Know before you go: South Korea

South Korea’s entry system has two layers for travelers from visa-waiver countries: the K-ETA (Korea Electronic Travel Authorization) and, since January 2026, a digital e-Arrival Card that replaced paper forms. South Korea has replaced all paper arrival forms with a digital system. K-ETA is a long-term authorization valid for three years, and if you hold a valid K-ETA, you are exempt from filling out the arrival card for every trip. The e-Arrival Card is a trip-specific digital form that must be completed within 3 days before every arrival, and is mandatory for all travelers who do not have a K-ETA, including children and seniors.

The good news for 2026: South Korea has extended a temporary K-ETA exemption for citizens of 67 countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore, until December 31, 2026. This exemption covers most EU/Schengen nationals, the UK, several Gulf states, and a number of Pacific nations. You can still apply voluntarily even if exempt, which saves time at immigration and removes the need for some arrival paperwork. If your country is not on the exempt list (for example, several Southeast Asian nationalities under group visa-waiver arrangements), you generally still need to apply for K-ETA before departure. The K-ETA is only a ‘travel authorization’; the final entry decision is made by the immigration officer at the border.

Typical visa-free/K-ETA stay lengths run from 30 to 90 days depending on nationality and reciprocal agreements, with 90 days being common for the US, Canada, EU, UK, and Australia. Because exemption lists, stay durations, and the e-Arrival system can change without much notice, always confirm your specific country’s current rules directly on the official K-ETA portal and Korea Immigration (HiKorea) website before booking flights.

Seoul and most major cities run on excellent, inexpensive subway and bus networks, and the smart move for almost every visitor is a rechargeable transit card. If you remember just one thing about transit in Seoul, make it this: get a T-money card on day one. It works on every subway, every bus, in most taxis, in convenience stores, in vending machines, on the AREX airport express, and even in some cafés. It works across all of South Korea: subways, buses, and taxis in Busan, Daegu, Incheon, Gwangju, and Jeju accept T-money.

Fares are cheap: the base subway fare for adults sits at 1,550 won with a transit card, slightly less than buying a single-journey ticket at the gate. If you’re doing heavy sightseeing, consider Seoul’s tourist-oriented unlimited pass. New for 2026, short-term passes are now available for tourists: 1-day (₩5,000), 3-day (₩10,000), or 5-day (₩15,000), offering unlimited rides on Seoul subways and buses. Alternatives include the Discover Seoul Pass and the WOWPASS/Namane prepaid cards, which combine currency exchange with a T-money chip.

Card payments are catching up with transit too: as of 2026, most subway recharge kiosks now accept foreign Visa, Mastercard, JCB, UnionPay, and American Express, and new for 2026, tourists can now also pay for fares with international debit/credit cards using one of 440 new machines installed at over 220 subway stations. That said, don’t rely on this exclusively; a physical T-money card remains the simplest fallback everywhere, including on buses in smaller cities.

For longer distances, KTX high-speed rail connects Seoul to Busan, Gyeongju, and other major cities in a few hours, and domestic flights or intercity buses fill in the rest. Taxis are metered, plentiful, and generally trustworthy, and ride-hailing apps like Kakao T work well for English-speaking visitors.

The currency is the Korean won (KRW). The Korean currency is called “won,” with both coins and bank notes available: 10, 50, 100, and 500 for coins, and 1,000, 5,000, 10,000 and 50,000 for bank notes. US dollars and other foreign currencies are not accepted in most places throughout South Korea, so plan to use won or cards for daily spending.

South Korea is highly card-friendly. South Korea is one of the most card-friendly countries in Asia; hotels, department stores, shopping malls, convenience stores, coffee shops, popular restaurants, airports, train stations, and tourist attractions usually accept cards without much trouble. Still, cash has not disappeared: traditional markets, street food stalls, small local restaurants, older vendors, some rural areas, transportation card top-ups, and emergency situations can still make cash useful.

For ATMs, look specifically for machines built for foreign cards. The safer move is to look for machines marked Global ATM, International ATM, Global Service, Visa, Mastercard, Plus, Cirrus, JCB, or UnionPay, then choose English and follow the withdrawal steps slowly. Not every machine works with every card, so the safest money plan combines a modest amount of cash, at least two cards, a working transport payment method, and a calm backup plan if the first ATM fails. A reasonable starting point is exchanging about ₩130,000–₩260,000 (roughly US$100–200) in cash, while the rest can go on card. Apple Pay and other mobile wallets have patchy acceptance for tourists, so don’t count on them as a sole payment method.

South Korea has four distinct seasons, and the shoulder seasons are consistently rated the most comfortable for sightseeing. The best times to visit Korea are spring, roughly mid-April to May, and autumn, late September to November; both seasons are mild, dry and sunny, with the country at its prettiest: cherry blossoms in spring, fiery foliage in autumn.

For cherry blossoms, the cherry blossom season typically unfolds from late March to mid-April, with the exact timing varying each year based on weather conditions; to catch the breathtaking sights at their peak, aim for early April. For fall colors, peak foliage generally runs from mid-to-late October to early-mid November, with color starting in the northern mountains around Seoraksan in late October, reaching Seoul and the centre in late October to early November, and finishing in Busan and Jeju in early-to-mid November.

Summer and winter have their own trade-offs. Winter (December–February) is good for winter sports, while summer (June–August), when the monsoon season brings torrential rain and uncomfortably muggy weather, is generally not recommended. If you want fewer crowds while keeping decent weather, autumn generally brings fewer crowds and more predictable weather than spring, making it an excellent choice for travelers who prioritize comfortable sightseeing over peak bloom.

South Korea splits its emergency numbers by service rather than using one universal number:

• 112 – Police. Call 112 for immediate police response; English-speaking operators are available.
• 119 – Fire and ambulance. This is the direct-dial emergency telephone number in South Korea for fire brigade and ambulance service, operated by the National Emergency Management Agency; the caller’s location is automatically traced once the call is connected, and operators who can speak Chinese, English, Japanese, and Korean should be available.
• 1330 – Korea Travel Hotline (tourist help and interpretation, 24/7). For non-life threatening emergencies such as transportation inquiries or interpretation services, call the 1330 Korea Travel Hotline, operated by the Korea Tourism Organization; this one-stop helpline is available as a public service for both local and international travelers. It also doubles as an interpretation bridge: if you need an ambulance but the local 119 operator doesn’t speak English, you can call 1330, and they’ll contact a nearby hospital and set up a conference call.
• 1339 – KDCA disease and infectious-disease information and consultation call centre (24/7). It does not connect you to a hospital; for medical emergencies call 119. For help in other languages, call 1330 (Korea Tourism Organization, 8 languages) or 1345 (immigration, 20 languages).

All these lines are free to call from any phone. Overall, South Korea is considered a very safe destination for travelers, with low violent crime and excellent medical and transport infrastructure; the main practical risk for visitors is the language barrier in a fast-moving emergency, which is exactly what the 1330 and multilingual 119 lines exist to solve. Keep your embassy’s contact details handy in case of lost passports or serious legal issues, and save 112, 119, and 1330 in your phone before you land.