Editor’s note: in a way, this is what I love about travel and about having different voices and perspectives here on The Royal Tour. I really enjoyed Seoul when I visited several years ago. Sam seems to have had a decent, but underwhelming experience. It is a reminder that love for travel destinations is totally subjective, and that sometimes, even a good time can miss lofty expectations. For more of Sam’s adventures, click here to visit his index page.

Often when I travel, I am pleasantly surprised when a city exceeds my expectations. If you read my last article, you would know that Busan, South Korea, was one of those cities. However, what that also means is that sometimes with travel, a place does not live up to my expectations. Sadly, I felt a bit disappointed by South Korea’s capital and largest city, Seoul. Let me be clear, it was not bad; it just was not amazing as I had heard it was from so many people. Let me breakdown the frustrations of Seoul, then I will share the highlights that I discovered.

Seoul is one of the largest cities in the world. The city itself has a population of 10 million people, and the metropolitan area is 26 million, making it the fourth largest metropolitan area on Earth. However, despite it being such a large city, I found it was incredibly difficult to get around. The city’s metro was not as navigable as other cities that I have been to, and I found it nearly impossible to get a taxi on the street, as it seems everybody got their taxis on an app that was for Koreans. For foreigners, there was an inconsistent app called K.Ride, where you could call a taxi; however, if you were traveling less than a couple of miles, taxi drivers were reluctant to accept the ride. For a large modern city, Seoul was not the most stroller/wheelchair friendly place I have been either. I also did not realize with Seoul that reservations are paramount. I had been used to Japan and Europe, where reservations for trains are not necessary. However, when I went to catch the high speed train (about 3 hours) from Busan to Seoul, it was sold out for the rest of the day, and even the slow 5-hour train was sold out, but I was able to buy standing room tickets for the latter, and kind and gracious locals gave up their seats for my wife and babies (side note, the Korean people were incredible, except a couple of cab drivers, and showed amazing hospitality – and all of them seemed to have candy for my kids). Similarly, it seemed any restaurant we wanted to go to in Seoul required advanced reservations. Additionally, while there were several great attractions in Seoul, other Asian cities like Beijing, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Bangkok seemed to have more to see. Finally, this is not so much a gripe about Seoul but more of something I have experienced throughout East Asia; while the cities are immaculately clean, it is hard to find garbage cans anywhere, resulting in you carrying your garbage around.

Now that I am done bitching about Seoul, let me mention the great things about the city. Seoul is called “The Miracle on the Han,” as the city is divided in half by the mighty Han River, a massive river that is a full kilometer in width as it cuts through the city. The southern half of the city seems to have more of the modern attractions and neighborhoods, like Gangnam, dubbed “Seoul’s Beverly Hills,” while more the of the historic sites are in the northern half of the city. On the northern side of the city, an obvious attraction that you will notice from anywhere is the Namsan Mountain, an 890-foot peak in the middle of the city that looms over the entire northern half of Seoul. On top of the mountain is the N Tower, a communication and observation tower, that has a rotating restaurant in it. You can go up the tower for sweeping views of the city, especially at sunset. At the bottom of the mountain is another significant place for Koreans, the War Memorial of Korea, which details the war that split the peninsula in two from 1950-1953.

In Seoul are three palaces, two smaller ones that were more residential and that I did not visit: Changdeokgung and Changgyeongung, and the grandest palace, Gyeongbokgung. In total, the Joseon Dynasty built five grand palaces, and Gyeongbokgung, at 4.5 million square feet, was the largest. Situated at the base of the 1122-foot Mt. Bugaksan, this palace was the primary palace from when it was opened by King Taijo, the founder of the dynasty, in 1395 until it was burned down during a Japanese invasion two hundred years later. It was rebuilt in the late 1800s, a few centuries later. A block south of the palace is a massive statue of King Taijo greeting visitors before you arrive at the imposing gates and entrance to the palace. Four times a day, there is a ceremony in which the honor guard, portrayed by actors, changes, a spectacle worth seeing as a general inspects his troops, all wearing colorful traditional garb. While the palace is only a few dollars to enter, if you decide to dress hanbok-style, the traditional outfits during the Joseon dynasty which can be rented at nearby stores, you get free entrance. Inside the palace are numerous courtyards, residences, religious shrines, and a throne for the emperor. The grounds are also home to the National Palace Museum of Korea and the National Folk Museum of Korea.

