48 Daytrip Destinations From Seoul

By Chris Backe

Save time and energy, and find what's worthy in South Korea!

Worthy Go guidebooks are your guide to the best places to enjoy in South Korea. 

See South Korea with an experienced travel writer by your side! 

Whether this is your first time abroad or you've been traveling for years, Worthy Go guidebooks have three goals: 

• Make the most of your time, money, and energy while traveling

• Help you go your own way but still provide some guidance

• Curate the very best places to enjoy in the country

This guidebook has been completely updated for 2020, and includes:

• No affiliate links, no ads, no fluff, and no BS.

• Some of South Korea's well-known and off-the-beaten-path places — all a daytrip from Seoul.

• Detailed, step-by-step directions to reach every place in the book.

• Succinct descriptions, exact addresses, and GPS coordinates for every place.

• First-hand knowledge and advice: where to stay, what to bring, safety and scam warnings, and more.

• All the basics you'll need to know: do you tip? Can you drink the tap water? What SIM card should you get? What public transportation tickets do you need?

• Advice on being a considerate, respectful, and sensitive traveler.

Guidebooks are carefully formatted to display well on any device, and links take you to Google Maps (internet connection required).

About the author: Chris Backe (rhymes with hockey) has written about travel since 2008 and has been around the world a couple of times. He's written over 30 books, and has been seen in Atlas Obscura, io9, Mental Floss, Everything Everywhere, Perceptive Travel, Travel Wire Asia, and many other publications. When not traveling, he loves tabletop games and a glass of white wine.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Worthy Go
• Release date: Dec 23, 2015
• ISBN: 9781519955760

Book preview

Other itineraries in the Worthy Go series

Cities: Amsterdam, Bangkok, Bogota, Bucharest, Budapest, Chiang Mai, Istanbul, Lima, Medellin, Quito, Seattle, Seoul, Tallinn, Toronto, Vientiane, Zagreb

Countries / regions: Laos, Central Thailand, Northern Thailand, South Korea

More info at worthygo.com.

Other guidebooks by Chris Backe

48 Daytrip Destinations From Seoul

Becoming a Digital Nomad

An Introduction to Thailand

Korean for Tourists

Korean Made Easy

Offbeat Korea

Offbeat Thailand

What the Florida

Warning / Disclaimer

Although the author has made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at publication time (© January 2020), the author does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.

Be aware that traveling in a foreign country has inherent risks, and seemingly anything can change overnight. Places may close, admission fees may rise, drivers will drive crazy, and public transportation routes can be altered. Stay aware of your surroundings, employ street smarts and common sense, and in general be suspicious of locals that approach you speaking English.

Unless otherwise noted, all material in this book is the legal property of the author and may not be reprinted or republished without the author's express written consent, with the exception of short quotes for academic or review purposes.

Introduction

Just when you think you've seen it all...

Let's be clear from the start — Seoul is a wonderful, world-class city. It's full of palaces, Buddhist temples, and plenty of urban adventures. Sometimes, though, you want an escape. Whether you live in Seoul or are seeking to get away from the crowds, the daytrips found here are all accessible by public transportation, and many have a focus on outdoors and nature.

Since the country is relatively small, you could conceivably call Busan a 'daytrip' from Seoul. It's only 2 ½ hours away via KTX, after all. Spending 5 hours on a train in a single day is not what I would call a fun time. Destinations included here are primarily in Gyeonggi-do (the province surrounding Seoul), and visiting several destinations in a day is entirely possible.

Four quick protips:

●  The nearest places are listed in the 'What's Nearby?' section after each place. Use the city index or category index listed after each place if you prefer — these point to other places in the book and don't require the internet to work.

●  The Seoul subway system has a few branches and forks to be aware of. The biggest fork is at Guro, where line 1 forks to go west for Incheon and south towards Suwon and Cheonan. Line 1 and 2 have a couple of small branch lines, but none of the destinations here use them.

●  The Seoul T-money card works in many places outside of Seoul, and it's easy to recharge at any subway station. You can get a refund of the balance once back in Seoul, so it's better to overestimate when buying.

●  Incheon's subway system plays nice and blends almost seamlessly with Seoul's subway system, though both have a line 1. Unless otherwise stated, all mentions of line 1 refer to the Seoul subway, not the Incheon subway.

