Ch'onan Travel Forum

hi everybody!

i got an opportunity to work in Ch'onan in South Korea, it's about 80 kms in the South of Seoul, and i would like to know your opinion about that city!

I first look for precise information concerning cost living: is it much cheaper to rent a flat there compared to Seoul? any figures? and as i know there are not so many foreigners living there, i'd like to know if it's possible to get a fresh beer in a nice bar/club! what about night life?

... cause there's nothing on the web...

Thanks for your repplies, and see you around the world!

Perhaps you would have more luck finding the info you need if you used the official correct spelling in your search for info. It is now spelled Cheonan (amazing what happens when you romanize Korean). So I assume you meant Chonan which is next to Ansan; home of many famous hotsprings. Anyway, here are a couple of good links for you:

http://wiki.galbijim.com/Cheonan

http://www.cheonan.go.kr/english/

Korea finally got around to standardizing spelling for places a few years ago so you couldn't possibly know this, but the links above will give you some good info; including your bar question. As far as rent, nearly everywhere in Korea is cheaper than Seoul; can't give you any figures though. Perhaps "Vita500" (Robert) could answer that one since he still lives there.

Yeah, the city you're referring to is Cheonan, next to Asan (not Ansan by the way, which is adjacent to Seoul). Have never been to the city but location-wise it's not as bad as it might seem. Since the year 2005, Cheonan is directly connected to Seoul via subway line no.1. The ride takes about an hour. There are also frequent buses as well as trains (one hour ride). You can also go by KTX, Korea's high-speed train, which goes from Seoul to Cheonan-Asan Station in 34 minutes.

Seeing that Cheonan has around 450,000 inhabitants, you don't need to worry about night-life. Korea has a notorious drinking culture and pubs can be found (in Korea called HOF) on every second street corner.

Cheonan should be much cheaper than Seoul for rent. However, as you mght know Korea has this very unique rental system. People usually pay a huge amount of key money (a kind of deposit of around 20,000 to 80,000 USD!). The higher the deposit, the lower then rent. Most People pay no rent at all after paying the full apartment value. Obviously, as most people need to get a loan to pay for the key money, you're actually paying the rent to your bank instead of the landlord. The key money is fully refunded when you move out...
You can also pay rent without any key money though. The rent varies from district to district and depends on the size and age of the building/room. Furnished apartments are also available but are quite a bit more expensive than non-furnished apartments. Hence, it depends on how long you plan to stay to decide on whether to purchase your own furniture or not.

I think you should be able to find a decent one-room studio apartment for about 400 USD/month but this is a very vague guess. Might be cheaper, might be more. Prices are changing rather quickly in Korea and especially in newly developed areas like Cheonan (subway connection, KTX, etc.) prices have probably risen quite a bit over the past few years. Should still be much cheaper than Seoul though...

If I were you, I'd ask my company to provide me with some information on accommodation.

Chers,
Robert

Thanks guys for your fast and precise answers!

I've just been living in China for more than one year, and i just hope i'm doing the right choice cause i really love China, and i've started to get real conversations in Chinese... But i cannot refuse such a great job opportunity in Cheonan, and all the Korean people i've met so far were so nice.. so here i come!!

Thanks again!
Eddy