We will be visiting our son at Osan for the holidays from Dec.22 to Jan. 4. Does anyone have any suggestions about where to stay in Songtan City? We are exploring the Turumi Lodge but don't know yet if we will be allowed to stay there. I'm a military veteran but not a retiree.

Also does anyone have any suggestions about what to do while were in the Osan area? We'll have quite a long time to see and do things if there is anything to see and do. Our son plays for the Mustangs and is busy as a crew chief. He hasn't had much time yet to see the area outside the base so he's not much help in this area.

Thanks for your help.

Joe G.
Sandusky, Ohio

The best place to stay in SongTan is probably still the YongChon Hotel. It is just a very short, maybe two minute walk down the main drag to the main gate of Osan. It has a restaurant so that is very convienient for those who are on short trips to the area and it is easy to find since it is just off the main street. There is an interactive map of the hotels at the osan retiree web sight: www.rao-osan.com. The best thing might be to call the Osan Turumi lodge and ask them for the phone number to the YongChon. You should probably get in touch with them now to see how the booking situation is for that time of year. Even though it appears to be a small town, many time the SongTan hotels are booked up in advance for many reasons.

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Turk Quid Pro Quo

Turk,

Thanks for the useful info and the quick response. It's much appreciated.

Joe and Michelle

A DMZ tour is absolutely a must-do if there's one available. Your son can arrange that through the travel office on base. The travel office also offers a bunch of other local tours, though I'm not sure how much is availabe during the holidays. Also, Seoul is only 30 minutes away and very easy and cheap to get around on the subway. You can catch the train at the Songtan train station, about a ten minute walk or one minute cab from the front gate. There's plenty to see and do in Seoul (markets, temples, palaces, etc).

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Hook 'em
Bear


Texas Longhorns
2005 College World Series Champs
2005 NCAA Football Champs

Piece of cake. If you have any more questions about the area don't hesitate to ask. I spent many years there but I am currently in the states ( back here in 2000). There are many of the forum members here who are there currently. There is a program sponsored by the USO and other organizations called "Reunion in Korea". It is set up to help family members get to Korea and see their loved ones and have a good Korean visit. It is not centered in SongTan though. It is a kind of pre-planned sight seeing trip to share with your family. You may want to contact the USO and check into it, but it may not coincide with your dates and if you want to keep your visit in SongTan then it would not be the way to go. Have a good trip and a good visit and just like Mexico, don't drink the water. lol.

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Turk Quid Pro Quo

Just heard from the manager of the Turumi Lodge. If our son can get us overnight passes to stay on base we can get reservations (space available) at the Turumi Lodge. I have the managers' eMail address if anyone else is interested.

Joe G.

We've now been at Osan for about a week. Our son took us on a side trip to the Dragon Hill Lodge at Yongsan Army Base and for a dinner at the top of the Seoul Tower. This made for very enjoyable evening. The Dragon Hill Lodge is a fabulous hotel with a first class spa including an olympic length lap pool and a steam bath. There are several good restaurants and bars in the hotel.

Yesterday we went to the DMZ. A very interesting place. Seeing barbed wire, tank traps and guard posts along the whole length of the highway to the DMZ was a real eye opener. We were with a small group including a Korean interpreter and people from Brazil, Indonesia and India. We had a really good time and learned a lot.

I ordered three suits from Mr. OH, who's originally from Nepal. I hope he's reliable. I got his name from a posting on Epinions. I haven't seen too many postings about the reliability of the various vendors in Songtan. That would be helpful to those new to the area.

We are really enjoying are time here at Osan. We're staying at the Turumi Lodge. They seem to have their internet access problems worked out. We have had no problem logging on at Rickenbachers, the new coffee house. Haven't had a problem using one of the four computers at the business center either.