Last updated on: September 25, 2024

Seoul is a special place to me as it’s the first city I ever internationally solo-traveled to. Blending together modern Korean city life while also preserving historical culture, there are things to do for history enthusiasts, foodies, shopping aficionados, and Korean pop culture lovers.

I aim to consolidate and cover the content I couldn’t find in other guides. While only the essentials are covered in this guide, you can continue your research with the rest of my Seoul posts.

Seoul at a glance

Here are a few things Seoul is famous for:

Can I get around with just English? 

The official language in Korea is Korean. English is not widely spoken. Younger Koreans may know basic English from learning it in school, though many are shy to use English as they do not use it regularly. Learning a tiny bit of Korean will be hugely beneficial and appreciated. The Korean language uses an alphabet called Hangeul, and is easy to learn. While Google Translate is usable, “Papago” app will have better translations as it is built specifically for Korean. Some restaurants’ names are written on the exterior only in Korean (and sometimes in a stylized script), so being able to read Korean will be useful.

There is a foreign traveler hotline that you can use (you can also message them on their app) if you need English help: 1330.

Menus: in touristy areas, menus may be in Korean and English. Many menus are in Korean only. See Menu Labeling for info about allergies and menu descriptions.
In some restaurants/cafes, there are kiosks that you can use to order. Even if it has an option to change to English, I’ve noticed the translations are incomplete and some of it still shows in Korean. I recommend researching restaurant menus beforehand, and knowing the Korean name(s) of the dish(es) you want to order ahead of time.

Street signs: Korean and English

Public transportation signage: Korean and English

Here are a few basic phrases that will help you with general interactions. Do note that Korean has honorifics (different levels of politeness), the colloquial polite versions are included below.

You should copy and paste the Korean into Papago to hear the pronunciation. 

Hello: 안녕하세요.
Thank you: 감사합니다.
Sorry: 죄송합니다.
Yes: 네.
No: 아니요.
[Ordering] One <dish>, please: <dish> 하나 주세요.
I will eat it here (dine in): 여기서 먹을게요.
Please make it to-go/I will take it to go: 포장해주세요.
Can I pay with credit card? 카드 돼요?
Excuse me / one second: 잠시만요.

Weather & Best Time to Visit

Seoul experiences the 4 seasons.

Winter (late November-mid March): It starts to get cold in November, slowly getting colder until January, which is the coldest month and may snow. Winter is on average -2°C to 5°C (28°F to 41°F).

Spring (mid march-June): Towards the end of March, it starts to get warmer and cherry blossom season occurs in the late March/early April. This is when the weather is most mild and pleasant. However, April is when there are often bad air quality days due to yellow dust blown in from the Gobi desert. Spring is on average 5°C to 23°C (41°F to 73°F).

Summer (June-August): Hot and humid, with temperatures warming up in June and continuing until August, which is the hottest month.  Monsoon weather may bring rain in July and August. Summer is on average 18°C to 30°C (64°F to 86°F) with humidity.

Fall (September-November): Cooler weather, with colorful autumn foliage. Fall is on average 5°C to 26°C (41°F to 79°F).

The best time of the year would be spring or fall, when temperatures are mild and nature is beautiful. As someone who visited Seoul in spring, the cherry blossoms are definitely worth planning your trip around. 

There are a few holidays in Seoul when places might be closed. The main holiday periods you should be aware of are:

Lunar New Year (Seollal, 설날): the dates vary by year as it follows the lunar calendar, typically late January or February. Many places may be closed during this time, and it is a busy travel period as people are traveling back to their hometowns. 

Chuseok (추석): the dates vary by year as it follows the lunar calendar, typically September or October. This is a time when Koreans gather with family to perform ancestral rites, visit ancestors’ graves, and eat traditional feasts. Stores will be busy leading up to the holiday days with people buying food/gifts for the gatherings. Many people will be traveling during this time to visit their hometowns.

