Is it visa-free for Chinese citizens to go to Jeju Island in South Korea?

It is visa-free. It is actually a visa on arrival and you can stay for one month. Visa holders of Chinese passports and individual tourists who are not part of a tour group can follow the steps below to apply for a visa-free trip to Jeju:

1. Hold a valid passport: Hold a valid mainland Chinese passport. Chinese citizens who have no record of visa refusal by the Korean Embassy are eligible to enter Jeju Island, South Korea, visa-free for 30 days.

2. Purchase a direct flight ticket to Jeju Island: You can only enjoy the visa-free policy if you take a direct flight to Jeju Island. Transfers are not allowed. To be on the safe side, it is best to have a direct round-trip air ticket when entering the country.

Extended information:

Introduction to Jeju Island

Jeju Island, the largest island in South Korea, is located in the southwest waters of South Korea, with an area of ??1,845 square kilometers and a population of 600,000. It has a pleasant climate and is a famous tourist island with Jeju City on the north coast. Jeju Island, with its maritime climate, is known as the "Hawaii of South Korea". The beautiful Jeju Island not only has the unique beautiful scenery of the island (Ten Scenic Spots of Yeongju), but also inherits the special folk culture of the ancient Tamna Kingdom.

Jeju Island is a "mythical island". It is said that there were three immortals who met three princesses who came by canoe from the Blue Wave Kingdom in the East China Sea. They brought cattle, horses and grain seeds with them. The three immortals married the three princesses, and then established villages and began to live long-term lives. Jeju's famous scenic spot "Samsung Cave" is a historical relic related to this myth. It is said that during the Three Kingdoms period, there was an ancient country called "Tamna" in Jeju, and it was not until Emperor Gojong of Goryeo that it was renamed "Jeju".

Jeju Island Food

The main ingredients of Jeju Island’s food are sea fish, vegetables, and seaweed, seasoned with soybean paste, and sea fish is used to make porridge and soup. Mainly pork and chicken are used to make meat slices. The hard-working, unadorned, and simple character of Jeju Island people can be reflected in their food. For example, you can't see many dishes on the table, many seasonings, or a variety of mixed ingredients.

The characteristic is to promote the original flavor of various materials. The taste is slightly salty, probably because the weather is hot and the food is a little salty to prevent it from becoming stale. The winter is also warm enough that the cabbage can stay in the ground, so instead of making kimchi that is buried in the ground for long-term consumption, kimchi can be made for short-term consumption, and there are fewer types of kimchi.

The seafood on Jeju Island is very delicious. On the island, you can witness the cooking of conch and abalone collected by the divers. You can enjoy sashimi, abalone porridge, seafood hotpot, grilled tilefish, etc. in local restaurants in Seogwipo and Jeju. At the restaurants of Daeyoo Hunting Ground and Seongeup Folk Village, you can taste light pheasant dishes, as well as Hanil ale and Jeju Folk Village’s Halla longevity wine.

The charcoal-grilled pork ribs are also a popular delicacy. In addition, Jeju’s famous local delicacies include cakes, grilled caramel, plum sparkling wine, pheasant buckwheat noodles, crab soup, buckwheat shaved noodles, etc. In Jeju, hotels have various restaurants such as Western restaurants, Japanese restaurants, Korean traditional restaurants, and Jeju local restaurants, so customers can enjoy whatever they want.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia - Jeju Island