Quick tips about Seoul:
- It is a shopping paradise
- It’s also a food paradise (especially if you like spicy and KBBQ)
- We didn’t do any sight seeing, but based on reading from blogs, books and other guides, there isn’t an astounding amount of cultural / historical / scenic things to do (as compared to places in Europe). A bit similar to Bangkok. They EXIST but it’s not abundant and should be able to cover in a few days for the major attractions
- The people there know very little English. In fact, the salespeople in the retail shops actually speak Mandarin much better than English so prepare to bring some sort of translation book if you can only speak English
- Transportation is very convenient
- Although the transition between different train lines is a fair bit of distance… so plan your time accordingly
- Many 24 hour restaurants
- Felt safe the entire trip
- very affordable (compared to HK)
- actually Seoul is pretty much like Hong Kong except they speak Korean there instead of Cantonese
It’s definitely a trip well worth going, especially if you are into Korean Pop culture. I’ll show you the places we went (for shopping and eating) so you can have a rough itinerary for your next trip.
Map for reference with most stations we’ve visited:
Place we stayed at:
We booked through AirBnB. Our host was very nice… in case you want to stay near Gongdeok-dong (which was very central to everywhere we wanted to go) you can go to AirBnB and search for this address or just click on the link below…
Day One
Because we arrived quite late, we went to our AirBnB place to drop off our stuff first. Luckily, Seoul is famous for their late night shopping in Dongdaemun, so we went there afterwards to indulge ourselves in some shopping.
Yummy chicken skewers.
Some of these shopping malls even open until 4am, although most of them closed at around 2am. We visited shopping malls like Doota and Migliore. Also, they had yellow market stalls that were selling cheap (but fake) clothing right across the street, which we also went to take a look at.
Of course after all the shopping, we were famished. Time to munch up on our first Korean meal…
Day Two
On the second day of the trip, we decided to go to Ewha University in the morning…
If someone knows what this is called… please let me know. SO GOOD.
Ewha shopping.
Mommo’s Lounge.
And of course, the university itself!
So good.
We walked to Sinchon to do more shopping, which was the station next to Ewha Womans Univ.
Art Box – for people obsessed with stationaries. You can find Art Box in major shopping districts.
Sulbing. It’s sort of like shaved ice with red bean… really freakin’ good. We ate at the Korean Dessert Cafe… you can find it at most places.
Must must must go.
Chicken and Cheese for dinner.. yum.
On the way to Hongik University… of course VERY tempting but we had no more room in our stomaches.
Luxury Karaoke… you can see people karaoke and dance… from the outside.
Some restaurant near Hongik University… looks poppin;. We were too full to eat anymore though =(
Day Three
OK, time for us to visit Insadong, known for their cultural items. Very touristy. Not my favorite place cause it was super crowded and I’m not a big fan of touristy cultural stuff. Much rather go shopping for K-pop fashion. Anyway, some pics:
Some contemporary art gallery we went to.
We tried this place because there were so many people queuing for it. It ended up being one of the not so good meals of our trip. Left: dumplings, meatballs. Right: cold Buckwheat noodles.
From the outside of the restaurant.
Insadong was boring for us, and so it’s time for more shopping. This time, we went to Sinsa-dong. Very very good for the most trendy and fashionable items. Unfortunately, we were too busy shopping to take pictures.
Tired of shopping? No worries… there are many coffee cafes sprawling around the city of Seoul for you to take a rest and chill.
Coffee and lemon tart cake.
Me trying to be creative… haha.
Shop Till You Drop
HUGE. COFFEEE. CAFE.
Apgujeong-dong was right next to Sinsa, so we decided to walk there. IF I lived here, I would be taking the subway. But because we were tourists, I usually don’t mind walking and looking at the surroundings.
The mega popular chicken and beer combo. Craved it since I came here.
Hopefully by now I have convinced you that Seoul is a shopping heaven!
We knew we were in Apgujeong when we arrived at the Galleria Department Store. But because the mall only had luxurious goods (ie. Chanel) which you can get anywhere in the world, and everywhere in Hong Kong, for the same price, we left early.
In our guide book it suggested another area in Apgujeong for many small shops and restaurants as well. Also very cool, but unfortunately half the stores were closed by the time we went (getting late).
Exhausted from all the shopping and walking, we ventured to the Dragonhill Spa & Resort.
Tried taking the bus. The bus stop panels are only in Korean… so be sure you either have a guide book or can understand Korean.
Dragonhill Spa & Resort. Quite a fun place actually, many different spas to try, you can sleep on the floor, you can get massages. Everyone gets naked here (I mean men and women separated of course, sorry to keep your hopes up guys), well in the changing room at least and certain sections. You can even play games here. Lots of people come. My favorite? Eating Dippin Dots!
Day Four
Next day, we were told to visit Hangangjin. But first, we wanted to check out Itaewon. Itaewon is basically the place where all the expats are located. Like you wouldn’t see many foreigners elsewhere, but in Itaewon, they are everywhere. There’s also a street in Seoul with all the restaurants, bars, and a few clubs.
We ate at this restaurant called My Chelsea, as recommended by the Tripadvisor app I downloaded.
The street that I was talking about.
After, we checked out Hangangjin (who was recommended by a nice fellow at the bus stop who happened to live in Seoul and also spoke Cantonese! He recommended this ‘less touristy’ place). Hangangjin had more boutique shops.
Coco Bruni – coffee cafe chain in Seoul
Passion Five.
The next place we were told to go from the nice guy mentioned before was Hapjeong, next to Hongik Univ.
Also very nice place to shop.
At night, we decided to go to Dongdaemun again to do more night shopping 🙂
Day Five
My favorite place to shop was Hongik Univ. so we decided to go there one last time to do some last minute shopping before our flight back to Hong Kong.
Pork Knuckles
Hello Kitty Cafe
Trick eye museum. Didn’t have time to go, but heard it’s fun.
So gooooood Churros.
Seoul is famous for its cosmetics.
One last bite before taking the flight. Oreo shaved ice.
OK seriously one last bite before taking flight. Korean traditional food. Super healthy.
Aanddd.. fly back to Hong Kong. So like I said before, Seoul is perfect for eating (esp. spicy food and BBQ, two of my favs) and shopping. I don’t know much about the cultural and historical landmarks but I think they would be worth a visit for a day or two as well. Would I come here again? Absolutely yes, especially the next time I need to upgrade my wardrobe.
What did you like most about Seoul?
*Last Update: Nov. 11, 2022 to update broken images. Also, prayers to Itaewon 🙏🏼
**Originally published on Sept. 23, 2014