Unless you are visiting specifically to attend Seollal or Chuseok events, I do not recommend you plan your trips during these holiday periods otherwise stores, restaurants, and tourist attractions will be closed.

Cash, Credit Cards, and ATMs

Credit cards are widely accepted at convenience stores, cafes, stores, and restaurants, and there are usually no minimum purchase requirements to use your card.

You will need to use cash for these purchases:
Buying and topping up your Tmoney card for public transportation
Markets, such as Gwangjang/Mangwon
Street vendors / subway store vendors
Wholesale markets like at Dongdaemun

ATMs are easy to find. I recommend going to the ATMs at bank locations (Shinhan, Woori) rather than ones inside convenience stores as those do not take international ATM cards. 

In my experience, I had a bit of trouble with ATMs in Seoul.
At Incheon Airport T1 arrivals, there is only 1 ATM on the arrival floor (which didn’t accept foreign cards). There are many ATM-looking machines on the departures floor, but many of these also don’t accept foreign cards or are actually currency exchange machines. I had to try several machines until I finally found a Woori Bank ATM that worked.
At some ATMs in central Seoul, it took a very long time to read my card (~10 minutes) even though it was instantaneous at a different branch of the same bank. Next time, I would plan my ATM transactions to be at ATMs connected to the banks during their opening hours in case I need help.

Overall:
It seems like there are 2 different types of ATMs next to each other (at the bank branches in Central Seoul)  – one that accepts foreign cards, and the one next to it might not. Usually there’s a sign (in English) on the ones that don’t, but if you don’t see an option on the ATM screen labeled “Foreign Languages” (in English), they do not take foreign cards. Do check all ATMs in the branch if the first one says no foreign card. The fee is ~3,300 won per ATM transaction.

However, if you are traveling internationally, you can save some money by bringing an ATM card that reimburses ATM fees:

Public Restrooms, Trashcans, Water Fountains

All public restrooms in Seoul are free. They can be found at:

Malls
Restaurants/cafes: The restroom may be located outside of the restaurant/cafe
Subway stations: Located outside of the fare gates; you can use the restroom even if you are not taking the train.

Toilet paper and soap is provided in restrooms. Toilet seat covers are nonexistent.

Public trashcans are not common. Korea has strict trash laws, where residents need to sort trash and pay for the amount they dispose. Even at convenience stores, there aren’t trash cans. In bathrooms, there may be trash cans for paper towels, but I also saw signs indicating that you shouldn’t throw away personal trash. Street food vendors will sometimes have trash cans, but you should only throw away trash from items purchased from that vendor. I suggest bringing a bag with you to hold trash to throw away once you are back at your hotel.

There are not that many public water fountains. The only ones I saw were in malls.
✅ Tap water is safe to drink.

Where to buy essentials

It is very easy to buy essentials in Seoul, with convenience stores on every block and Daiso every few blocks.

Common convenience store chains (at least 1 every block): CU, GS25, 7/11, emart24
Large grocery/home goods chains (at least 1 in every major area): Homeplus, emart, Lotte Mart
Common store chains (every few blocks): Olive Young (cosmetics), Daiso (home goods)

Although the drinks and snacks are relatively inexpensive at convenience stores, it is cheaper at the grocery stores if you are looking to buy it in larger quantities.

At some of the grocery chains/Olive Young, you may need a membership to get the advertised sale prices. (All) Olive Young locations and Lotte Mart (Zettaplex locations) were the only places I could get instant tax refunds by presenting my passport and buying eligible products amounting > 15,000 won. (Fresh food was not eligible, I’m not sure if non-perishable snacks are eligible).

At stores with self checkout kiosks (Daiso, grocery stores), I was able to change the language to English and the instructions were well translated. If you would like to get a tax refund, you will need to go to the regular checkout lanes.

