As an avid traveler, I take all my trip planning seriously. I am talking about a level of nerdiness where I make PPTs and have detailed itineraries ready weeks before I travel. Call me crazy, but all my trips so far have turned out to be pretty darn awesome.
Unfortunately, this woman’s trip to Korea turned into a nightmare, all thanks to the friend who invited her there. This lady had lied about having perfect itineraries planned, when in reality, she just mooched off her and spent most of the time glued to her phone! Here’s what happened…
More info: Reddit
Trips abroad can be really amazing or a total nightmare, based on who you travel with
Image credits: primagefactory / Magnific (not the actual photo)
The poster's friend constantly whined about being lonely when she moved to South Korea, and practically begged her to visit her for a trip
Image credits: tzido / Magnific (not the actual photo)
The poster planned a 3-week-long trip just as her friend had wanted and also booked all the hotels for them as she wanted to stay with her
Image credits: magnific / Magnific (not the actual photo)
However, just the first 5 days felt like her friend had planned an itinerary, and even then she just took pictures and was constantly buried in her phone
Image credits: thanyakij-12 / Magnific (not the actual photo)
In fact, after those 5 days, she refused to leave the hotel room and mocked the poster when she traveled alone, so she finally snapped and kicked her out
Image credits: Life_Appointment_210
Although the friend apologized, she went back to her infuriating behavior, so the angry poster left her on read when she was leaving the country
Today, we dive into the life of the original poster (OP) as she vents about what happened on her trip. Her friend had moved to South Korea and kept whining about feeling lonely over there. That’s why she invited our lady to visit her for 3 weeks, but there were red flags right at the beginning. For instance, she brushed off the author’s suggestion of going to an amusement park.
Also, as she lived with her grandparents, the woman asked the poster to book a hotel and said that she would stay with her. For the first 5 days of the trip, they went to Jeju Island, and the OP felt that was the only time they had an “itinerary.” Even there, her friend was constantly on her phone. However, it was fun for our lady because of the locals, but things got worse after they returned.
There was no itinerary as she had claimed, and she wasted all the time scrolling on the phone at the poster’s hotel, and only left the room to eat. When the author wanted to explore, she would whine about not having enough money or feeling tired. That’s why our lady started traveling solo, but again, her friend mocked her or said it was dangerous for her to travel alone.
Of course, the OP finally snapped and kicked her out, but she had the nerve to play the victim card. Well, she eventually apologized and planned a day-long itinerary, but that’s how long it lasted before she went back to her old self. In the end, the trip turned out to be a solo vacation for the author, as her friend didn’t even come to drop her off at the airport, so our lady ghosted her.
Image credits: surachetsh / Magnific (not the actual photo)
Well, according to stats, an average month-long budget trip to South Korea for a single person costs around $3459. Although the poster only stayed for 3 weeks, she covered the hotel costs for both of them, and also splurged on her friend when needed. Well, that’s a lot of money the OP was investing, so obviously, she expected some fun experiences in return.
Instead, she was treated like an unwanted guest while her friend was constantly busy on her phone. Studies highlight that too much screen time can impact our health in a myriad of ways. From eye strain and neck pain to social isolation and mental health, the effects are quite adverse, and in some cases, it may cause harm to our brains and also interfere with sleep.
The poster’s friend was so obsessed with her screen that she didn’t even care about her own health. However, when our lady decided to take things into her own hands, she claimed that it was dangerous for her to travel solo. According to a travel agency, “South Korea is very safe for solo female travelers. Crime rates are low, and the country has a reputation for being safe in general.”
“In fact, Seoul ranked in 25th place on the Economist’s Safe Cities Index in 2021 and 7th on the more recent 2025 State of Travel Insurance Safest Destinations report,” it adds. Netizens felt the author’s friend might be jealous to see her spend money, so she lied about it being dangerous. But at least the OP learned how to travel by herself and found out whether this friend was worth staying in touch with.
What are your thoughts on the story? Let us know in the comments!
Netizens found the friend extremely annoying but felt that the poster at least learned how to fend for herself in a different country
