The vibrant heart of South Korea, Seoul, is a must-see city. Many are already familiar with this city through the great Korean series (“Kdrama”) on Netflix. However, it does not stop here. This country has something for everyone: a lively city, beautiful nature and of course fantastic food! I wouldn't recommend just going to Seoul, but easily calculate a stopover for a few days when travelling through Asia.
Highlights⚡️
- Two Koreas; The DMZ is a four kilometer neutral zone between the two Koreas. If you have enough time in Seoul, a drive (55 km away) to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a must. Korea is traditionally an old Japanese colony, which was controlled from Beijing until World War II. After World War II, the Soviet Union occupied the North part of Korea and America appropriated the South. The intention of the two superpowers at the time was to create a temporary separation, but the Communist (Northern) part and the predominantly Democratic (Southern) part could not come closer to each other. The history of the demilitarized zone begins at the end of the Korean War in 1953. This is where the border between North and South Korea runs. It's really bizarre to walk around there: barbeds everywhere and discovered tunnels that mark the separation of the two parts, along with stories from guides about families that have been separated for years. Even my daughter of four (4) years old was impressed: she told me how she also occasionally draws a line in quarrels with her nieces, but that she always makes up with her nieces (unlike the Koreans). The tours from Seoul are well arranged and can be booked through this site 💣
- Palaces and Temples: The Gyeongbok Palace is the most important and largest palace of the Joseon Dynasty. Unfortunately, during the Japanese invasions of Korea, the palace was burned to the ground, but the palace walls remained standing. Over time it has been restored and is now open to the public. If you plan your visit at the right time, you'll get to see the changing ceremony of the Royal Guard twice a day. You can go out on your own, but booking a tour is also an option 🛕
- Traditional Clothing: How cool is it to dress up in traditional Korean clothing (Hanbok)? Everywhere in the city you can rent these clothes and walk through the city dressed up. My daughter felt like a Korean princess. For the real photo shoot die-hards; you can also book a photo shoot 👗
- Shopping and markets: Seoul is a Valhalla for shopaholics. You can go wild in several shopping areas: Myengdong Market, Itaweon and Gwanjang Market were my favourites. These areas caused heavy suitcases for us. For the Muslims among us, Itaweon has the only mosque in Seoul. The perfect neighborhood to perform Friday prayers, after which you can go shopping and eat (halal!!) food 🛍️
- Hamam/Jjimjilbang: After all the shopping, walking and eating, you'll get tired. There's no better way to recharge than in a Korean sauna. If you are a Kdrama fan, you will already be familiar with this. A large separate public bathhouse (also called Jimjilbang) where you can relax completely. The best bathhouses can be found here 🧖♀️
Lowlights 😔
- Transport: Transport with the local taxis is very expensive. Fortunately, Seoul has an immense public transport network, so you are not dependent on these expensive options. In addition, you can use the Korean Uber/Grab called Kakao T, which you can download from the app store 🚕
- Language: The previous point brings the second problem, which is language barriers. Few people speak - understandable - English, which also caused problems for us in transport. We wanted to buy a ticket at the metro station where we were staying, so that we could easily travel around. The gentleman who worked there didn't understand anything and kept offering us normal metro tickets 🗣️
- Strollers in public transport: We experienced this as a problem. Every time we wanted to take the metro, we stood at an entrance and/or exit where there was no elevator. The elevators are there, but they are miles away or just at different entrances and exits then where the metro stopped 🚉
Location and transportation 🚗
Flying to Seoul takes – with a direct flight – approximately twelve (12) hours from The Netherlands. This is quite long, and as we were traveling with young children (one (1) and four (4) years old), we chose to plan a stopover in both Dubai and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
We stayed in Insadong, a lively area with (night)markets and many restaurants (yes, food is important to us). A nice bonus is that it is centrally located and close to tourist attractions. You can also enjoy walking down the streets, which is important with young children. If you want something more hectic, you can always go to Myengdong and Dongdaemun.
Neighborhoods that you should avoid to spend the night are for example, Ghangnam. Who doesn't know the famous K-pop song (Ghangnam style) from 2012? Everything is open until late and it is very lively, but the journey time to the central part, is at least 45 minutes and it is quite pricey.
In terms of transportation, Seoul has an excellent public transportation network. Everything is easy to do thanks to the great metro connection. There is also still the option for a bus. We traveled with two young children so we were very tired after the flight(s). We decided to take a taxi from the airport to the hotel. This is pricey, so if you still have some energy left and you are not traveling with very young children, the advice is to go for the cheapest option, which is the train/Arex Express or the shuttle bus.
When food = life 🍛
Halal and vegan foodhotspots 🥕
- Busan Jib in Myengdong
- Eid in Itaewo
- Yang Good Korean BBQ
- Osegyehyang in Insadong
Good to know before you go 🙋🏽♀️
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You used to need a K-ETA visa for Korea, but fortunately that is no longer necessary for Dutch people
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Seoul is a bustling but expensive city, be prepared for this
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Many people do not speak, or at least not understandable, English. There is WiFi everywhere in the city (also just on the streets) so make sure you work with a good translation machine. Check out this blog for useful travel apps
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Korea has very warm summers and Siberian winters, so it is better to travel in spring or autumn. We went in November, but this period was actually too cold. Also, be sure to travel outside of national holidays such as Korean New Year, which takes three days in February
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Make sure you have a good pair of walking shoes, because you will be walking a lot!
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Don't do this in Korea: keeping your shoes on in somebody's house or a place of worship, using the unlucky number four (4), standing too close to someone you just met or simply don't even know, refusing food when offered
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Seoul is a safe city
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South Korea does not want to give Google permission to store map data. As a result, the functionality of Google Maps in the country remains very limited. Try 'Naver Maps' or 'Kakao Maps' as an alternative
Hopefully this blog will help you plan your trip to South Korea. We combined this trip with a trip to Australia. Click here to read more about tips for a trip to Sydney! Ma3a salama 🫶.
An-nyeong!
Rachida
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