With Korean culture and entertainment spreading to all corners of the globe, the dream to visit the peninsula of South Korea has become widespread. And one of its most well-known cities is Seoul, which is also the nation’s capital city.
Being an amalgamation of the modern and the traditional, Seoul presents various desirable tourist destinations for anyone who wants to visit and experience their culture and evolving society, from the towering skyscrapers to the temples and street markets.
Bukchon Hanok Traditional Village
First on the list is the Bukchon Hanok Village that’s home to preserved ancient neighborhoods of Seoul, South Korea. To give a feel of what it’s like to live in Korea 600 years ago, the streets of this village feature hanoks or traditional Korean abodes following traditional architecture.
Being a historic place, tourists would expect the place to be abandoned and have no signs of life apart from tourists like them. However, the village is an actual neighborhood with occupants in almost all of them, with some serving as guesthouses, bed-and-breakfasts, and some are even museums tourists can go visit.
The village can be found in central Seoul, just around the area between Gyeongbokgung Palace and Changdeokgung Palace.
Gyeongbokgung Palace
Take a peek and experience the powerful Joseon dynasty by going to Gyeongbokgung Palace, the largest of the five grand palaces of Seoul first built in 1395 and restored completely in the 1990s. The National Palace Museum of Korea and the National Folk Museum of Korea can also be found on the palace grounds.
More than just its impressive facade, the palace museum displays items from the palaces of the Joseon Dynasty, including antiques and artwork, along with daily paraphernalia for cooking, cleaning, and many more. Meanwhile, the National Folk Museum showcases items from daily life, clothing, and dioramas.
Dongdaemun Design Plaza
Situated in Seoul’s fashion district Dongdaemun, the Dongdaemun Design Plaza, or DDP is a silver, orb-like building in sharp contrast to the ruins of an ancient city fortress preserved just outside the front entrance of the plaza. The DDP building has showrooms, work spaces, offices, and design studios, along with a shop for small craft vendors with all kinds of contemporary and local handcrafted items, making it the perfect place to buy gifts.
At nightfall, the building bursts into light with 25,550 white LED roses, transforming into one of Seoul’s most instagrammable destinations.
Itaewon
Kdrama watchers know this all too well. Itaewon is a lively neighborhood filled with shops, cafes, and other establishments. From street performers to food carts, the side streets provide tourists with the experience of Korean retail culture in a snap.
Down Gyeongnidan Street, a variety of restaurants with international food lines across the street. And along a street called Antique Furniture street, antique shops prove excellent stores to buy unique gifts.
Jingwansa Temple
Located on the far west side of Seoul and found within the incredible Bukhansan National Park, the Jingwansa Temple, and its long history dating back to 1,000 BC, offers the Buddhist experience and what temple life is like to the tourists who come to visit it. With a range of public programs, the temple offers a temple stay, an overnight visit, along with cultural and educational programs. Tourists can even have a taste of the traditional vegetarian temple meal eaten by the monks.
If you’re not up to that, the buildings are also surrounded by hiking trails along the side of the mountains, perfect for anyone who simply wants to hike.
Lotte World Tower
A fairly new attraction of Seoul is the Lotte World Tower skyscraper with a height going up to 500 meters, making it the 5th tallest building in the entire world. With its vase-like shape and gentle curvatures, the building is designed to appear like traditional Korean ceramic pieces.
Within the tower, there are several indoor and outdoor areas from the 117th floor to the 123rd, offering a magnificent 360-degree view of the capital city both day and at night. And on the 118th floor, the Sky Deck, which is the world’s highest glass floor, turns from opaque to clear, scaring unaware tourists.
Even more than just offering the highest points of Seoul, the tower has offices, luxury residences, and the Signiel Seoul luxury hotel, along with the Lotte World Aquarium, the Lotte Museum of Art, and a huge shopping mall. And it doesn’t stop there as the tower also has the Lotte Concert Hall and the Lotte Cinema, which boasts the world’s largest movie screen.
N Seoul Tower
Perched on the side of Mount Namsan, N Seoul Tower rises almost 500 meters above Seoul, providing breathtaking views of the city.
To get there, a cable car will bring the tourists to the base of the tower from the side of the mountain. Then the tourists can visit any of the four observation decks in the tower, with one of them being a rotating restaurant.
With one of Seoul’s best French fine-dining restaurants n.GRILL at the top level, the tower also provides four other different dining experiences, along with gift shops.
Tourists can also check out the virtual display of the new Seoul immersive media art exhibition, which uses up to 40 laser projectors. And while the view from the tower is great, the N Seoul Tower also serves as a beautiful light post adorning Seoul with changing themed lighting presentations which can be seen from most parts of the city.
Gwangjang Market
And lastly, a cultural trip is not complete without having a taste of the street foods that rule the streets of Seoul. Gwangjang Market presents an array of street food vendors all in one place. The stalls in the market have allotted small chairs for visitors to sit while enjoying their food.
Located in central Seoul, the market is open from 9 am to 10 pm, serving food from bindaetteok, bibimbap, gimbap, sundae, tteokbokki, and other types of noodles, along with different parts of the market having vendors selling clothes and household items.
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