The cheapest option of course would be to take public transportation like buses or tourist buses but tourist attractions are scattered accross the island and we barely saw buses in some places so it was a good thing that we opted to rent a car. For reference, from Jeju Aiport to Sammu Park (bus stop near Trevi Hotel) the fare is 1200KRW one way. You can use t-money to pay in buses or pay in cash (exact fare only).
Rental process is quite simple, you just have to sign up at the website and fill in the reservation form. We rented a car from Lotte Rent-a-Car site since it was the cheapest we found with good reviews. Our second option was AJ Rent-a-Car.
Rental Requirements:
1. Valid Driver's License - the designated driver should have a valid driver's license (issued from the driver's own country)
2. International Driving Permit - the designated driver should have an IDP (issued from the driver's own country) prior to the trip. In the Philippines, you can apply for this online at the AAP website and get it in about a week or two for PHP3500. We applied for this 3 weeks before our trip after our visa got approved.
3. Car reservation form - the designated driver should be the one to register at the car rental website and make a reservation. We did this online and opted to pay once we arrived in Jeju. You just have to specify the type of car and the begin and end date and time of rental.
The process was very straightforward yet we had a lot of worries. For one, there was a clause in the rental requirements that the IDP should have been issued at least one year prior to the rental date. We emailed the car rental and asked about this specifically because our IDP was issued just weeks before the rental.
Another one was that there were horror stories about some car rental services asking for additional payment when you return the car for a scratch that has already been there before rental. So we made sure to get a car insurance and checked the car for scratches. We also asked about this with the car rental service and they told us as long as we have the insurance we don't have to worry about scratches.
We got a A/T diesel Chevy Olando for our party of 7 including the driver. It has just enough room for passengers but not for our lugagge so we had to make 2 trips from the airport to our hotel so we can fit all the luggage.
Driving in Jeju is almost the same in the Philippines but with a lot less traffic. They also have left hand drive cars and the GPS navigation system was on point it even reminds you what is the speed limit for certain places and if you're going over the speed limit. So it is very important to get an English GPS. Google maps and waze are no good in Jeju.
We were also worried about getting driving tickets because there were times we go above the speed limit and the GPS keeps telling us to slow down. Also there was a time we beat the red light (totally unintentional). We were all shocked when the breaks didn't make it on time.
We received the car with a full tank and returned it with a full tank as well. A full tank was enough for our 4 days trip. We were able to go to the following destinations with a full tank:
Samyang Black Beach +82-64-728-3991
Seongsan Ilbuchong (Sunrise) Peak +82-64-710-7923
Manjanggul Cave +82-64-710-7903
Innisfree Jeju House +82-64-794-5351
Jeusangjeolli Cliff +82-64-738-1393
Hallasan Park Yeongsil Trail +82-64-713-9950
Cheonjiyeon Waterfall +82-64-760-6304
Woljeongri Beach +82-64-728-3393
We noted the phone numbers just in case we get a Korean GPS where you have to input the phone numbers instead of the location name in korean to get from one place to another. There was also plenty of parking spaces in tourist places. Parking fees range from 600KRW to 3000KRW.
We returned the car hours earlier from our specified time of return so we even got a refund.
Sample Car Rental Costs:
258,900KRW - 4days car rental 7 seater
66,000KRW - Diesel (depends)
8,200KRW - Parking Fees (depends)
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333,100KRW - Total Cost which is around PHP16,665
17,000PHP for 4 days hassle free travel in your own time. So each of us only paid around PHP2500 for our transporation in Jeju. In the Philippines, you can only rent for 1 day with that amount.
Before I forget, you also need to consider the parking space is available in your hotel if you're going to rent a car. We almost forgot about this and changed hotel the last minute. And so that's it hassle free car rental in Jeju.
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