Restaurant + Cafe Etiquette

This is a large topic that I’m covering in a separate post. For information on:

• typical meal prices
• seating (do you seat yourself?)
• menus
• ordering
• 1 drink per person rule at cafes
• water/napkins

please see the following post:

Solo Dining

In short, you should have no trouble with solo dining as long as you are not eating at BBQ places or ordering dishes requiring 2+ servings. You can read more about solo dining in my guide (I personally solo dined in Seoul during my entire trip, and ate at both traditional and casual spots):

Vegetarian friendly?

There are quite a few vegan/vegetarian restaurants in Seoul, and many vegan cafes. Some dishes are easily veganizable, such as kimbap and bibimbap. For more information, see my vegetarian food guide to Seoul.

Cultural Notes

• It is considered polite to give and receive with two hands (i.e., handing things, such as receipts, cards, etc)
• Holding the door for people behind you is not common.
• Seoul is considered a safe city, and there is CCTV everywhere.
• In Korea, there is the “Right to Face” or “Personality Rights”, which prohibits taking pictures of someone without their consent. Therefore, if you are wanting to take pictures, try to avoid taking pictures of strangers’ faces/blur faces if posting online.

Getting Around

For directions, you will need to use Naver Maps or Kakao Maps (Korean developed apps). These will have the most up to date information about 1) whether stores/restaurants still exist, 2) directions, 3) when the next subway/bus is coming, 4) opening times (businesses can update their times in Naver if closed for holidays, one-time closures), 5) reviews + photos. I personally found Naver more complete and easier to use.
Google Maps is not reliable/complete (but you can read reviews, though it will be mostly from foreigners).

Walkability

There are sidewalks and crosswalk signals on most streets, however there are some areas without sidewalks. You should expect to walk a lot in Seoul, and some areas are hilly. I personally needed to have Naver out all the time when following walking directions as streets are not in a grid, and you may need to cut through a random alley as part of getting to where you’re going. 

If you do not see a way to cross the street (no marked crosswalk), check if there are any subway station entrances near you. You may need to cross to the other side by entering the station and going out one of the other exits.

Be careful when crossing at areas with no crosswalk signals – cars do not stop to let waiting pedestrians cross unless they have a red light.

Public transportation

Seoul has two modes of public transportation: subways and buses.
The subway system is large, so for tourists, I recommend using Naver to give the quickest route. See my Naver guide on how to use the app for directions.

I did find the Seoul subway tiring, because there is still a lot of walking involved when taking the subway and sometimes the signage is confusing.

Subway stations are often several levels underground – this means taking multiple escalators (and sometimes your only options are stairs). Elevators can be difficult to find. Some transfers between stations are very long.

Subway stations are large, often with 10+ possible exits. Refer to Naver for which one you should take to get your destination. I frequently got lost trying to find the correct exit number.

Some platforms are only for a specific line/direction, so you will need to check if the signs are for the right line/direction before you walk the stairs up/down to the platform.

Depending on the distance, it might be easier to walk if you are only going one subway stop away. I also recommend taking the bus for some routes, as it may be more direct, and you can avoid the long walks from the subway entrance to the actual platforms. 

All bus stations are numbered, so you’ll know you’re at the right stop if it matches the bus stop number on Naver. You should hold up your hand out for the bus driver when you see the correct bus approaching to indicate you want to board.

🛑 When your stop is announced on the bus (sometimes there is only a small screen with moving text), you will need to press the STOP buttons to signal to the driver you’d like to get off. It is easiest to follow along on Naver if your bus doesn’t have the large screens that show the next stops in Korean and English. 

🚫 Do not sit in marked areas for the pregnant/elderly/injured unless you fit into these categories. These should not be occupied by people not fitting the categories even if the train is not full.
🚫 Do not talk loudly on the buses or subway.
🚫 Do not eat or drink on the subway or buses. Bus drivers may refuse to let you board if you are carrying something spillable like a drink.

