Moon South Korea (Moon Handbooks) [Paperback]

Robert Nilsen (Author)

Book Description

Series: Moon Handbooks | Publication Date: June 2, 2009

Author Robert Nilsen first ventured to South Korea while serving in the Peace Corps and continued to spend, off and on, around seven years of his life there. With Moon South Korea, Nilsen reveals the many sides of this less-traveled Asian destination, from hiking and skiing in the country’s mountains to exploring the city markets of Seoul, arguably one of the best shopping destinations on the planet. Expert advice is provided on everything from proper communal bathing etiquette to the diverse selections of gimchi, seasoned and fermented vegetable dishes. Whether it’s drinking from the famous Dalgi Mineral Spring on the east coast, biking on scenic Jeju Island, or exploring the Suwon Fortress, Moon South Korea provides travelers with a unique and memorable experience.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Travel to South Korea was a big step for this young Scandinavian from Minnesota, but go he did with never a regret. Two years' experience in the Peace Corps were some of the best and worst of times, but always an education. Two more years of teaching privately in Korea were followed by a slow sojourn from Seoul to Bali, and from there across to the Khyber Pass, before returning to the United States. Robert Nilsen has returned to South Korea four times since, to total nearly seven years of living, working, and traveling in the country. In addition to writing Moon South Korea, he has assisted in rewriting a travel guide to Indonesia, and revises the Hawaii series for Avalon Travel: Moon Hawaii, Moon Kaua'i, Moon O'ahu, Moon Maui, and Moon Big Island of Hawai'i. Now that the fourth edition of this book is on the bookshelf, Robert hopes to spend more time on other interests while the reader uses this book to explore one of Asia's least known yet wonderfully fascinating countries.

Product Details

• Paperback: 864 pages
• Publisher: Avalon Travel Publishing; Fourth Edition edition (June 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1598800590
• ISBN-13: 978-1598800593
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #429,798 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > Travel > Asia > South Korea

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for the non-skimming visitor to South Korea, August 11, 2011

By 

Brooklyn Ed - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Moon South Korea (Moon Handbooks) (Paperback)

I have the 2nd, 3rd and this 4th edition in the Moon series of Robert Nilsen's books on South Korea. I also have the Lonely Planet editions on Korea. When I go to Korea, and I have gone more than a half dozen times, I find that the only book I need to take is Nilsen's. It's hefty for a paperback because it's more thorough.

You get not only the expected tourist information on transportation, accommodations, places to eat, etc., but also a very thorough-going choice of locations and things to see and events to attend throughout the provinces and cities of South Korea, arranged clockwise around the map of South Korea, beginning in Seoul. The items Nilsen chooses range from entertaining to seriously historical and/or cultural. This book is for the traveler who wants more than a surface experience of Korea. In fact, Nilsen includes capsule cultural, historical, geographical, economic, language, etc. information and useful appendices, including a bibliography of more in-depth works on various aspects of Korea, all located in the back of this latest edition.

Nilsen spends 95 pages on Seoul [compared to Lonely Planet's 62] and is similarly thorough for the rest of South Korea, yet also includes, toward the beginning, a guide to seeing much of Korea's highlights for the traveler who does not have a great deal of time, whether only a few days or up to three weeks.

This is also an excellent book for the armchair traveler who wants to become acquainted with Korea in more depth than one can usually expect from a travel book.

I would suggest getting this book well ahead of a trip to Korea, so that you can familiarize yourself with the riches of this tome and therefore make your trip more meaningful, as well as more enjoyable.

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book to explore South Korea with, January 2, 2012

By 

dev - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Moon South Korea (Moon Handbooks) (Paperback)

I'm not sure why people are being so hard on this book. I lived and traveled to South Korea a few times and found this book to come in quite handy. I used this book right after it came out, so I found myself at restaurants and hotels that the owners didn't even know they were featured in it, which was amusing. I'm sure it's a little different now. I liked this guide much more than Lonely Planet (I used both) and found the maps and suggestions to be quite helpful. I visited Gwangju, Boseung, Seoul, Incheon, Cheonan, Sokcho, Andong, Busan, Gyeongju, Tongyeong, Geoje, Jeju, and a few others and the books always came in handy. I always supplemented the book with the free tourist information that Korea is fabulous about handing out.

Happy travels, this book will serve you well!

4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars not comprehensive enough, June 25, 2010

By 

Christina P. Day - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Moon South Korea (Moon Handbooks) (Paperback)

Not enough coverage here on Seoul. Buy a different book for that. Written also from a man's perspective which at times was a bit annoying and mostly unhelpful. Not enough info or opinion on most sights. I wouldn't use this guide again at least for city visits.