Exclusive Korea: Private Folk Village & Fortress Day Trip

We had a great day led by our wonderful tour guide Juno. He was had a very positive demeanor and had extensive knowledge on the history of both stops on this tour; the Min Sok Chun folk village and the fortress/Suwon. He also showed us lots of photos and videos on his phone to give us an idea of what the areas looked like hundreds of years ago, and also showed us some videos of reenactments/dramas of the historical events he spoke to us about in those locations. We all found it very helpful in terms of visualizing the history. He also took us to a bbq restaurant in Suwon that felt like a very local spot, we all enjoyed it. We highly recommend this tour if you want to learn more about the history of Korea in a very tangible way, especially through Min Sok Chun. Thank you Juno!

Miae Hyun was an excellent guide who made our day educational and fun. We booked through Viator, but if we were to visit Seoul, South Korea again we would book all private tours directly with her. Her suggestion for a Korean lunch was wonderful. We saw a trolley ride and archery that looked interesting and she added that in without a blink and paid for it and participated too! She & her husband own the tour company. She speaks English and he Spanish which they learned living abroad.

Judy from VIP Travel was a very informative tour guide who took time to answer individual questions, she is professional, yet casual and personable. The Korean village brings back to life the Joson dynasty as if we travelled in time. It's amazing how Koreans were able to restore important historical details from the past despite the many wars suffered by Korea. Thier resilient character speaks highly of Koreans ability to jump back and drive-on regardless of the hardships they experinces. AMAZING PEOPLE, AMAZING TOUR, AMAZING TOUR GUIDE. Thank you

This tour to the Korean folk village and the fortress at Suwon was a great day. Our guide Juno was pleasant, entertaining and shared much about Korea, its tumultuous history and frought past relations with Japan. We took away a stronger respect for the Korean people, their history and their culture. The folk village was a pleasant respite from the city. We learned how Korea had to rediscover its own culture after the Japanese occupation and rebuild after the Korean War. Crazy recent reminders of human struggles. Suwon fortress was beautiful and the preserved historic village within the fortress walls a historic remnant of life past. Highly recommend. Juno is great.

We loved this tour with our tour guide Juno! Juno was super friendly and we really enjoyed talking with him as he showed us around the entire day. The Korean Folk Village was very cool to walk around and see how life in South Korea used to be. We also really enjoyed the musical and dance performances. Then Juno recommended a great restaurant for us to have lunch at, and we loved the beef galbi. We also loved walking around the fortress, trying the archery experience, and taking lots of photos. Juno made sure we were hydrated by providing us with complimentary water throughout the hot summer day. He offered to take pictures of us which we really appreciated and turned out really great. We are so thankful for Juno for sharing his culture with us! Highly recommended!!

I signed up for this tour after reading the great reviews and it did not disappoint. Miae was our guide and driver. The car was great and very clean. Miae gave us many interesting stories about the Folk Village and Hwaseong fortress which really helped us appreciate what we were visiting. She recommended a great place for lunch and we had fun with the traditional archery. A bonus was a short stop at the new Suwon Starfield library to soak in the vibes.

We enjoyed the Korean Folk Village and exploring Suwon and the fortress, learning not only about traditional culture but developing an understanding of modern day Koreans’ sense of their place in history. Luckily we were there during a traditional hair washing ritual and our teen got to participate. Our guide Juno was terrific - he shared a lot of useful information with us. Most memorable - our teen lost their phone in the village and since Apple location services don’t work in South Korea, we thought it was gone. Juno spent half an hour retracing our steps, calling lost and found and assuring us he would work with us to get the phone back if found. Together we found it and all felt a sense of relief! He truly went above and beyond for us - highly recommended.

Juno is an excellent tour guide who gave us a wonderful experience. He blended Korean history with modern issues to give us a broader understanding. We enjoyed the place he recommended we try for lunch and the views around the city. The folk village was also better than we expected. Highly recommend Juno and this tour

I have also posted a review of the Seoul and Vicinity tour by Top Korea Tours and our fantastic guide Juno. We were glad to spend our second day with him on this tour, and also happy that we got to see more countryside at this time of Autumn, when the Ginko leaves were in full color. We learned much on about the development of Seoul on the way to the Village, and he was very knowledgeable about all of the different exhibits/sites within the village. He managed the time very well, and the musical/dance performance we saw has been on of the biggest highlights of our trip so far. He was extraordinarily helpful in finding us a very “off the beaten path” place for an amazing lunch at the “Watermill” chicken restaurant which was nothing like the Korean food we’ve had in the USA, but is something that we will never forget. The fortress tour was also wonderful, and surprisingly interactive. (Korean Archery). Once again he was also very helpful in helping us find a place to buy necessities we had not packed for our trip. Highly recommended.

Our tour guide Juno was amazing. He was very knowledgeable of Korean history and attentive .He spoke good English. I definitely would recommend him.