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Lee C.
Available Areas
Seoul (Living)
Languages
English, Korean (Native)
Response Time
7 hours on average
Availability Updated
3 days ago
Tour Categories
About Tour Guide Lee C.
Hi. I'm Lee!
I was born and raised in Seoul, and lived in five different countries, Canada, US, Australia, Russia and Germany. I also traveled over 40 countries mostly alone.
I studied Business in Seoul with a year exchange program in US, and completed MBA in Sydney. After MBA I wanted to pursue a career change as a professor with my field experience. I was a Market researcher, Research analyst and Marketer in big companies. Highly paying and stable job. It was what many called a good life.
But I always liked to be in the nature better than the office. I hiked Kilimanjaro summit alone, Annapurna Base Camp alone, Olympus alone, Everest Base Camp, Fuji, Alps alone and many other mountains in the world. (Alone means literally alone or with a guide. In some countries you must hire a guide).
Also I've led a hiking club over 4 years and fly overseas more than 5 times per year and hike.
So I decided to have my own travel agency and operate hiking and city tours. Most of my tours are of food and hiking. Now I can hike even more often, have good food with travelers and practice calligraphy everyday which I love too.
70% of Korea is mountainous and amazingly beautiful. And the food is so yummy!
If you visit Korea, please contact me! Just like I enjoy my hometown, Seoul, I really want others to enjoy the culture and nature too.
Thank you for reading it. Hope to meet you in Korea. :-)
Cheers,
Lee
CREDENTIALS
. English language tour guide for foreign guests (Korea Tourism Organization)
. MBA in Sydney/ Bachelor in Business Administration in Seoul
. Korean language teacher certificate (Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism)
. International TEFL and TESOL Diploma in teaching English (ITTT)
. Mountain leader program (Korean National Park Mountain Safety Institute)
. Solo hiked in Kilimanjaro summit, ABC, Olympus, Alps, and much more
. Group hiked in EBC, Kala Patthar, Fuji, Altai, and much more
. Hiking club leader over 4 years
. Calligraphy competition awards (6 times)
Important
* Please send me a message before booking, if the date is longer than 1 month before.
* I can work any day unless I have another tour.
* I don't offer a driving service. If you rent a car and driver, I will accompany you in the vehicle. If you drive by yourself I will NOT accompany you.
Tours
(5hrs) Seoul highlights with a palace - Gyeongbokgung & Food market
Explore the best of Seoul and taste its food! Start from Jogyesa Temple in the Insadong, the head temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. Continue to Gwanghwamun Square to meet the statues of King Sejong and Admiral Yi Sun-sin. Visit Gyeongbokgung Palace, the main palace in the Joseon Dynasty. Continue to Bukchon Hanok Village. Take the subway to Gwangjang market and taste the local food. :-)
(3hrs) Gyeongbokgung palace & Seoul highlights walking tour
Explore the best of Seoul! Start from Jogyesa Temple in the Insadong area, the head temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. Continue to Gwanghwamun Square and see the statues of King Sejong the Great and Admiral Yi Sun-sin. Visit Gyeongbokgung Palace established in 1395 as the main palace in the Joseon Dynasty. Continue to Bukchon village, one of the oldest district in Seoul.
Easy hiking (Ansan, Inwangsan, Achasan or any other)
I love hiking! I hiked a lot of mountains in the world alone, and I've led a hiking club over 4 years. Now, I want to share this beautiful nature with foreign visitors! These are all easy trails. You can choose one of them. If you want any specific mountain, please let me know. I usually hike Ansan, Inwangsan or Achasan mountain. I don't hike fast as I love to feel trees and mountains. I'm sure once you hike with me, you'll like hiking in Korea as much as I do!
