South Korea

Seoul:

Things To Do:

DMZ Tour: a great tour that teaches you all about the history of North and South Korea and takes you to the boarder between the North and the South.
- I would recommend a tour that includes JSA
- Sign up early (a month in advance)! The tours fill up really quick, especially JSA.
- You have to bring your passport with you and there is a strict dress code (no ripped jeans, tank tops, open toed shoes, etc.)
- Check out this blog post for more in-depth details of visiting the DMZ and different companies to go with: https://thriftynomads.com/visiting-north-koreas-dmz-border-a-how-to-guide/
Themed Cafes: these are all over Seoul. From a Cat Cafe to a Hello Kitty Cafe, there are plenty of strange themed places to have a coffee.
Suyeonsanbang Tea House: a traditional tea house with a large variety of tea. Some of the teas are expensive but the overall experience is worth it.
Gyeongbokgung Palace: the most famous palace in Seoul. Outside of the palace there are a bunch of places to rent traditional outfits (Hanboks). If you rent an outfit, you get into the palace for free!
Insadong-Gil: a great street for artsy shopping.
Go shopping for skin care products. South Korea is known for their skin products and they are cheaper than products in the US. Lotte Department Store has 2 floors dedicated to skin care.
Namdaemun Market: the place to go for Korean street food, trinkets and knock-offs.
N Seoul Tower: great views of the city. I wouldn’t recommend taking the gondola to the top. There is a bus that can take you up, or there is a hike that takes about 35 minutes. The views are nice all the way up and it’s an easy hike.

Accommodation:

Brownie Guesthouse: located in Hongdae, very close to the metro and a very cute place. The beds are a little hard, but it was an overall great stay.
The Hongdae Neighborhood is a great area to stay in. It’s located near 4 universities. There’s good bars, restaurants and shopping.

Food:

Maple Street: really good Korean BBQ. Expensive but delicious.
Salad Brothers: good salads, with customizable options.
Travel Maker: great American style breakfast joint.
Bob Cafe: traditional Korean food. I would highly recommend the Bibimbap.
Hoho Myoll: a themed cafe (retro theme) with really good tea and coffee. Not a lot of food options.
World Food Street: as the name states, it’s a street with a bunch of restaurants serving cuisine from around the world.

Notes:

A taxi from the airport to downtown Seoul is expensive. Expect to pay around $55. If you are looking for a cheaper option, you can take a bus, but if you decide to take a taxi, take a yellow metered taxi.
- There are different taxis around Seoul and they vary in prices. The yellow taxis are the cheapest, and the black taxis are more expensive.
If you are going to be taking the metro, I would recommend getting a T Money Card. You can get them at any corner shop. The T Money Card also works on the buses and in taxis!
Google Maps does not work for driving or walking directions in Korea. However, it does work for transit. Waze works for driving directions. Kakao Metro is also a good app for transit directions, and KakaoT is similar to Uber.
Tipping is not customary in South Korea.