3-Day Seoul Itinerary: Markets, Palaces, Museums and Parks

Gwangjang Market

★★★★☆ 4.2 (44,118)

This is Seoul's oldest traditional market and a legendary street food destination, making it a natural, energetic start to a day in Jongno District.

Getting there: The market sits at 88 Cheonggyecheon-ro, Jongno-gu, straddling the border of the Jongno and Euljiro districts. The most direct approach is Jongno 5(o)-ga Station on Line 1, Exit 8, which puts you almost at the market's doorstep after a one-minute walk. Euljiro 4-ga Station on Line 2 or Line 5 (Exit 4) is a slightly longer but equally workable alternative, useful if you're coming from Myeongdong or Dongdaemun.

Sanchon

★★★★☆ 4.1 (733)

Tucked off Insadong-gil, this fixed-course temple-food restaurant offers an unhurried, meat-free counterpoint to the morning market and pairs naturally with an afternoon exploring nearby craft and tea shops.

Getting there: The address is 30-13 Insadong-gil, Jongno District, right in the heart of Insadong, Seoul's traditional arts-and-crafts quarter. The easiest approach is Anguk Station on Line 3, exit 6, from which it's roughly a 5-7 minute walk south down Insadong-gil, the pedestrian-friendly main street lined with tea houses, hanji paper shops, and galleries. Jonggak Station on Line 1 also works if you're coming from the south, about a 10-minute walk north into Insadong.

Euljiro in Seoul

This old printing-and-hardware district turned retro bar scene rewards wandering its narrow alleyways in the early evening, fitting neatly between lunch in Jongno and the evening's hanok village.

Getting there: - Euljiro 3-ga Station (Line 2 and Line 3), exits 3, 4, and 8 put you closest to the densest cluster of bars and workshop-alleys, including the area locals nickname "Hip-jiro."

Bukchon Hanok Village

★★★★☆ 4.4 (24,313)

A hillside neighborhood of centuries-old wooden houses between two palaces, this is the day's calm, scenic closer, best appreciated slowly and quietly.

Getting there: The village sits between two subway stops, and either works: Anguk Station on Line 3, Exit 2, drops you closest to the culture center and the busier northern lanes; Gyeongbokgung Station on Line 3, Exit 5, puts you nearer the palace side, useful if you're combining both in one outing. From either exit it's roughly a 10–15 minute walk uphill. Because the terrain climbs in stages, wear shoes with grip. Some of the "streets" are really stepped alleys.

National Museum of Korea

★★★★★ 4.7 (29,015)

As a major museum in Yongsan District near Ichon Station, this is a natural, substantial way to open the second day.

Getting there: Take Seoul Subway Line 4 or the Gyeongui-Jungang Line to Ichon Station, Exit 2. From there it's a short, signposted walk through the park.

EID Halal Korean Food

★★★★★ 4.5 (1,196)

A small, well-regarded halal Korean eatery near the Seoul Central Mosque, this makes for an easy lunch stop with a nearby mosque and market street to pair it with.

Getting there: The restaurant sits at 15 Usadan-ro 10-gil in Yongsan District, on the hill just below the Seoul Central Mosque, Korea's largest and oldest mosque, built in 1976. The easiest approach is Itaewon Station (Line 6), Exit 3. From there, walk uphill along Usadan-ro; the street climbs steadily and narrows into the alleys that make up what locals call the "Muslim street" or Halal Row, lined with Turkish, Pakistani, Egyptian, and Korean-halal-fusion eateries.

Myeongdong Shopping Street

★★★★☆ 4.4 (26,335)

Seoul's biggest street-level shopping and street-food grid gives the afternoon a lively, browsable stretch of cosmetics shops and snack stalls.

Getting there: - Myeongdong Station (Line 4), Exit 6 or 8 drops you directly into the main pedestrian shopping lane.

Cheonggyecheon

★★★★★ 4.6 (10,872)

This restored, open-air stream walkway offers a short, easy stroll to close the day, running from Gwanghwamun toward Dongdaemun.

Getting there: The most useful entry point is Cheonggye Plaza, at the stream's western end, reachable from Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5, Exit 5) or City Hall Station (Line 1 or 2, Exit 4/5), both a five-minute walk. If you'd rather join partway, Jonggak Station (Line 1, Exit 5) and Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Station (Lines 2, 4, 5) both drop you within a couple of minutes' walk of the stream path.

Yeouido Park

★★★★☆ 4.4 (6,202)

A sprawling, free, car-free green corridor on Yeouido island, this is a spacious, easy way to open the final day.

Getting there: Yeouinaru Station on Line 5 sits almost directly beside the park. Take Exit 2 or 3 and you're on the grounds within a couple of minutes, cherry trees or riverside promenade depending on which way you turn. Yeouido Station (Lines 5 and 9) is a slightly longer walk but useful if you're combining the park with the IFC Mall or the National Assembly Building.

Plant Cafe Seoul (Yeonnam)

★★★★★ 4.5 (251)

A plant-filled, greenhouse-style café in Yeonnam-dong, this is the kind of spot to linger over rather than rush through, suiting an unhurried afternoon.

Getting there: The café sits at 87 World Cup buk-ro 4-gil, Mapo-gu, in the heart of Yeonnam-dong (the residential-turned-hip neighborhood just north of Hongdae. The most straightforward approach is via Sangsu Station (Line 6), from which it's a walk of roughly 15-20 minutes through Yeonnam's quieter side streets, or a short taxi ride if you'd rather skip the walk. Alternatively, many visitors arrive from Hongik University Station (Line 2 / Airport Railroad / Gyeongui-Jungang Line) and cut through the Gyeongui Line Forest Park (Yeonnam-dong section), sometimes nicknamed "Yeontral Park" by locals) a linear greenway built over a former rail line that connects Hongdae to Yeonnam-dong and makes for a pleasant approach on foot.

Dallas Pizza in Seoul

★★★★★ 4.9 (222)

Tucked down an alley beside an active metal workshop in Mullae-dong, this reservation-only pizzeria pairs with a wander through the neighborhood's mural-covered art village for a fitting close to the trip.

Getting there: Mullae-dong isn't where most visitors expect to find one of Seoul's buzziest restaurant openings. For decades this pocket of western Seoul, sandwiched between Yeongdeungpo and Mullae Station, was known purely for metalworking, sheet-metal shops, welding sparks, and the clang of machinery. That industrial backbone never left, but over the past fifteen years artists priced out of other neighborhoods moved into empty workshop spaces, layering studios, galleries, and now destination-worthy food and drink on top of the district's gritty base.