Where to stay

Places mentioned here are chosen based on personal experiences, the experiences of friends, and other reviews. Worthy Go does not accept money or favors to include hotels in this itinerary.

Note the hotels and hostels here are scattered across Seoul, but are typically close to a subway station.

Budget

Happy Day Spa / Jimjilbang (해피데이스파) — Being a jjimjilbang means you’ll be sleeping on a pad on the floor, but the price is almost unbeatable. A short walk from the Hongdae area / Hongik University station. 112 Yanghwa-ro, Seogyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, (서울특별시 마포구 서교동 양화로 112) — 02-322-3399. GPS: 37.553224, 126.919723.

G Guest House — a modern hostel about a two-minute walk from Itaewon station. 24-hour access and coin laundry available. A two-minute walk from Itaewon station, a popular tourist area. 14-38, Bogwang-ro 60-gil, Yongsan-gu, (14-38 보광로 60길 용산구) — 02-795-0015. gguest.com GPS: 37.533182, 126.994950.

Mid-range

At Noon Hotel (앳 눈 호텔 신촌) — Rooms come with desktop computers and a touch of luxury, walking distance to Sinchon subway on line 2. 15 Baekbeom-ro 2-gil, Nogosan-dong, Seoul (15 백범로2길 노고산동 마포구) — [phone]. shinchon-at-noon.seoul-hotels-kr.com/en. GPS: 37.553904, 126.936104.

Line Hotel Myeongdong (라인 호텔 명동) — Modern, minimalist design with a glass exterior. Free wi-fi, satellite TV, and other mid-range touches. About 50 meters from Euljiro-1-ga on line 2 in the Myeongdong area. 36, Myeongdong 3-gil, Jung-gu (서울특별시 중구 명동 명동3길 36) — [phone]. line-hotel.co.kr

High-end

Gangnam Artnouveau City II (강남아르누보씨티) — four-star class and luxury, only minutes from Seolleung station in the ritzy Gangnam area. 49 Seocho-daero 74-gil, Seocho 2(i)-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul (서울특별시 서초구 서초2동 서초대로74길 49) — [phone]. GPS: 37.503413, 127.042844. gnanhotel.com

Lotte Seoul Hotel — high-end class and elegance on par with any world-class hotel, steps from Euljiro-1-ga and Myeongdong. 1 Sogong-dong, Jung-gu, Myeong-dong (중구 명동 소공동 1) — [phone]. GPS: 37.565287, 126.980982. lottehotel.com/seoul-hotel/en.html.

Before you arrive

What to bring

Clothes to match the weather, and your camera! Plenty of pharmacies, restaurants, grocery stores, and electronics stores are around, so bring what you need and know you can pick up most anything you forgot once you arrive.

Getting around

Seoul arguably has one of the best public transportation systems in the world. It's extensive, often in English, clean, and relatively cheap. Subways and buses play nice with each other, and one card gets you everywhere.

Start with one T-Money (티머니) card per traveler. It's a plastic, contactless card that is loaded with money, then tapped twice: when entering and leaving the system. The exact fare is based on the distance traveled — it charges a base fee when you 'tap in', and an additional amount when you 'tap out'. Look for a touch-screen machine to sell you one for 3,000 won. Children's cards can also be purchased with discounts automatically applied. Put about 15,000 won on each card for an average three-day itinerary.

Some other things worth noting:

●  The T-Money cards come in plenty of styles and more than a couple sizes. They all work, so long as there's money on that card / device.

●  If you have plans to visit Busan (Korea's second-largest city in southeastern Korea), the T-Money can also be used on Busan's subways and buses.

●  The MPass is essentially a day pass you can use for up to 20 rides in a day. It's only available to purchase at a few places, and is honestly a terrible deal.

●  You can also pick up one-time use cards, which require a small deposit when you purchase it. Get your deposit at a vending machine at your destination. These don't give any transfers outside the subway system, so I only recommend getting these if you aren't transferring to a bus.

●  Cards for tourists are available, naturally — see — koreatourcard.kr/ for more. These function just like a normal T-Money card, but offer some small discounts for things you might buy.

●  Refunds of the card's balance (minus a 500 won service fee) are possible at subway stations or from convenience stores.

Best: the subway / metro

Seoul's subway system opened in 1974 with line 1. Today, it has 23 lines and over 700 stations across three provinces. Entire lines and extensions are still being