Top Travel Tips for Readers in Seoul

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This week, Hack Your City took a train from Seoul to South Korea . We’ve got great city tips from locals and patrons alike, and we’ve put just a few highlights below. First, here’s a great map guide – I love it when people draw on maps – of the traditional Bukchon village pictured here overlooking the city’s modern towers.

Eat and drink

  • “Skip Garosu-gil and try Hongdae or Hannam for unique cafes. Special mention of Roof_And; great chocolates and buttery croissants are served here. ”- Ansuni.
  • “If you love animals, you will love the various animal cafes throughout the city (cat cafes, dog cafes, animal cafes, etc.). Cafes, as a rule, also serve to save animals, because otherwise they would most likely be euthanized. ” – Qalian
  • “Osulloc green tea paste is divine” – AlinJapan
  • “Try Italian food; no kidding “- Tufsky
  • “If you’re looking for interesting places to drink and dine that are a little off the beaten path, areas such as Nejadong Lanes (near Gwanghwamun), Seochon (west of Gyeongbok Palace) and Ixondong (near Insadong and Changdeok Palace )) provide many small, intimate and interesting places “- figbash

See and do

  • “Other notable places worth visiting are Lotte World (indoor shopping mall and theme park) and Namsan (downtown mountain and popular tourist destination)” – Qalian
  • “It’s easy to get lost in Seoul. Enjoy it. Walk down this alley, never guess which graceful place you find hidden somewhere. Don’t worry about not finding your way back, you will never be that far from the metro station “, – Yasna Kholin
  • “Cheonggyecheon Palace is great, but be sure to visit the Secret Garden tour. You cannot wander the garden on your own, but it is worth seeing it on the must-see tour. If you can’t wait for an English-speaking tour, go for Chinese or Korean; the place is still amazing. “- Dajin
  • “There are a lot of green spaces in the city. Public parks, roof gardens and playgrounds. You can spend days just looking for them. They are found in most large shopping centers. The Coex mall has a nice aquarium. ”- fallenshell
  • “Promising area: Eulgiro area. It’s an old neighborhood in northern Seoul that is starting to pop up interesting restaurants and cafes, but Instagram’s Gangnam locust hasn’t invaded it yet. Head to Mullae-dong for the live music that Hongdae’s gentrification has supplanted. Mapo, near Gongdeok Station, is an area for Korean foodies they don’t want you to know about. Maloney’s is the best diving bar if you just want to take a break and listen to the stories of friendly old grandmothers. “- ZenKimchi
  • “A fun / weird thing to do if you have time is to visit Yongma Land. It’s a bit out of the way, but for about $ 5, you can wander and climb the abandoned theme park. It’s pretty fun if you like weird or vulgar things. And if you like bad taste, do not forget to visit the towering bronze statue of the song “Gangnam Style” “. – INowReallyMissTheOldKanye
  • “The nightlife in Korea is amazing, you can buy drinks and have fun until 7 or 8 am. If you are feeling overly anxious, check out jimjilbang, which looks like a public bath. They are split for men and women and have different hot and cold pools, a pool, snacks, saunas, cold rooms (my favorites) and salt rooms. You change into the robes they give you and everyone sleeps on rugs in the huge public room. It’s kind of weird, but it’s great, and $ 8 to $ 15 is best. ” – sOLo
  • “After a long day of walking and sightseeing, relaxing in a hot (or cold) bubble bath is really great. Make sure to shower thoroughly before going to the bath, as it is considered very bad form if you don’t. ” – Dimfacion
  • “If you go during the baseball season, watch the game near the Olympic stadium. Korean baseball is a much more crowd- driven experience than American baseball. ”- SCORCH1262

Know and plan

  • “Give up Google Maps in Korea, especially in Seoul. Seoul is constantly changing and Google doesn’t necessarily have great maps. Try using Naver Map or KakaoMap instead. ”- Yasna Kholin.
  • “Get your TMoney card at a convenience store (GS25, CU, 7-Eleven, etc.) and load it at the nearest metro station. TMoney can be spent on subways, buses, taxis and much more ”- SCORCH1262
  • “If you are primarily interested in cultural and historical sites, find a site north of the river. If you’re here for K-pop and modern shopping, look for places in the south. ”- figbash.
  • “The DMZ isn’t worth it if you can’t get into the Joint Security Area (JSA). Few travel agencies offer it. I know USO and Cosmojin do it. The risk is that the JSA will be shut down for, well, well, well, well, well, for security reasons. Without warning. “- ZenKimchi
  • “South Koreans are generally very friendly, helpful and nice, but very aggressive in the way they move around the city. They won’t stray from your path, even if it is obvious that you are trying to get around, so don’t be afraid to nudge a little. They also won’t flinch and won’t wait for an apology if you hit them (hard!) In the street. ” – INowReallyMissTheOldKanye

Get out of town

  • “The train is your friend. You can literally access neighboring provinces and counties for as little as $ 4. If you want natural spots, Gangwon-do is just an hour’s ITX ride ($ 4-8 one way). Gapyeong, Cheonpyeong and Jucheon are great places to visit, especially in spring and autumn. “- Ansuni

There are many more of these commenters, so go to the original thread and read them all! Come back Monday when Hack Your City goes … wow, to Florida.

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