Which is better seoul or busan

Chris Backe is an ex-pat living in South Korea with a penchant for blogging and travel. When not teaching, however, he is out exploring the dynamic society that is Korea. Chris makes it a point to visit one new place, event, or festival every week. Tags: teaching in Korea , Transportation in Korea. Fill out this form and one of our current teachers will get in touch with you via email for a chat about teaching English abroad! It can get pretty smoggy. You can check out some photos of Seoul's pollution.

People say even Koreans that people in Busan are friendlier and more laid back. I never spent enough time in Seoul to say really.

I suppose that goes for most big cities anyways. People in big cities tend to be less friendly. A cool thing about Busan is that you can take a hydrofoil to Fukuoka which is awesome in like 2. Or you can take an overnight ferry which is cheaper. The bigger the city you live in the more you're going to pay for expenses. So you are going to pay more in Seoul for rent, food, transportation, etc. Compared to Busan Seoul is going to have more variety.

You'll find more shopping, bars, nightlife, big bands, English bookstores, restaurants, cafes, galleries, K-POP stars, etc. If you are into the urban thing then this is probably your best bet for variety and options. There are also more foreigners in Seoul. So you will stand out less than you would in a place like say Miryang. If the big city life and a more cosmopolitan lifestyle appeals to you, go for Seoul. I can understand that because at one time I chose to live in Shanghai 24,, But keep in mind that a lot of people want to teach in Seoul.

So it's a more competitive market. If I had to choose again between the two I would still choose Busan as I find it to be a better all around lifestyle. Share Tweet Pin.

Bongeunsa Temple, Seoul. Busan Gamcheon Culture Village. Quick jump list hide. How many days will you spend in South Korea? Tourist attractions. General feel. Street performers on Insadong Street, Seoul. Busan, South Korea. Gyeongbokgung Palace. Haedong Yonggungsa Temple.

Bukchon Hanok Village, Seoul. Disclosure: Please note that this post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, I will earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend companies and products that I trust and the income goes to keeping this website running.

Aurelia Teslaru. In Seoul, the job market is large and filled with many opportunities in multiple fields. Many international companies are headquartered there, making it the number one destination for expatriates in Korea. Even without speaking Korean or without a degree it is possible to find a job in Korea.

Of course, the competition with other foreigners is extreme. Find lots of tips in our post on how to find job in Korea. Although Busan is a big city and therefore the possibilities for work are there, it is much less easy for foreigners except for English teachers.

Most international businesses are based in Seoul. However, some international districts like Gwangalli or Haeundae offer some opportunities in bars and restaurants. To work in Busan, the ideal would be to already master Korean.

There are still opportunities for English speakers, but places are scarce, even if the competition is less fierce than in Seoul. Clearly, for this one, without a doubt, Seoul! It is much easier as a foreigner to get a job in Seoul. It is relatively easy to find accommodation in Seoul, and sometimes it is even possible to move into a furnished apartment the same day.

However, rental prices tend to go up a bit more each year, which makes Seoul one of the most expensive city to live according to Mercer full list here.

There are a few options when choosing your accommodation in Seoul, and also be aware of the very high deposit amount sometimes up to 1 year upfront! In our full guide on moving to Seoul, we have a full section on accommodation in South Korea. There are many sites to find all types of accommodation in the capital.

The most popular being Craigslist Seoul. Check out our guide for the best neighborhood to live as an expat in Seoul. It is more difficult to find an accommodation in Busan, especially if you are not onsite.

Unfortunately, the Craigslist site only exists for Seoul. However, while the choice is relatively limited, there are other site you can check out regularly: Korea Bridge and Just Landed. The positive side is that rents are significantly cheaper than in Seoul and of places of better quality. The easiest way to find a place in Busan is to go through a real estate agent who can speak English. Seoul is an extremely well-connected city and the transport network extremely easy to use.

In the subways, destinations are announced in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese. The bus system is much less obvious to understand and always crowded. As a newbie in Seoul, you will prefer using the subway at first.

There is a transport card called T-Money which is specially intended for Seoul and Gyeonggi-do districts. This makes it very convenient to pay the transportation fare including taxi. See the interactive Seoul subway map. Busan is also a city with an excellent transportation network. The metro has 4 main lines and the stations are announced in several languages.

However the journey seems to take much more time than in Seoul. Even for shorter distance, it seems to take quite some time to reach your destination. However, both the bus and subway are much less crowded than in Seoul. The Hanaro Card is a transport card that you can only use in Busan. It is interesting as it offers discounts.