OMG guys, I FINALLY visited Korea! This is a country that has been near the top of my ‘want to visit’ list for a very long time. I spent two weeks travelling South Korea, and I’ll be sharing all my advice and tips across a variety of blog posts. You can also head over to YouTube to check out my Korea vlogs.
Where to stay in Seoul, Korea
Just before we dive into the best things to do in Seoul, I thought I’d share where I stayed during my time in the city. Korea can be expensive for accommodation, and so I opted for hostels for most of my trip. In Seoul, I stayed at Haru Hostel, which was around £25 a night in a 4 bed female dorm. I can honestly say it is probably one of the best hostels I’ve ever stayed in! It was in a great location, close to public transport, incredibly clean, and with amazing amenities such as towels, hairdryer, fridge and even a flatscreen tv in each bunk!
Top Things to do in Seoul, Korea
To kick off the Korea posts, I wanted to cover one of my new favourite cities first, with a guide on the best things to do in Seoul. I absolutely loved this city, there was so much to do and it was so vibrant and had so much energy about it. Below are some of the best things to do in Seoul, Korea.
Ikseon-dong area
One thing about Seoul is that there are so many different neighbourhoods to explore. One of my favourites that I visited was the Ikseon-dong area. This area is filled with hanok style cafes, restaurants and boutique shops, perfect for shopping and matcha hunting. A few of my favourite spots I visited here were Hanok Langdon (you NEED to try the Cafe latte Vienna), Onjisim for a huge variety of delicious bagels, and Salt Pond, for the salt bread. If you want to go for dinner in the area, there are plenty of restaurants to choose from. I headed to Ikseon Chihyang to try the TikTok viral ‘rose pasta’ (spoiler alert – it was so good).
Gyeongbokgung Palace
There are a few different palaces to see when you visit Seoul. The first one I went to was Gyeongbokgung Palace. Entrance here is about £1.60 (or free if you’re wearing Hanbok) and you can easily spend an hour or two wandering around the grounds, between the gardens and the different buildings. It was raining when I visited, but it still felt magical. It’s also a great place to learn about the history of Seoul, and you can even see the building where the Korean alphabet was created.
Changdeokgung palace & secret garden
Although I did love visiting Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, my favourite of the palaces was Changdeokgung palace & secret garden. Entrance here is a little more, if you want entrance to both the palace and the secret garden (again, it’s free if you’re wearing Hanbok). The palace you can wander around any time, but the secret garden is a timed ticket entry, to try and control the number of visitors into the gardens. I’m glad they did this, as it meant the garden was really peaceful, and not too overrun. Although your ticket to the secret garden has timed entry, once you’re inside you can stay until it closes at 5pm. I would recommend going to both palaces at opening time, as it can get really busy after the first hour.
National museum of contemporary history
I stumbled upon the National museum of Korean contemporary history by chance, as I was looking for somewhere to escape the rain. It was close to Gyeongbokgung Palace, and entry was free, so I thought, why not! History museums aren’t usually my thing, but this was really interactive and actually so interesting. It took you through the history of Korea from the Japanese occupation right through to their economic boom and up to present day Korea. It was really interesting learning about the Japanese occupation, and cool to see what Korea was like through recent decades.
Shopping in seoul
Seoul truly is a shopaholic’s dream, and even as someone who doesn’t particularly enjoy shopping, I still had to control myself with the amount of high street, vintage and boutique streetwear stores there are. You could easily spend hours shopping here, particularly in areas like Hongdae and Myeongdong. Whether you’re looking for well known brands, Korean brands, souvenirs or skincare, you will find anything you need when shopping in Seoul.
korean Beauty treatments
Korea is the home of skincare and beauty, and so (as you should) you need to experience it while you’re in Seoul. Whether you’re looking for endless skincare products to buy and try (thank you, Olive Young), entire stores dedicated to sheet masks (All Mask Story), facials, aesthetic or cosmetic procedures, Seoul is the place to do it. On my trip to Korea, I did plenty of skincare shopping, as well as getting facials, botox and filler treatments, all for at least half the price that I would have paid in Australia or the UK.
Naksan Park & Fortress Wall
One thing I loved about Seoul was the amount of outdoor parks and green areas dotted across the city. One of the parks I visited was Naksan park, at the top of a steep but short walk from the Ihwa-Dong neighbourhood. At the top you get incredible views of both sides of the city with the mountain peaks in the distance, as well as the opportunity to walk along the old city fortress wall.
Ihwa-dong Mural Village
On the way back down from Naksan Park, you may stumble across Ihwa-dong Mural Village. This is a tiny neighbourhood on the side of the hill, absolutely covered in street art and murals. It’s a really cool spot for those who love photography and street art, and definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area. There are also a great selection of rooftop cafes and restaurants in the neighbourhood that give great views out across Seoul.
Namsan Mountain Park, & Cable Cart
Perhaps one of my favourite things I did during my trip to Seoul, was heading up Namsan Park on the cable cart. I did manage to time this perfectly with sunset (although be aware I queued for nearly two hours to get on the cable cart!!). The sun was setting right as I boarded the cable cart up to the top, and then I got to the top met with a twinkling cityscape and a mellow orange-pink sky. I didn’t fancy heading to the top of N-Seoul tower, as the top of Namsan Mountain was good enough for me. If you want to, though, this is where it is located, along with restaurants, cafes and stalls where you can buy locks to attach to the railings at the top of the mountain.
