letting me explore my past. They were Great! The only two things that were disappointing to me was the tour of the old city in Beijing and see a typical house. In Korea, Young took us out to a place where you could get a spa treatment and buy soaps. They were two things I didn’t like. The rest was beyond our expectations.rnrn2. I explained that in one. Get rid of the spa place in Korea and the typical house in Beijingrnrn3. Luwei and Mandy! We just loved them and hated to leave China. We grew very close to them. They were truly like family to my brother and I by the time we finished. The same can be said for Young. I think in this case he grew close to us and hated to see us leave. We had a good time with him as well.rnrnI hop that answers your questions. I apologize for not answering sooner. I may use your service again. I am divorcing and am looking for a new wife. I have been corresponding with some women in China and may visit one in the future. I will definitely keep you in mind.rnrnrnMichael Wood
NLT-140530-TK38185 [Jul 14, 2014]
1. How is our service throughout your tour from any aspects you feel?rnSuch as our travel consultant, tour guide?s, drivers or others? attitude;rnhotels, transportations, scenic spots? arrangement; and any other words yournrnwould like to say to me.rnrnI have to say you did a good job in the booking of the Korean airlines to fly my family out from Jeju island earlier than our original flight. you also continue to update me the situation that day. Also, Elvis, the driver that picked us up that day...he was kind enough to stop by at the children clinic so my son could get the medical treatment. I never regret to book that day airport pick up, if I go by taxi I will definitely unable to find the children clinic.rnrnrnrnrn2. Where can we improve to be better and stronger?rnrnNext time if there is a delay problem from Jeju perhaps you should warn your clients to listen to the airlines manager at the airport. If the managers said no flight that day better they re-booked the next day flight immediately by lining up again and try to get the earlier flight. We waited too long that day hoping to catch the late afternoon flight, the manager already told me that the weather is getting worse and no flight out. By the time we went back to the airlines desk we can only get the late night flight. So do share our experience with your other colleagues and your partners in Seoul.rnrnAlso, do have doctors or hospital address at hand, especially those near to the clients hotels.rnrnrnrn3. Any other valuable comments, travel experience and happy moments you mayrnhave.rnrnFor the Jeju tour, the tour guide should tell us that the temperature in the cave was cold so we could prepare our jacket when we went into the cave. you could put this in your itinerary too.rnrnFor the Udo island trip, the tour guide -- ms Rachel, she was friendly, informative and love to share the local products for us to try. She even called me the next day, warn me about the weather and also informed us where to find food in the airport. For the Udo trip, you should tell the company to have minimum 3 to 4 hours to tour the island. 2 hours was too short and we could not even have enough time to go to the light house as it was one of the land mark. It was a very rush tour around the island.rnrnFor the pacific hotel it had excellent location and they gave us connecting room which was really good. Do tell the hotel that the carpet is dirty, so it is about time they should wash the room carpet.rnrnrnWell, this is what I can share with you and overall I do enjoy the tour even though there were hiccups (jeju weather and me n my son were sick) along the way and you did a good job...rnrnBest regardsrnSanwie
NLT-140613-TK32521 [Jul 14, 2014,  from America]
Hi Tina,rnrnWe are finally back !! It's good to travel but it's also good to be home after such a long trip.rnrnOverall we were very pleased with how our tour went. We did not have any problems with being picked up or transportation. Everyone was their to greet us and take us to the next destination. rnrnOur tour guide in Seoul was Chue (maybe not spelled correctly), he was exceptional, we all loved his positive attitude. We still takes about how great he was. He took a special liking to her. He is a very humble man and I can't say enough good things about him.rnrnOur tour guide in Busan was Joy. She was also very good but the bar was set so high by Chue. It was nice that she had her own driver, that allowed her to focus on pointing things out while he was driving. She had a true passion for Korean and the city of Busan.rnrnSome of the highlights were the Seoul Tower, DMZ tour, and the Korean Folk Village. While at the DMZ tour we were interviewed for a TV program called 'Ariang Today'. The interview was on TV about 3 days later and we were able to watch it while in Busan. We are TV stars in Korea !!!!. In Busan the highlights were the Geyongju City and Yonggusan Temple.rnrnBusan is such a beautiful city. Joy recommended we take a night time cruise in the harbor and that was such a wonderful idea, we did it that night and got some wonderful pictures.rnrnI like how flexible things were, one day Taylor (my daughters friend) did not feel good so Joy adjusted the schedule to meet our needs.rnrnThe food was a bit of a challenge but that's because the American diet is so different from Korean diet. I think both our guides knew we struggled with the local cuisine and helped us make adjustments each day.rnrnThe only thing I would change is that we did see a lot of temples (I think at least six). We were 'Templed' out by the end of the trip.rnrnYou and your team did a fantastic job with all aspects. The communication prior to the trip and all the accomodations during the trip were exactly as I had hoped for.rnrnThank you for helping make this a truly wonderful experience for my family.