Paying for public transportation

You can pay for public transportation with a Climate Card (day passes), a Tmoney card (stored value card), or single journey ticket.

Single journey ticket

You can buy single journey tickets for the subway at the ticket vending machines in the stations (language can be changed to English). There is a 500 won deposit that you can receive back after returning the card at the machines labeled “Deposit Refund Device”.
On buses, you can pay with cash but no change will be given and you cannot transfer for free between subway/buses if you paid cash.

Tmoney card

This is a reloadable stored value card. You should get one card per person.

Purchase at: Convenience stores, vending machines at the Incheon Airport train station. I did not see an option to buy a Tmoney card at the subway ticket vending machines (I am not sure if they sell it at the information desks)
Card price: 4000 – 7000 won (depending on the card design, note this is the price for the card itself without any balance)
Top-up balance: Use the ticket vending machines at the subway stations (has an option to switch language to English and is well translated) or at convenience stores.

For both the Tmoney card itself and all top ups, you MUST use cash (even if buying/topping up at convenience stores). 

All rides – whether subway or bus – are distance based. As of April 2024, each journey starts at 1,400 won (1,500 won if cash). Certain subway lines, such as the Sinbundang Line, have increased fares as it was developed/run by a different subway operator. Naver will tell you the fare for the routes it displays. If you take the subway, you can transfer to the bus within 30 minutes without being charged a new journey.

On the subway, there are fare gates at which you should tap on to enter and tap out to exit. The minimum fare will be charged when you enter and will be adjusted when you tap out. I suggest always having at least 5,000 won on your Tmoney card.

On the bus, enter at the front and tap on. When exiting, exit from the back doors and then tap off again.

You can also use your Tmoney balance to pay for the Airport Bus, taxis, and at some convenience stores.

Climate Card

As of July 2024, Seoul rolled out an unlimited transit pass on bus and subway for tourists (within Seoul and excluding some premium subway lines, does not include Airport Bus). As this was released after my trip, I did not get to test this out but it seems like the cheapest and easiest option. I would certainly use it next time I am in Seoul!

Purchase at: You can buy the transit pass card at subway station information desks, convenience stores, Seoul Tourism Plaza Tourist Information Center, and Myeong-dong Tourist Information Center. As this card is new and in demand, it may be difficult to find a seller that has it in stock.
Card price: This card costs 3000 won with no balance.
Top-up: Use the ticket vending machines at subway stations to reload your card with a 1, 2, 3, 5, or 7 day pass. You should only reload on the day you wish to start using the pass, and the days must be used consecutively.

See information at the Tmoney website for prices of the day passes. Here is another link from the Seoul government. *There is a special design for the Tourist Climate Card vs the non-Tourist Climate Card, but I believe both can be used to purchase the 1-7 day passes on the subway ticketing machine.

Rideshare / Taxi

There is no rideshare, only taxi hailing apps. I did not personally take any taxis, but based on my research:

You can use Uber (UT if you open the app in Korea) or KakaoTaxi. Using these apps will hail an actual taxi, which then runs on a meter.
Uber may have limited drivers available, however will be easier to “set up” as you don’t need a Korean phone number to use your credit card in the app. If using Kakao Taxi without a Korean phone number or Korean credit card (to pay in the app), you will likely need to select the “Pay to the Driver” option in order to book a taxi, and then pay the driver directly (in this case, have cash on hand in case paying the driver directly via credit card doesn’t work).
Make sure you have the destination name/address on your phone in written Korean/Hangeul.

You can also hail taxis on the street, but do note there are several different taxi companies. The cheaper taxis are white, gray, or orange. Black/orange taxis labeled ‘International Taxi’ have drivers that speak multiple languages, though price is 20% higher. Black colored taxi cabs are deluxe (more expensive). Refer to this article for pictures.
Taxis should be metered, however I’ve heard it’s not common, but not uncommon, for drivers to try to scam and not use the meter (mostly coming from the airport).
There is no tipping culture in Korea, so you don’t have to tip.