DMZ North Korea Tour
One thing that was an absolute non-negotiable for me on my Korea trip, was a visit to the Demilitarized zone at the border with North Korea. I’ve always been fascinated with North Korea, and have long wanted to visit. But with borders closed and travel to the country nearly impossible, this was the closest I knew I could get (for now). At first I did wonder if this trip would be worth it, but I can honestly say without hesitation that it exceeded all my expectations by MILES. The DMZ North Korea trip I did was with Get Your Guide* and it took us to the peace park, the observation deck where you get to see the most incredible views of North Korea, and the DMZ (where you go into the secret tunnel that was built by North Korea in the 70s). You finish the tour with a trip to the Unification village, which is such an interesting place, where many Koreans still live despite being inside the Demilitarized zone, and just 12 km from the city of Kaesong, North Korea. Our guide Stella was so knowledgeable and made the trip incredibly fun. If you’re going to Seoul any time soon, I HIGHLY recommend heading out on a DMZ tour.
*I’ve linked the exact tour I did, but just a full disclaimer that this was a sponsored trip with Get Your Guide, although all opinions are my own and I would happily pay for such a tour.
Bukchon Hanok Village
Another neighbourhood you should explore in Korea, is Bukchon Hanok Village. Wandering through Bukchon is like stepping back in time, with its maze of traditional Korean houses (hanoks) mixed in with modern city blocks. It’s a photographer’s dream, and while you’re there, you can also pop into the Bukchon Traditional Culture Center to try your hand at Korean crafts, head to vintage shops like Good Buying Club or grab a delicious plate of Tteokbokki and people watch. Just be mindful of residents, as this is still a living neighborhood – for this reason, tourist visits are limited to between 10am and 5pm.
Hongdae area
If you’re looking for a wild night out during your trip to Korea, then Hongdae is the place to go. No matter what day of the week, this area is always lively, with late night shopping, street performers, food spots and of course, no shortage of bars and clubs!
Hongjecheon Stream & Artificial Falls
For a chilled, photogenic escape from Seoul’s urban buzz, Hongjecheon Stream and its Artificial Falls are a must. Tucked away in Seodaemun-gu, this tiny oasis features a dramatic 25-meter-high, 60-meter-wide waterfall that somehow blends seamlessly into its natural surroundings—even though it’s entirely man-made. The area is perfect for a laid-back afternoon: stroll or cycle along the scenic riverside paths, spot the turtles chilling in the stream, or grab a drink from Cafe Pokpo and enjoy the views.
Ansan Jarak-gil Trail hike
Seoul truly has something for everyone, and National Parks and hikes are very much included in that! Whilst I didn’t do ALL of the hiking I’d intended to (the weather was so hot), I did get to Ansan Jarak-gil hiking trail, which you can start from Hongjecheon Stream & Artificial Falls. This trail is a really lovely one, around the edge of the mountain, with a boardwalk and minimal stairs. During the month of May you can also do the barefoot red clay section, which is said to have numerous health benefits including improved blood circulation, enhanced immunity, and stress reduction.
Starfield Library & Statue of Gangnam Style
Seoul has a ton of ‘Instagram worthy’ spots, and one you might recognise from your social feeds, is the Starfield Library. This is a (small) but gorgeous library located close to Gangnam. Although it really is just a photo spot (since most of the books in the library are in Korean), it is still worth a visit if you’re nearby. You can combine a visit to Starfield library with a trip to the Gangnam Style statue, and feel like you’re in 2012 again.
Yeouido Hangang Park & the Han River
Yeouido Hangang Park & the Han River was my favourite area of Seoul at sunset. Me and a couple of girls from the hostel headed down there late afternoon, grabbed some fried chicken from Moms Touch, rented a blanket and sat and enjoyed the sunset with our picnic of food. It was so busy and so nice to see all the locals enjoying the area too.
War Memorial of Korea
Another great spot to learn about the history of Korea and the Korean war, is the War Memorial of Korea. This huge complex is made up of peaceful gardens, ponds, replica planes, tanks and boats, as well as memorial statues for each country that helped South Korea during the Korean war. It also has a museum, which is really interesting and interactive. I found the section all about North Korea and its threats and nuclear weapons really interesting. One thing I found during my time in Korea, is how incredibly grateful Koreans are for other countries’ involvement in the war. This was really apparent during my DMZ tour, but also at the War Memorial of Korea, where there was a whole section dedicated to the Korean Army’s aid around the world in countries like Vietnam, Yemen and Somalia to try and repay the countries that helped them.
Cafe Hopping
This wouldn’t be a complete list of the best things to do in Seoul without a cafe mention. I don’t think I’ve ever visited a place that had SO many aesthetic cafes to visit. My list of cafes to visit in Seoul was long before I even arrived in the country, but every time I walked around the city, I felt like my list was just doubling in length as I stumbled across so many options. You could truly spend a week here just cafe hopping, if that’s your jam (it’s mine). Some of my favourites include Cafe Onion, Rain Report and Hanok Langdon.
More Things To Do in Seoul
I’m really not exaggerating when I tell you Seoul has SO much to see and do. I spent 8 days in the city and barely even made a dent in my list of things I wanted to do. Some additional things to do in Seoul that I simply didn’t have time to fit in, I’ve listed below:
- Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP)
- Wall Of Culture
- Gwangjang Market – Food market for dinner
- The Hyundai Seoul
- Gyeongui Line Forest Park
- Inwangsan hike
- Bukhansanseong
- Nami island
- National Museum of Korea
- Yongsan Park
- Seoul forest
- MMCA (National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art) Seoul
Have you been to Seoul before? What was your favourite thing you did when you were there?
x