Your Seoul Guide

Photo by Andrea Wilkins on Unsplash Updated April 2026 · 9 min read If you are putting together a Seoul itinerary and someone tells you to skip Insadong because it is too touristy, I would push back on that. Yes, it is well-known. Yes, the main street gets crowded on weekends. But Insadong is one of those neighborhoods where the real experience is not on the main road at all — it is in the alleys off it, where traditional tea houses, independent galleries, and craft shops are stacked above each other on narrow staircases, and where the pace of the city slows down in a way that is genuinely hard to find anywhere else in Seoul. I used to work near Gwanghwamun, and Insadong was somewhere I found myself returning to regularly — for pajeon and makgeolli after work, for a quiet afternoon in one of the backstreet tea houses, for galleries that managed to be interesting without being intimidating. Give it a proper afternoon and it will give you mo...

Photo by J on Unsplash Updated April 2026 · 8 min read Not every Seoul itinerary needs to be about the biggest, the most crowded, or the most photographed. This one is about a corner of the city that moves at a different pace. Gyeonghuigung, the Western Palace, sits quietly in Jongno — free to enter, rarely busy, and carrying one of the more melancholy histories of any palace in the city. Attached to its grounds is the Seoul Museum of History, which is honestly one of my favorite places in all of Seoul. And a short walk away, Donuimun Museum Village — a neighborhood that recreated 100 years of Seoul’s urban history in a single block of alleys — is currently closed and facing an uncertain future. But the story of why it is closing is itself worth knowing. This is a half-day that rewards the curious more than the checklist. In this guide Gyeonghuigung — the forgotten western palace Seoul ...

Photo by Julie on Unsplash Updated April 2026 · 8 min read Of all the palaces in Seoul, Deoksugung is my personal favorite. It is tucked right next to the busiest intersection in the city, surrounded on all sides by modern office buildings and the glass curve of Seoul City Hall. But that is exactly why I love it. Step through the main gate and the city drops away. The palace grounds are quiet, shaded by old trees, and framed by a skyline that somehow makes the whole thing more striking, not less. On a clear day you can even spot Namsan Tower rising to the south. It is one of those views in Seoul that genuinely stops me every time. Deoksugung is also the only palace in Seoul with an art museum inside its grounds, a cafe where you can sit and look out over the courtyard, and a stone wall road outside that has become one of the most beloved walks in the city. Add the Royal Guard Ceremony and the surrounding Jeongdong district and you have a half-day...

Starfield Library, inside COEX Mall in Gangnam — one of Seoul’s most photographed spaces. Photo by Kelvin Zyteng on Unsplash Updated April 2026 · 7 min read If you’ve heard of Gangnam, it’s probably because of one song. PSY’s “Gangnam Style” put this district on the global map back in 2012, and the name has stuck ever since — even for people who couldn’t point to Seoul on a map. The reputation isn’t wrong, either. Gangnam is Seoul’s most upscale district — the department stores are enormous, the beauty clinics are everywhere, and the streets are full of well-dressed people. But it’s also a place where a 1,200-year-old Buddhist temple sits directly across from Asia’s largest underground shopping mall, and where you can spend ₩8,000 on a bowl of kalguksu ten minutes from a Michelin-starred restaurant. I make the trip regularly — usually to meet someone, ...

Photo by David Ford on Unsplash Updated April 2026 · 8 min read If you've already done Myeongdong and Hongdae and want to know where to go next, most locals would point you to Seongsu-dong. It's the neighborhood that Seoul's creative crowd has claimed as its own — and right now, it's one of the most interesting places in the city. I've been going to Seongsu since before it became what it is today. I remember when Yeonmujang-gil was just a quiet street of handmade shoe workshops and a handful of cafes that felt like they'd found a secret. That quiet is long gone — but I still come back, usually on a weekend when I want a change of scenery. There's something about the energy here that's hard to replicate anywhere else in the city. Combine it with a walk through Seoul Forest next door and it's one of my favorite ways to spend a Saturday. In this guide About Seongsu-dong Things to do Whe...

Photo by Hanvin Cheong on Unsplash Updated March 2026 · 8 min read Bukchon Hanok Village is one of those places that looks exactly like its photos — and somehow still manages to surprise you when you're actually there. The tiled rooftops, the narrow stone-walled alleys, the way Seoul's modern skyline appears behind it all. It's genuinely beautiful. It also rewards visitors who go a little deeper than the famous alley. In this guide What is Bukchon Hanok Village? Photo spots, things to do and cultural experiences Cafes and where to eat Practical tips and visiting rules FAQ Seoul is a city that moves fast — new buildings, new neighborhoods, constant change. Bukchon is one of the few places that sits still. Tucked between Gyeongbokgung Palace to the west and Changdeokgung Palace to the east, it's a neighborhood of traditional Korean houses (hanoks) that have been here for centuri...

Updated March 2026 · 8 min read Photo by tragrpx via Pixabay Myeongdong gets dismissed as a tourist trap by plenty of Koreans. I understand why — but I still go back. There’s something about the energy of the place, the sheer density of it, that’s unlike anywhere else in Seoul. And at certain times of year, there’s nowhere in the city quite like it. In this guide Shopping in Myeongdong Street food and where to eat Where to stay near Myeongdong FAQ Myeongdong is one of Seoul’s most visited neighborhoods — and one of its most polarizing. Ask a local whether they go there and you’ll get a shrug or an eye roll about the crowds and the tourist prices. Ask a first-time visitor to Seoul what they remember and Myeongdong will almost certainly come up. Both reactions are understandable. For me, Myeongdong has always had a specific...