Rush hour

On weekdays between 8-10am and 5:30-8pm. If you can, avoid taking the subway during these times, otherwise the subways will be more packed during this time. If you can, avoid Gangnam specifically during rush hour because of the concentration of offices + office employees in that area.

Line 2, which connects many popular areas in Seoul, is generally always busy – do your best to avoid this line during rush hour, if possible.

Line 9, which is an express line, is typically always packed and will be extra packed during rush hour. However, this line doesn’t stop at most tourist destinations, so you likely won’t be using this line. 

Especially during rush hour, you should take off your backpack/shoulder bags and carry them to give more room to others.

Leaving the Airport

The below information is for Incheon International Airport.
In order from most to least expensive:

Taxi (either via taxi stand, UT, or Kakao Taxi)
This will be quickest but taxis from the airport are pretty expensive at 60,000 – 90,000 won and is metered. There are also several categories of taxis, some being more expensive than others, and certain surcharges depending on time of day. There may be a toll charge into Seoul that will add a bit more to the fare.

Airport Bus
This is my preferred method as it gets you closest to your hotel without transfers if you are not staying near Seoul Station or Hongdae (see train options below). These are coach buses where your luggage is stored in the luggage holds below. The drivers will help you load your luggage and retrieve your luggage when you get to your stop.
🛑 Be sure to press the STOP button when your stop is announced. 

The price is 17,000 won per person. At the airport, you must buy a ticket before boarding the bus. There is a ticket counter where you can purchase from a cashier, but to the side of it are kiosks. The kiosks accept cash, credit cards (including international), and Tmoney. You will need to select your bus line and destination (use Naver to get directions).

Upon heading back to the airport, you will pay on the bus – I scanned my Tmoney card, but you can use cash (have exact fare ready). According to my other research, I do not think they accept credit card.

You can use Naver to figure out which bus to take. The timetables and more information can be found on the official airport bus website here. Do note there is a limit on the number of luggages you can bring.

Train
This will be the cheapest option. There are 2 trains:

AREX Express  (Goes directly from Incheon Airport <-> Seoul Station), 43 minutes, 9,500 won
AREX All Stop Train (Makes all the stops below), fare depends on the distance but it’s less than 5,000 won to Seoul Station

I don’t recommend the AREX train if you have luggage and are not staying by Seoul Station or any of the stops on the All Stop Train. If you need to transfer to the other lines, these trains will be the normal subway trains and it will be difficult to maneuver with your bags. In addition, some stations have only stairs at the exits, and the walk from the platform to the exits can be long.

There is a map of how to get to the train terminal from the Airport and the latest All Stop Route here.

Where to Stay

There are Airbnbs, hostels, and hotels in Seoul. I personally have only stayed in a hotel.

For hotels, I recommend you read reviews on Google Maps. Some things that are different than Western style hotels, but common in Korea:

• Room temperature centrally controlled by hotel, meaning the thermostat in your hotel does not actually control the temperature
• No separate area for shower in bathroom (entire bathroom floor will get wet after a shower)

You can read my hotel review from my personal visit here:

Area Guide

As Seoul is large, here’s a rough guide to where the main areas I’ll be discussing are located in relevance to each other:

The main areas I recommend for visiting and staying in, depending on your interests, are:

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Insadong is where I stayed during my trip. It was crowded during day and night as the streets are relatively narrow and this is a touristy area, which meant walking back to hotel from subway took awhile.

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강남 Gangnam (Best for beauty procedures)

• Mostly office buildings and cosmetic surgery offices
• Will need to plan around rush hour
• COEX Mall + Starfield Library
• More expensive area of Seoul

Other popular areas that I recommend visiting but not staying at, as there are less hotels/less to do/further away are:

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이태원 Itaewon

• Higher concentration of foreigners
• Night life
• Restaurants (international cuisine)