BBQ at the largest meat market in Korea - Private tour
Let's have a barbecue at Majang Meat Market, the largest meat market in Korea. Lots of butchers sell fresh meat from all over the country, and 60% of the all meat in Seoul is traded in this clean and modern market If you want to try the best quality Korean beef, Hanwoo, this is the place you should visit. The high quality meat is up to 30% cheaper than supermarkets. *** The meat and restaurant is NOT inclusive in the tour.
Ultimate foodie tour - Gwangjang & Mangwon market
Let's take a locals' look at Seoul on this walking tour of Gwangjang Market and Mangwon market. Start with Gwangjang Market, Seoul's oldest covered market. They are famous for mung bean pancake and seaweed roll. After the food, walk along Cheonggyecheon stream where locals love to hang out and relax. Take the subway to the second market, Mangwon market. The market is famous for sweet chicken. These are the most popular food markets in Seoul, the best places to try the local food!
Noryangjin Fish Market Tour with Evening Dinner
Taste the amazingly fresh seafood at the largest fish market in Seoul! Explore the market and pick out different seafood and eat them in the market's restaurant. My favorite food is shrimp in the market. The restaurant grills the shrimp and it tastes just amazing! The market handles almost 50% of the metropolitan volume and trades up to 300 tons of fishery products every day. Try new tastes in this market. You just might be surprised!
Lee C. South Korea Tour Reviews
Annette W.
(5hr) Heart of Seoul highlights - Namsan & Seoul's largest market
“Amazing knowledgeable guide that I learnt a lot from ”
Lee was a wonderful companion. She explained the history of Seoul and Korea beautifully as we looked around Namsangol Hanok Village. We then went to Namdaemun Market where Lee showed me all the best places to shop and let me see some of those hidden gems like Hair tail Alley and the alley where they sell Knife cut noodles. Lee even took me to a glass shop where I used my prescription to buy reading glasses for a fraction of the price I would pay back home, and it took them only 30 minutes to make. Amazing! I tried hotteok and the most divine dumplings for the first time. We saw Namdaemun Gate and finished the day at Myeongdong Street for some KBeauty purchases. Lee taught me Korean phrases and words I could use and gave me a highly prized sheet of these new words and sayings at the end of the tour. Lee even sent an overview of the day on What’s App. She went beyond the expected and was delightful company. Best day ever in Korea! I cannot thank you enough Lee for everything!
Lee C.
(8 reviews)Thank you very much for the great review. I highly appreciate it. It was so much fun being your compay, and I'm very glad you enjoyed it as much as I did! I hope they like the gifts you bought and the phases will be helpful on the trip. Thank you for the great day again. Enjoy your stay in Korea! :-)
Victoria K.
(5hrs) Seoul highlights with a palace - Gyeongbokgung & Food market
“Excellent tour with Lee!”
Our family very much enjoyed our 5 hour tour with Lee. She had many interesting facts and stories to share and perfectly filled our five hours with interesting stops. Lee had a few surprises for us along the way, keeping us entertained in unexpected ways. I would highly recommend Lee for your tours!
Lee C.
(8 reviews)Hi, thank you so much for coming to the tour. It was very nice to meet you and your family. I had really good time, and I am very glad you liked it too. Hope you can come back to Seoul in the future again! :-)
Matti W.
Inwangsan hiking and Namdamun market
Customized
“Hiking and culture in Seoul!”
this was the 2nd day with Lee. I was really happy that I booked her for 2 days. We started with a small palace and then went to hike .. we were lucky that there were very few people and she knows every inch of these mountains as she is a hike addict .. it was the perfect day, fall colors on the leaves and warm weather for the time .. during the hike, I learned so much about the history and also, Lee's respect for Koreas culture and people .. I felt enriched by the places and stories and of course Lee knows the right places to eat. Again thank you, my second day passed equaly quick but was different all together .. See you very soon Lee and 'tschangmal kamsamnida!' Matti
Lee C.
(8 reviews)Thank you so much for coming to the tour. It was fun to hike with you, and I really appreciate your kindness. :-) Have a nice travel in Korea.