Seoul 2 days in winter
 

I have already posted about my holiday in Finland and France. Now I’m hoping for a little more help. We are flying Korean Air and on the way back to Oz we have 2 days in Seoul. I know it’s not much time so we would like to maximise our experience. Help please.

We spent four or five days in Seoul as part of a longer visit to the country. Some photos and detail on our tine there here @ https://accidentalnomads.com/2015/07/12/seoul/. It doesn't cover everything we did but should provide some general ideas. We got around by subway mostly which can be a little bewildering at first but is ok once you get used to it. I think I put a few tips in that blog entry, but most of all, I would recommend working out which exit on the subway you need to use to get where you want to go. The wrong one can take you a very kong way from where you want to be!

Choosing a hotel in the right location can save a lot of time. We stayed at the Ibis Insadong which was fine, not luxurious by any means but well located for where we though we wanted to go.

Gyeongbokgung is a must (not often. I say that), Bukchon Hanook Village, Namdaemun Market are worth seeing. If you have an interest in 20 century history then the DMZ is worth considering (though you probably wont want to spend the whole day needed to go there. The War Memorial /Museum is in the city is an altenative.

One thing I remember about Seoul is the food - incredible food around even corner. Korean Fried Chicken is different to any chicken I have tased anywhere and the dumplings, second only this those in Taiwan.

Seoul is one of those cities that we will return to as a stopover to visit family in Sydney.

In between the boulevards of Seoul with its plethora of skyscrapers are sprawling downscale neighborhoods sometimes 20 x 10 blocks of tiny alleys with restaurants, businesses, and housing. We stayed in a love motel (the Ben Hur) tucked away inside one of these neighborhoods, yet steps from the Gwangjang Market, the old central market. It is a rabbit's warren of shops with traditional foods and even more traditional clothing called hanbok. In Korea the juxtaposition of the modern and the traditional is striking.

As is typical of Korean motels, the Ben Hur features decor that was a mash up of styles, from Roman to space age to Roy Lichtenstein prints. That's how Korea rolls.
Link:
https://tinyurl.com/bdcpf3r

The Gwangjang Market is essential. Inside you can pull up a stool to women making bindatteok, mung bean pancakes. There is also a yuckhoe alley inside, a row of shops featuring raw beef, aka steak tartare.

As Crellstron said, Gyeongbokgung is a major palace site, also notable for the adjacent Folk Art Museum. Korean folk art is very much a presence in people's lives, not just something on display.

You won't have much more time than that, but if you have any special interests such as food or art or amusement parks or nature, then let us know.

Advise you to check whether a Korean Visa is needed to enter the country. I could hardly believe my USA passport was insufficient to get me a 2 day holiday in Seoul. I was denied my air flight till, with some help at the ORD airport desk, i did get an 'eVisa' at the last minute. This in September 2022.
Many thanks to Korean Air and the mgr at ORD for his help.

There was a visa waiver form that you needed (easily filled out electronically), but that is not the case now through 2024. Just a passport will suffice.

Thanks for your help, we have put together an itinerary based on your advice. We have excluded the DMZ and will go to the museum instead. Cheers