Chinatown Gate

Incheon is often overlooked as a city on its own, and more frequently thought of as an extension of Seoul. To be honest, although I’ve lived in Seoul for nearly a decade, I’ve never really visited Incheon outside of traveling to or from the airport. On this trip, I took the opportunity to experience the city for its own sake, and I’m very glad that I did.

Incheon has a distinctly different vibe from Seoul. It’s a seaside city, and the coastal scenery combined with the ocean breeze work to make sure you never forget it.

Chinatown Streets

Having a somewhat cooler climate than Korea’s other primary ocean city, Busan, and lacking the scenic beaches as well, Incheon tends to remind me more of New England back in America. It’s a city where the culinary culture revolves around the fishing industry, and where the best ocean views are found on piers.

Display Outside Chinese Opera House

Chinatown Streets

I headed down to Incheon’s famous Chinatown for this trip. It’s a small but beautiful neighborhood lined with unique shops, restaurants, and street stalls. The streets are decorated with Chinese colors and designs. The buildings, lampposts, and walls all contribute to the aesthetic.

The restaurants offer a wide variety of Chinese offerings, ranging from the more familiar Korean-Chinese variety of dishes, such as Jambong, to some more authentic options that are hard to find anywhere else. There are also import markets where one can find ingredients that are otherwise hard to come by. There is even a Chinese Opera that gives regular performances on weekends.

Chinatown

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Wolmido Amusement Park

A short drive from Chinatown is Wolmi-do,. a festive pier district that serves as a family entertainment destination.

Wolmido Streets

Wolmid-do is actually a small island, but it’s proximity to the land is so close that you might not notice when the road that leads to it briefly becomes a bridge. The first thing one notices is the small but lively amusement park at the center of the area that features a number of simple classic rides for kids and adults alike to enjoy. In keeping with the atmosphere, the streets are full of those timeless gallery games where hopeful young men are invited to embarrass themselves in an attempt to win a prize for their date. It’s a fun and jovial atmosphere which tugs at a kind of nostalgia that is universal in its familiarity.

Besides the rides and games, Wolmi-do hosts yet another neighborhood full of restaurants, mostly seafood but not entirelyt, and more traditionally Korean than what is found in Chinatown.

Wolmido Ocean View

These are all accompanied by a beautiful view from the pier overlooking the ocean and the patchwork of islands and peninsulas that makes up Korea’s north-western coast. I was told that in the summer, this pier is full of musicians and street performers of other varieties. On this chilly and windy late March evening, it was full of the signs of an impending storm. I stayed briefly just to capture the view, and departed for the warmth and dryness of my hotel.

Wolmido: “Conducting The Storm”

Incheon is often overlooked by both travelers and residents of Korea, but perhaps it shouldn’t be.

It’s a unique location with its own unique atmosphere. Although my trip was too short to explore it in depth, the experiences I had in this one neighborhood made me excited to explore it again.

Wolmido

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The Howard Johnson by Wyndham is a delightful place to experience at a very reasonable cost. It’s a large, elegant, establishment that provides the feeling of a stay at a fancy, high- end resort for a fraction of the price.

Room bed and stand

Located just across the street from Unseo Station on the Incheon Airport Metro Line, and offering free shuttle services to the airport itself, The Howard Johnson by Wyndham is the perfect place to stay for travelers either entering or leaving the country and needing a place to rest on the way.

While I often appreciate the quaint homeliness of a family-run villa, there’s always been something equally thrilling to me about a massive hotel with full amenities. Consisting of seven floors of about 100 suites each, Howard Johnson by Wyndham is just such an enterprise. The interior design and aesthetic of the rooms is as bright and stimulating as it is relaxing.

Hotel Billiards Room

The modern atmosphere is complimented by an artistic lighting system that is easily adjusted to suit different moods.

Hotel Pool

The bathroom is freshly stocked with high- quality soaps and lotions, and the toilet even features a seat warmer.

Aside from the room, this hotel offers plenty of ways for weary travelers to occupy their time and decompress. The basement level is home to The Island Seven, a recreation area. This facility offers a number of amenities, including a Korean sauna, swimming pool, exercise room, children’s play room, ping pong, billiards, and karaoke.

Hotel Exercise Room

Some of these facilities, like the exercise room, are free for guests to use, while others, like the pool, require a small fee.

Every corner of the facility is clean, well maintained, warmly lit, and inviting. I found my stay at the Howard Johnson by Wyndham hotel to be a supremely relaxing experience. It’s the kind of hotel I would like to check in to, not as a base point to go exploring, but to spend a a full day or two enjoying just it as it’s own experience. It’s a place where one can forget the rest of the world, just for a short time, and I think everyone wants that once in a while.