2013 Seoul Trip

Places must go in Seoul

 

Myoung Dong

This is a place where it's all about fashion... This is the main shopping area in Seoul... There are also some international brands around this area... I find that this is also consider the cosmetic paradise... Cosmetics with lower prices from brands like The Face Shop, Tony Moly, Nature Republic, Laneige, Holika, Beauty Credit, Missha, The Body Shop, Skin Food, Beyond, Etude House and etc... I have got myself quite a few cosmetics and skin care from here with prices way low compared to what I usually get in Singapore... Myoung Dong have also quite a few restaurants, road side food and cafe... it's nice to have some finger food while shopping... =p

 

Operating Hours:

10am to 10pm daily

Directions:
By Metrol
Exit 5,6,7 or 8 - Myeongdong Station Line 4

 

Dongdaemun

This is a wholesale and retail shopping area that allows you to shop all night... We went there around 10pm and there are still quite a few shops still open for business... Even though this is a wholesale shopping area... ermmm... I don't get myself with much good deals as I don't speak Korean... >.< Not all the shops open until very late in the night but there are still quite a lot of shops still open, even as late as 1am... =o

Operating Hours:
Tuesday to Saturday – 10.30am to 5.00am
Sunday – 10.30am to 11.00pm
Closed on Monday & some public holidays.

Directions:By Metrol
Exit 8 or 9 - Dongdaemun Station

 

Lotte World

 

Lotte World consist of an indoor, outdoor theme park, shopping mall and hotel... We spent our day at the indoor/ outdoor theme park... There is a thrilling ride like their Gyro Drop... I didn't have the courage to go up after I have seen the ride from the bottom of it... =o I find that this amusement park is suitable for both young and adult... There are also some kid rides and shows available... It is very easily  accessible compared to the other theme park... That is the reason why we came here... =p

 

Admission fee: 

 

Operating Hours:

0930am-1100pm daily

Some attractions (eg. Magic Island) may vary

Check out the Lotte World website prior to visit (http://global.lotteworld.com/main.asp)

 

Directions: Metro

Exit 4 - Jamsil Station

 

N Seoul Tower
 

N Seoul Tower is an observation tower that I get to know its existence through a Korean drama, "Flower Boy"... The tower is located on top of a hill... There are some packages available at their ticketing counter... We went up to have our dinner at their authentic Korean style restaurant... The food served in that restaurant it's somehow considered the best we had in this entire trip... I didn't regret taking this deal... We had a nice dinner at a very nice place with nice scenery... There are 2 restaurant at this N Seoul tower... Korean restaurant and Italian restaurant... Only the Korean restaurant it's located on the top of the tower...

Admission Fee:
Observatory:
Adult (9,000won)/ Youth(7,000won)/ Children (5,000won)

HanCook package with Observatory:
Lunch (11am-4pm)
Adult (30,000won)/ Youth (29,000won)/ Primary School Students (13,500won)/ Preschool Children (9,500won)

Dinner
Adult (42,000won)/ Youth (41,000won)/ Primary School Students (14,500won)/ Preschool Children (10,500won)

Remarks:
Primary School Students (7-12 years old)
Preschool Children (3-6 years old)

Operating Hours:
Sunday-Thursday
Observatory: 10am-11pm
Restaurant: 11am-11pm

Friday & Saturday
Observatory: 10am-12am
Restaurant: 11am-11pm

Directions: By Metro & Cable Car
Exit 3 - Myeongdong Station Line.

Take the main road next to the 7-11 then walk straight to the left of Pacific Hotel. Keep walking up in the direction of Mount Namsan where the cable platform it's situated.

Cable car operating hours: 10am-1030pm
Fare: round trip (6,300won)/ one-way (4,800won)
 

Gyeongbokgung

There are 5 palaces in Seoul... We are not exactly a museum kind of person... Therefore, we only went to 1 of the palace, which is their main palace, Gyeongbokgung... I find that their palace have some similarities with the China Palaces... Only differences are their clothing... Building and structure seems almost the same... They gave me almost the same feel...

Direction: Metro
Exit 5 - Gyeongbokgung Station

Operating Hours:0900am-0600pm (March-October)
0900am-0500pm (November-February)

Admission fee:
3,000won (Adult)/ Group 2,400 won (more than 10 pax)
1,500won (Youth, 7-18 years old)/ Group 1,200 (more than 10 pax)
FOC (Children under 6 years old)

Bukchon Hanok Village

This is located between the 2 palaces, Gyeongbokgung & Changdeokgung... This village has the largest cluster of privately owned traditional Korean wooden house/ hanok in Seoul...We went to have a look and took some photos since it's on the way... The structure of the buildings it's cool... No admission fee it's required to enter...

Operating hours:
Monday-Friday: 9am-6pm

Saturday & Sunday: 9am-5pm

 

Directions: By metro

Exit 2 - Anguk Station (+/-300meters away from the station)

 

Insadong 

 

This is a cultural street where you can find lots of Korean traditional culture... There are hanbok (traditional clothing), hanji (traditional paper), tea, pottery and folk crafts around this place... There are 2 shops where you can take photo wearing Korean traditional outfit... There are several choices of outfit to choose in between... Outfits of Princess, prostitute, concubines and queen for girls... Outfits of warrior, officer, prince and king for guys... We had ice-cream which is contain by a "J" shape kinda cone... There are lots of people queuing up for this ice-cream... There are 1 shop and 1 pushcart selling this ice-cream during our trip...

 

Directions: By Metro

Exit 6 - Anguk Station

Exit 3 - Jonggak Station

 

Namiseom Island ( Winter Sonata )

Nami Island is a place where Winter Sonata was filmed... This place is not too near to central of seoul but it is still reachable by their metro & bus... Travelling time there might take quite some time... If you were to go there, leave the place early...

Admission Fees

Adults : 8,000 won
Children (ages 3-13) : 4,000 won
Visitors coming after 18:00 (Dec – Mar), after 19:00 (Apr – Nov) : 4,000 won
※ Round-trip ferry fare & tax included

Opening Hours

Daily 7:30am to 9:30pm

Getting there

By Subway + Train + Taxi
Exit Sangbong Station Line 7. Transfer to Gyeongchun Line Train to Gapyeong Station. Take a taxi to Gapyeong Wharf (Just say Nami Island to Driver will do. Taxi cost KRW3,000 to KRW4,000 per way)

Edae (Ewha Woman’s University)

This is a shopping paradise which offers wide range of style and prices... The clothes here are much cheaper compared to other places we had went during this trip... There are shops selling clothes, bags, accessory and even cosmetic... There are also some nice cafe around which we can sit down and have a break after shopping...

Getting there

By Subway
Exit 2 or 3 - Ewha Station