Seoul South Korea Complete Guide 2026: Gyeongbokgung, Myeongdong, Bukchon, Namsan and DMZ
Browse more guides: South Korea travel | Asia destinations Seoul South Korea Complete Guide 2026: Palaces, K-Culture, Han River and DMZ TL;DR I planned a Seoul trip three times before finally going, and each visit taught me something new about how this 9.6 million person capital balances 600 year old Joseon palaces with a metro region of 25 million people, K-pop studios, and one of the world's busiest subway systems. The Joseon era left five grand palaces, most importantly Gyeongbokgung from 1395 with its hourly Changing of the Royal Guards ceremony, and Changdeokgung with the Secret Garden Huwon listed by UNESCO in 1997. Between palace visits I walked through Bukchon Hanok Village with its 600 plus traditional wooden houses, sipped tea in Insadong, and rode the cable car up Namsan to the 236.7 meter N Seoul Tower at sunset. On the modern side, Gangnam hosts the 555 meter Lotte World Tower, opened in 2017 as the world's sixth tallest building, while Myeongdong, Hongdae, an...