*This is solely on my own personal experience.
We have been to Japan 3x and Seoul x1, maybe if I have been to Korea 3x, my opinion would change.
1. The Bakery. The bakery in Japan smells heavenly. You can smell the fresh pastries from miles away, ok I was exaggerating. But seriously, I spent so much in Japan's bakeries because of their smell and tasted so goood. I didn’t even stop by any bakery in Korea cause I didn’t smell anything. Japan 1 - Korea 0
2. City Train. Seoul’s train is better. Lots of entrances, and easy connections. Clear signage and announcements. Japan 1 - Korea 1
3. Food. Generally, I prefer Japanese food. Korean food is more like an overpriced home-cooked meal. Japan 2 - Korea 1
4. Surprise elements. Japan offers more surprises for me. I really felt like an alien/culture shock when I first arrived in Japan. Which is a great experience for a tourist. So many wow elements. Japan 3 - Korea 1
5. English speaking. Generally most younger Korean can speak English, and some older ones can speak Mandarin. So not much language barrier for me. Japan 3 - Korea 2
6. Shopping. When I travel, I prefer to buy local, especially locally-made leather goods. It was so difficult to find in Korea, and not easy to search online. In Japan, they highlight more of their locally made product, in Korea, they highlight more LV, Channel, Prade, etc. Japan 4 - Korea 2
7. Pricing. In short, I trust Japanese prices more. I feel like somehow I got scammed in Korea, my bargaining skill is not good. Everything is just fixed price in Japan, easy. Japan 5 - Korea 2
8. Street food. This one Seoul wins big time. Myeongdong on a good day feels like a food festival street. We can hardly find street food in Sapporo. Japan 5 - Korea 3 (I totally forgot about Dotonbori, Osaka, when I wrote this. Gomenasai)
Seoul, Korea - May 2023
Sapporo, Japan - May 2019
It is interesting to read your comparisons. I would agree on certain points like their trains, language, pricing and bakeries! Somehow I still prefer Japan after visiting there 8 times from Sapporo to Fukuoka until further south. I read that Hokkaido is very different from the rest of Japan in their history, hence the name Sapporo is not even a Japanese word. They were ruled by the Ainu ethnic groups long ago and they're very near Russia where you could see different facial looks around North Hokkaido which I have not explored yet. About street food, I remember enjoying them in downtown during the Sapporo Snow Festival in Winter (February) Maybe they don't have a fixed place for street food due to the weather.
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree, Hokkaido feel less Japanese than other parts of Japan. My fav is Kyoto. But the seafood/sashimi in Hokkaido is sooo good.
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