Near Gyeongbokgung is the Bukchon Hanok Village, a residential neighborhood of 900 traditional Korean homes. While this neighborhood is extremely popular with tourists, it is important to remember that people live in these homes, and there are certain hours that tourists are not allowed to visit; there are people employed to hold signs reminding tourists to be quiet. Spend a couple of hours exploring the village and the great craft shops and artisan studios within it. I especially recommend going to the tea house and museum at the top of the village, where with the price of admission, you get a cup of their traditional Korean tea and can sit on a patio and be treated to spectacular views of both the village and Seoul as a whole.

Not far from the Bukchon Hanok Village are numerous markets worth exploring. Namdaemun Market is a market that focuses on different clothing with hundreds of vendors spanning several blocks. My favorite part of the market was that there was one street entirely devoted to children’s clothing, which was perfect since my three year old threw up on herself exactly five minutes before we arrived there. Even if you do not have children, exploring an entire street of children’s clothing is pretty neat. A couple miles away, not far from the Bukchon Hanok Village, is the Insadong craft market. During the day, go through the various craft shops in a relaxed atmosphere. On weekends at night, the pedestrian street comes alive with a vibrant atmosphere (sadly, we did not experience this as it was pouring rain on the Saturday night that we were there). Just south of Insadong is Chonggyecheon Stream, a 6.8 mile stream that goes through the city. The city made the streambank a park with a jogging track, murals, and lights at night.

A couple of experiences that Seoul is most famous for are its spas and its culinary gems. Near Insadong is the Insadong Spa and Sauna, where I treated my wife to a traditional Korean spa experience that she loved. This spa has a manager who speaks perfect English and is very friendly towards foreigners, though I am sure that there are many great options around the city. If you read my Busan article, you know that one of my favorite experiences there was the fish market. On the south end of the Han River is Seoul’s equivalent to Busan’s gem, the Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market. Though Busan’s market is right on the sea and has more stalls when you include the outdoor market, I actually preferred Seoul’s market. At Noryangjin, there are two floors of the massive building that had fish tanks with live fish that you can pick out, have the owners club, and give to a restauranteur to cook up for you grilled or sashimi style. Being from Seattle, I know salmon, and the salmon that I had at this market had to be the hands down freshest, most flavorful I have ever had. The market also had certain sections that were just for octopus, just dried fish, etc. Beyond seafood, Seoul has 177 restaurants listed in the Michelin Guide, and dozens, particularly in Gangnam, that have been awarded the coveted Michelin star. We stayed at the luxury Parisian style boutique hotel L’Escape, which has a great location and spacious rooms with incredible vibes, and ate at their Palais de Chine, a Michelin-listed Chinese restaurant inspired by 1930s Shanghai cuisine. Of course, the most famous food in Seoul might be Korean barbeque, and for this, I recommend the ZIU BBQ restaurant in Seoul’s Jung District. This restaurant is small and you should make a reservation to go there, especially as it was ranked the #2 restaurant on TripAdvisor for Seoul. Aside from many types of beef steak that are brilliantly prepared and cooked at your table, I also noticed that this restaurant was unique in that it had a plant-based meat option for vegetarians. Finally, like every great Asian city, Seoul has wonderful night markets with different foods you can try; I highly recommend the Myeongdong Night Market, in the middle of the Myeongdong shopping district, with hundreds of vendors selling affordable, delicious, and quick local meals and snacks.

As I am sure you can tell from the last several paragraphs, Seoul is not bad at all, and there are a lot of great aspects to it. However, I went to Seoul expecting it to rival Tokyo. I can unequivocally say that Seoul does not hold a candle to Tokyo, and I felt that other Asian cities I have been to like Bangkok, Hong Kong, Beijing, and even South Korea’s “second city” Busan had more to offer. In another article, I will write about the DMZ, which is a must-do experience, and Seoul is the jumping off experience for that. If I could do the trip over again, what I would likely have added a couple days to my South Korea trip, but shaved off time in Seoul. I would have done two nights in Seoul for the great culinary experience, given myself a day for the DMZ tour, and then headed down for about four days to Jeju Island, known as “Korea’s Hawaii” for some rest and relaxation. However, how can one say they have experienced Korea without experiencing the heart of the nation, Seoul?

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