Seoul travel guide: how many days, where to stay and how to plan it

Choose a subway line, not just a district

Jongno, the old royal centre, puts you closest to the palaces. Anguk station on Line 3 is the stop for both Bukchon Hanok Village and Changdeokgung, Gyeongbokgung station on the same line serves the main palace, and Gwangjang Market is by Jongno 5-ga station on Line 1. It suits travellers who want to start at the palace gates when they open and walk most of the day.

Myeongdong, on Line 4 like Hoehyeon station for Namdaemun Market, is the most central all-round base: street stalls, fashion and cosmetics shops at the door, with Namsan and its cable car next to it. It is busy and commercial in the evenings, which is either the point or the drawback.

Hongdae, in Mapo-gu, is known for youth culture, street performances, bars and clubs. Gangnam, south of the Hangang River, covers the shopping and entertainment streets around Gangnam Station and Samseong-dong, which stay busy late, and express buses to Suwon leave from outside Gangnam station. Both add travel time to the palaces, so compare the exact station and the line before booking: a hotel one transfer from your main sights saves more time than a cheaper one two transfers away.

The palaces: plan around Monday and Tuesday

Gyeongbokgung was the first and largest palace of the Joseon dynasty, founded in 1395 with Bugaksan behind it; Changdeokgung, built in 1405 as a secondary palace, is the palace inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List and served as the main royal residence for about 270 years. They are a short walk apart, but not on the same closing day. The Royal Palaces and Tombs Center lists Gyeongbokgung and Jongmyo as closed on Tuesdays and Changdeokgung, Deoksugung and Changgyeonggung as closed on Mondays; when a closing day falls on a public holiday, the palace opens and closes the next working day instead.

When we checked on 2026-10-03, the official site listed Gyeongbokgung's hours as 9:00 to 18:00 from March to May and in September and October, 9:00 to 18:30 in summer and 9:00 to 17:00 from November to February, with last entry an hour before closing. Admission for foreign visitors aged 19 to 64 was 3,000 won at both Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung. Changdeokgung's rear garden, the Huwon, is a separate ticketed visit at 5,000 won for adults, bought on top of the palace ticket and bookable through the centre's integrated reservation service.

Visitors in a complete hanbok enter the palaces free. The official guidelines require both a top (jeogori) and a skirt or trousers; a hanbok top over jeans, or hanbok trousers with a T-shirt, does not count. Two dates matter in autumn 2026: the centre's notice of 30 September lists normal opening during the Royal Culture Festival from 7 to 11 October, and free entry to Gyeongbokgung during the Korea Grand Festival from 29 October to 15 November, except on Tuesdays.

Do not try to do everything in one day. Gyeongbokgung, with the National Palace Museum and the National Folk Museum on its grounds, takes a full morning; Changdeokgung and the Huwon fill an afternoon. VisitSeoul lists free English guided tours of Gyeongbokgung at 11:00, 13:30 and 15:30 except on Tuesdays.

Markets as meals: Gwangjang, Namdaemun and Tongin

Gwangjang Market, by Jongno 5-ga station, is the easiest market to make into a meal. It opened in the early 20th century, and its food alley is known for bindaetteok (mung bean pancakes), mayak gimbap, sundae, yukhoe and tteokbokki. When we checked on 2026-10-03, VisitSeoul listed the food alley as open daily from 9:00 to 23:00, while the clothing market closes on Sundays; the second floor has hanbok and vintage clothing shops.

Namdaemun Market, around the old South Gate at Hoehyeon station on Line 4, is Korea's largest traditional market and mostly a wholesale one, so it is better for a walk and a snack than a sit-down meal; it is closed on Sundays. Tongin Market, near the west side of Gyeongbokgung, runs a lunchbox café where you buy tokens and fill a tray from participating stalls. VisitSeoul lists the café as closed on Mondays and on the third Sunday of the month, so it fits a palace day best from Wednesday to Saturday.

