Seoul 3 Day Itinerary
Seoul is a city of 10 million people that somehow manages to feel both ancient and absurdly modern at the same time. Joseon dynasty palaces sit inside the grid of a city with one of the world’s most advanced transit systems. Three days is not enough to understand Seoul, but it is enough to fall for it.
Getting in from Incheon Airport: The AREX express train is the right move. The nonstop express from Terminal 1 to Seoul Station takes 43 minutes (Terminal 2: 51 minutes) and costs KRW 9,500 (about USD 7). The all-stop service is slower at around 56 minutes but costs only KRW 4,150 and works fine if you are not in a rush. Trains start around 5:15 am from Terminal 2 and the last departure is around 10:48 pm. A taxi from Incheon to central Seoul costs KRW 70,000 to 90,000 and takes 60 to 90 minutes depending on traffic. Take the train.
Buy a T-Money card at the airport or any convenience store (CU, GS25, 7-Eleven) for KRW 3,000. Load it with credit and use it for every subway trip (KRW 1,400 to 1,600 per ride) and buses. The 2025 Climate Card gives unlimited subway, bus, and Seoul Bike rides: KRW 5,000 for one day, KRW 20,000 for seven days. One gotcha: always tap out at the turnstile when leaving. If you forget, you are charged the maximum fare. Line 9 also has an express versus all-stop distinction inside Seoul: check the board on the platform or you will overshoot your stop.
Day 1: Palaces, Insadong, and Namsan
Start at Gyeongbokgung Palace, the largest of the Joseon dynasty’s Five Grand Palaces. It is open Tuesday to Sunday (closed Mondays except national holidays) from 9 am to 6 pm; entry is KRW 3,000. The Changing of the Guard ceremony at the main gate happens at 10 am and 2 pm and is free to watch. If you want to enter in hanbok (traditional Korean dress), rental stalls just outside the main entrance charge around KRW 20,000 for two hours and wearers get free palace admission. This is not a tourist gimmick in the pejorative sense: Koreans do it too.
Walk 10 minutes to Changdeokgung Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The main palace is worth the KRW 3,000 entry, but the real draw is the Huwon (Secret Royal Garden), a 78-acre forest garden of pavilions and lotus ponds that was the private retreat of the royal family for 300 years. The garden is guided-tour only (KRW 8,000 extra, book online or at the entrance).
Insadong for lunch and afternoon browsing. The main street is now very tourist-facing, but the alleys off it (particularly Ssamziegil courtyard) still have good independent craft shops, traditional tea houses, and the street food: tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), hotteok (sweet pancakes), and bindaetteok (mung bean fritters). Lunch at one of the traditional Korean restaurants off the main strip costs KRW 10,000 to 18,000.
Namsan Tower (N Seoul Tower) in the late afternoon. The cable car from Myeongdong costs KRW 9,000 return, or walk up through Namsan Park (about 40 minutes, well-signed, good exercise). The observation deck costs KRW 21,000 but the view of Seoul’s basin, surrounded by mountains on every side, from the ridge below the tower is free and almost as good at sunset.
Stay in Myeongdong. It is the obvious tourist hub but is genuinely convenient for central Seoul, with a direct subway connection and excellent street food right outside the hotel door every evening. The L7 Myeongdong is a good mid-range choice (KRW 120,000 to 180,000 per night). Budget travellers do well at Zzz Guesthouse in Jongno or similar hanok-style guesthouses around KRW 35,000 to 60,000 per night.
Day 2: Markets, Modern Architecture and a Real Jjimjilbang
Gwangjang Market for breakfast. This covered market near Jongno 5-ga station has been operating since 1905 and the food section is one of the best in the city. The bindaetteok (mung bean pancakes) are made in a small space with a line of ajummas grinding and frying continuously; a plate of two costs KRW 5,000. The mayak gimbap (addictive small rice rolls) are the street food equivalent of a perfect bite. Go between 8 and 10 am before it gets crowded.
Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) is a 10-minute walk from the market. Zaha Hadid designed the building, which opened in 2014 and curves across the ground in a way that still surprises even knowing it is coming. The current exhibition programme rotates; check the DDP website for what is on. The surrounding Dongdaemun fashion market operates 24 hours and is genuinely useful if you need anything from fabric to wholesale fashion items at low prices.
Seongsu-dong in the afternoon. This is the neighbourhood Seoul’s own design and food culture people have moved into over the past five years, the equivalent of a gentrifying industrial area with independent cafes, concept stores, and galleries in converted factories. Take the subway to Seongsu station. The area around the main street and the Seongsudong Hangang Park neighbourhood has the highest concentration of interesting small places. It is more satisfying and less crowded than Hongdae or Sinchon for the same general atmosphere.
Jjimjilbang (Korean bathhouse/sauna) in the evening. Dragon Hill Spa in Yongsan is the famous tourist option, open 24 hours and split into same-sex bathrooms and a co-ed common floor with various heated rooms. Entry is around KRW 13,000 to 17,000. You get a cotton sleep suit at the entrance. The foil-wrapped bulgogi eggs sold in the common area are specifically a jjimjilbang experience. Staying overnight is common and costs only slightly more; if you do, it saves a hotel night.
Dinner at Gwangjang Market again or at one of the Korean BBQ restaurants in Mapo or Mapo-gu, where galbi and samgyeopsal are done well at local prices (KRW 15,000 to 25,000 per person with rice and side dishes).
Day 3: Garosugil, K-Pop and Departure Prep
Garosugil (Garosu-gil) in Sinsa, Gangnam-gu, is a tree-lined street of fashion boutiques, independent coffee shops, and galleries that is more Milanese in character than the K-Pop associations suggest. It is best in the morning before the Instagrammers arrive. The coffee culture in Seoul is extraordinary: independent roasters and third-wave cafes are as concentrated here as anywhere outside Tokyo. Budget KRW 6,000 to 8,000 for a well-made flat white.
For the K-Pop experience, the SM Town COEX Museum in the COEX Mall gives an immersive fan exhibition (KRW 20,000 to 35,000 depending on the current show). COEX itself, the underground mall connecting to the Starfield Library (open to all, free, spectacular for the shelving alone), is an afternoon of low-cost browsing.
Myeongdong for final shopping: skincare products from the Innisfree, Etude House, and Olive Young chain stores, which sell genuine Korean cosmetics at source prices. A full skincare routine bought here costs a fraction of what the same brands charge in Western markets.
Departure: If flying from Incheon, allow 90 minutes minimum from central Seoul, more on weekday mornings. The AREX from Seoul Station runs to Terminal 1 in 43 minutes; there is also a Seoul Station city check-in service where you can check bags and get your boarding pass the evening before departure. This is genuinely useful and allows you to travel to the airport without checked luggage.
Practical Notes
Money: Korea is mostly card-friendly in restaurants and shops, but smaller market stalls and some traditional restaurants are cash only. ATMs at 7-Eleven and GS25 accept international cards. Local currency is the Korean Won (KRW).
Taxis: Seoul taxis are metered. The common scam is the “broken meter” flat rate or a deliberate long route. Use Kakao T (the dominant taxi app, now with English interface) which shows the car, driver, and expected fare before you get in. This completely eliminates the guesswork.
Language: Seoul’s tourist infrastructure has improved substantially. Subway signage, maps, and announcements are in English. Outside major tourist areas, a translation app with the camera function is your most useful tool.
Fake monks: Near Jogyesa Temple and some busy tourist areas, people dressed as Buddhist monks approach visitors asking for donations. Genuine monks do not solicit on streets. Decline and move on.
Best season: Spring (late March to mid-April) for cherry blossoms; autumn (October to November) for foliage. Summer is hot and humid with heavy rain in the monsoon period (July to August). Winter is cold and dry, with occasional heavy snow, but also the quietest tourist season.
The thing most visitors miss is that Seoul’s best food is not in the famous districts. A lunch set in any office neighbourhood away from Myeongdong costs KRW 8,000 to 12,000 for soup, a protein dish, and unlimited banchan (side dishes). Follow the office workers at noon.