City Guide
5 Things to Do in Seoul, South Korea
Ancient royal palaces sit alongside hyper-modern tech culture in one of Asia's most walkable, transit-connected capitals.
The main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty, with a formal changing-of-the-guard ceremony held in the main courtyard several times a day. Renting a hanbok (traditional Korean dress) from a nearby shop gets you free entry and makes for the classic Seoul photo backdrop against the palace's painted wooden halls.
Good to know: The changing-of-the-guard ceremony runs on a set schedule (typically a few times daily, not on Tuesdays when the palace is closed) — check current times before going.
A hillside neighborhood of traditional hanok houses wedged between Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung palaces — unlike a recreated village, people genuinely still live in many of these homes, so the alleys are real residential streets, not a museum.
Good to know: Keep noise down in the residential lanes — signs remind visitors this is a real neighborhood, not an attraction, and locals have asked for quieter visits.
Seoul's biggest shopping and street-food district, packed with K-beauty flagship stores by day and street food carts (tteokbokki, giant turnip cake skewers, Korean corn dogs) by night. It's touristy but genuinely representative of contemporary Seoul retail and snack culture.
Good to know: Go in the evening — the street food stalls set up after dark and the crowd energy picks up significantly.
A communications tower on Namsan mountain with an observation deck overlooking the entire city, reachable by cable car or a scenic hiking trail. The surrounding fence is covered in thousands of padlocks left by couples, a well-known Seoul tradition.
Good to know: Take the cable car up but consider walking down through Namsan Park — it's a pleasant, mostly-downhill route.
A century-old covered market famous for bindaetteok (savory mung bean pancakes) and mayak gimbap ('narcotic' mini gimbap, named for being addictively good) — many stalls have been run by the same families for generations.
Good to know: Go hungry and share — the appeal is trying small dishes from several stalls rather than one big sit-down meal.