NLT-140614-YK36840 [Jul 14, 2014,  from America]
Hi, Joanna,rnrnYes, I did get off by mistake in Ulsan. After 4 hours in the station, I was so tired that I fell asleep. Two men were talking with loud voices next to me, and suddenly I heard an announcement that ended with -san. Afraid to miss my stop, I jumped off. I had to hurry because the train doesn't stop long and I had to get my luggage from the compartment. I just made it off before the train pulled out. rnAnyway, I believe I was truly blessed that night because it was late, and I ended up being alone on the platform, but a wonderful policeman came to my assistance; didn't speak English, went to get someone who did--and it must have been a distance because he was gone for at least 10 minutes. He returned with someone who let me use his phone--my battery was dead--and then they both helped me on the train, spoke to the train stewardess, asking her to help me get off in Busan, and I am sure they called ahead to Busan to notify a taxi driver because he was out of the taxi looking for me. And, as I said, he refused a tip, so I know he was being helpful and not trying to scam me. rnrn Actually, it turned out to be one of the best experiences, so you don't need to apologize. But, yes, 4 hours in the Seoul station on a Sunday afternoon is too long unless one is able to check baggage. Then it would have been fine--I could have walked around, gone sightseeing, ate in restaurants, etc. I hope this will be helpful to future travelers; but, it never once made me discontent with you or Novaland. It just happened to be an extremely busy Sunday evening. I wasn't the only one standing. rnrnI would like to see your photos, especially of your daughter! How wonderful! Yes, I will now get some photos ready and forward to you. You will see that I had a wonderful time. I'm sad my trip is over. I'll be back....like Sylvester Stallone in the movie Terminator--I'll be back. :-) But, seriously, I will hopefully be taking other Asian tours next year. rnrnSincerelyrnJanet
NLT-140616-TK39048 [Jul 14, 2014,  from America]
Hi Tina,rnThank you so much for preparing the Korea Tour Package for us. We had a wonderful time in Korea. We will remember this trip forever. rnrnThese are comments about the Hotels:rnPacific Hotel: Good location, good services, nice hotel. We would love to come back and stay at this hotel next time.rnThe Grand Daegu Hotel: Good location, services were ok.rnHotel Kolon Gyeongju: Good View, not good services, the bathroom needs to remodel. The lobby is nice, but all floors need to remodel. We didn't like this hotel much.rnHaeundae Grand Hotel: Good location, good view, good services, nice hotel. We would love to come back and stay at this hotel next time.rnrnThe tour guides:rnMr. Charlie: Nice, speaks English well, we had him for only 1 day for the DMZ tour.rnMr. Yoon: Nice, friendly, open and caring towards us. He spent time with us for the rest of the tour. We were so happy to see him when he took us to the airport to depart to U.S.A. In the future, if we go to Korea again, then we wish he would be our tour guide.rnrnTransportation:rnWe were so pleased with the arrangement from Busan to Seoul by Express Train. The van was nice, clean and comfortable to drive from city to city during the tour.rnrnThe drivers:rn The first driver was nice, he was at the airport when we arrived. We were so sorry about the mistake with the money, we wanted to give him $10 for the tip, but we gave the wrong bill which was $1. We didn't know his name, would you please tell him.rnrnMr. Charlie: He was a good driver.rnrnMr. Yoon: He was a good driver, he knows where he goes and does very well. We trusted him.rnrnTravel Consultants:rnTina Wu, we don't know her in person, but she did a good job. We will ask for her next time when we travel to Korea again. Well done, Tina.rnrnMs. Jina, we don't know her in person, but she did a good job too.rnrnAfter all, We will tell our friends and families, if they want to go to Korea, we will tell them to go with NOVALAND TOURS.rnThank you again.rnThe Pham Family
NLT-140626-YI36483 [Jul 14, 2014,  from America]
Good morning Joanna!rnYes we are back at home and more than happy with novaland tours the experience was amazing the service and the tour guides were great I don't have any complaints, per contrary, only good things to say thank you so much for everything!
NLT-140619-MK36443 [Jun 28, 2014,  from America]
Hi, Melody,rnrnI am on my way home now, waiting for my connection flight at the airport lounge. rnrnWe had a wonderful time in Seoul. The tours are great and the tour guides are nice and knowledgeable. We learned a lot about Korea from them. They took us to the greatest Korean restaurant for lunch. I will definitely want to work with you guys again for my next Asian trip. rnrnLiddy
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