Deokjeokdo - is an island located just an hour away from Incheon in South Korea. This was the chosen island to spend a long weekend away, with some friends, without braking the bank. With the exceptional planning done by my friends,Thomas and Ki-Hong, I can truly say that we managed to do it. 

The entire weekend for 3 days and 2 nights, including return ferry tickets, the minbak(Korean style room), the food (2 dinner, 2 breakfasts, 1 lunch, snacks and dessert ), wine and drinks and other snacks or things bought along the way, was about 150000KRW. Yes people, 150000 Korean won = $150 more or less. Well that's a rounded figure for all the little things I had bought extra. It's very good rounded figure for a vacation I would say. 

So let's start at the beginning. When I first heard about Deokjeokdo, I immediately googled it, to see if I can find anything worth while on the island. I looked at some pictures and blogs that other people had posted and it seemed like a boring, "what you make of it", kinda island. I wasn't all that excited about the island, but I was excited to get away with some friends and enjoy a weekend away, relaxing and having fun. 

Boy, was I surprised when I saw the island for the first time! It just seemed like we were there at the right time. The weather was perfect and the water was a clear blue-green, which expected it to be murky and dark.  

After arriving at the island, a van picked us up and took us right to our "minbak". It's a korean style room where there are no beds. Only some sleeping pads, pillows and blankets. I didn't mind though, I slept quite comfortably (except for the dog that almost peed on me) and it was cheap. It was clean and had all the facilities needed for a weekend away. 

We dropped our bags off, changed into some beach wear and headed to the beach. We played around the beach for some time. I even took a dip in the cold, clear water. My friends wasn't in the mood to swim though, so I just had to do it alone. I reasoned that I can't be at the beach and not take a dip, unless I'm in Cape Town at some beach, then I'm not touching the water. 

My friends were exploring around, playing with the dog(Louie), picking up some shells, finding crabs, taking pictures and eventually some tanning on the beach. 

Seopori Beach (서포리해변) is a very wide and shallow beach. You can walk in for a few meters and the water will still be below your waist. 

After a few hours on the beach we headed back home to take a nap and to start prepping for dinner. I took some photos of the area while others were making some juicy homemade burgers. We ended a perfect day with some marshmallows and going to bed a bit early. 

It was a great day though and I was pleasantly surprised by Deokjeokdo. Well what do you know?

What do you think? Worth a visit?

Look out for my next post.  Deokjeokdo - The Island That Surprised Me - Day 2.