Bukchon: inside the visiting hours, and quietly

Bukchon Hanok Village, between Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung, is a residential neighbourhood, not a museum. Since November 2024 the core lanes have been a designated special management area: VisitSeoul lists visiting hours of 10:00 to 17:00, with tourists not permitted in the restricted area between 17:00 and 10:00 the next morning.

Residents ask visitors to keep their voices down, especially around Gahoe-dong 31, keep groups to ten or fewer, use no loudspeakers and never photograph inside a house even when the door is open. The easiest approach is from Anguk station, exit 3. Walk it between the two palaces at midday rather than at dawn or dusk.

Hills in the city: Namsan, the city wall and Bukhansan

Namsan Seoul Tower stands 236.7 metres tall on the 262-metre summit of Namsan. When we checked on 2026-10-03, VisitSeoul listed the observatory at 29,000 won for adults, opening hours of 10:00 to 22:30 on weekdays and to 23:00 at weekends, and the cable car from 10:00 to 23:00 at 15,000 won return for adults. You can also walk up through Namsan Park instead of taking the cable car.

Hanyangdoseong, the Seoul City Wall, was first built in 1396 and runs for 18.6 kilometres along Bugaksan, Naksan, Namsan and Inwangsan. Six of its eight gates survive. The Naksan section, reached from Dongdaemun station, is the easiest to add to an evening; the Bugaksan and Inwangsan sections cross mountains and need more time.

Bukhansan National Park is the only national park in the Seoul metropolitan area, a ridge of granite peaks — Baegunbong, Insubong and Mangyeongbong — with streams, temples and hermitages. VisitSeoul lists free admission and earlier last-entry times in winter than in summer. Seoul's Hiking Tourism Centers at Bukhansan, Bugaksan and Gwanaksan help international visitors choose a trail and rent gear; use them, start early and carry water, because many routes are steep, rugged tracks.

Getting around: subway first, transfer card always

The subway is the quickest way across Seoul, and buses fill the gaps. Use a rechargeable transport card rather than single tickets: VisitSeoul notes that you get a fare discount when you transfer within 30 minutes of getting off (within an hour between 21:00 and 7:00), but only if you tap the card on the reader when you get off. Taxis are easy to find on the street and near the main sights.

Plan each day around one or two neighbouring areas. Gyeongbokgung to Myeongdong is easy; Gyeongbokgung to Gangnam and back again in the same afternoon is not.

A workable four-day split

This is an editorial suggestion, not a timetable. Check closing days and reservation needs for each place you choose.

• Day 1 — Palaces and Bukchon (not Monday or Tuesday): Gyeongbokgung at 9:00, Bukchon between the palaces after 10:00, Changdeokgung and the Huwon in the afternoon, dinner at Gwangjang Market.
• Day 2 — Markets and Namsan: Namdaemun Market in the morning, Myeongdong for lunch, then up Namsan on foot or by cable car for the evening view.
• Day 3 — Nature or the south bank: a morning hike at Bukhansan with help from the Hiking Tourism Center, or the Hangang River parks and Gangnam, followed by an evening in Hongdae or on the Naksan section of the city wall.
• Day 4 — Suwon: Hwaseong Fortress and Hwaseong Haenggung as a full day out of the city.
• Day 5 (optional): Jongmyo Shrine (check the guided-entry days), Deoksugung, or a slow last day near your hotel.

The first day trip: Suwon's Hwaseong Fortress

Suwon's Hwaseong Fortress was built between 1794 and 1796 for King Jeongjo and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. Its walls run for 5,744 metres around the old town, flat in the east and climbing Paldalsan in the west, so walking the full circuit and seeing Hwaseong Haenggung inside the walls takes most of a day.

The Suwon Cultural Foundation's directions are simple from central Seoul: subway Line 1 to Suwon station, then bus 11, 13 or 13-4 from near exit 4 to the Hwaseong Haenggung stop. From the south bank, red express bus 3000 runs from near Gangnam station exit 5 to Paldalmun, and bus 1007 from Jamsil station exit 6. Leave the evening free; the return trip is long enough that a second sightseeing stop rarely fits.