Things not to miss in South Korea

updated 11/30/2020

#01 Insadong Tearooms

Tea may have ceded ground to coffee across the nation, but Seoul’s traditional Insadong district still has dozens of secluded tearooms serving traditional brews.

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#01 Insadong Tearooms
#02 Huwon
#03 Jeonju Hanok Village
#04 Boryeong Mud Festival
#05 Makkeolli
#06
#07
#08
#09
#10
#11
#12 The DMZ
#13 Buamdong
#14 Noraebang
#15 Galbi
#16 Gongsanseong
#17
#18
#19 Socialist realist art

South Korea tea ceremony © mnimage/Shutterstock

#02 Huwon

Relax by the lake as kings once did at this secluded “Secret Garden”, which nestles at the back of a UNESCO-listed palace in central Seoul.

© Alon Adika/Shutterstock

#03 Jeonju Hanok Village

Here you can sleep in a traditional wooden hanok house heated from underneath by gentle flames, in one of Korea’s most agreeable cities.

#04 Boryeong Mud Festival

Korea’s dirtiest, most enjoyable festival takes place each July on the west coast – don’t forget your soap.

Boryeong Mud Festival at Daecheon beach, South Korea © yochika photographer/Shutterstock

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#05 Makkeolli

Get drunk the local way with this milky rice wine, which has undergone a huge surge in popularity of late.

© aodaodaodaod/Shutterstock

#06 Teddy Bear Museum

The epitome of kitsch, most notable for its diorama room portraying twentieth-century events such as teddies tearing down the Berlin Wall, landing on the moon and going down with the Titanic.

© fullerdada/Shutterstock

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#07 Guinsa

The most distinctive temple complex in the country, Guinsa’s paths wind snake-like routes up a tight, remote valley in Korea’s heartland.

#08 Dosan Seowon

The wonderfully unspoilt countryside surrounding the city of Andong is studded with gems, and this former Confucian academy is one of the best.

#09 West Sea Islands

Over three thousand islands are sprinkled like confetti around Korea’s western coast – pick up a map in Mokpo, get on a ferry and lose track of time.

#10 Dongdaemun Market

A 24-hour market in a city that never sleeps, Dongdaemun is a Seoul institution, with sights and smells redolent of decades gone by.

#11 Naejangsan National Park

Shaped like a soft volcano, this national park’s ring of peaks provide the country’s most mesmerising displays of autumn foliage.

© jaaoe.bc/Shutterstock

#12 The DMZ

Take a step inside the 4km-wide Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Korea: the world’s frostiest remnant of the Cold War.

#13 Buamdong

Seoul’s latest “secret” area is a quiet maze of roads tucked away behind the royal palaces. Here you’ll find elegant restaurants and cafés – and very few tourists.

© SAHACHATZ/Shutterstock

#14 Noraebang

A near-mandatory part of a Korean night out is a trip to a “singing room”, the local take on Japan’s karaoke bars.

#15 Galbi

A fire at the centre of your table and a plate of raw meat to fling onto it – could this be the world’s most fun-to-eat dish?

#16 Gongsanseong

Overlooking the river in sleepy Gongju, the walls of this fortress follow an almost caldera-like course; in the middle you’ll find dreamy pavilions and walking paths.

#17 Jeongdongjin

Korea’s most surreal village has a train station on the beach, a ship-hotel atop a cliff, an American warship and a North Korean spy submarine.

#18 Gyeongju

The former capital of Silla is the most traditional city in Korea, and should be on every visitor’s itinerary.

#19 Socialist realist art

That which has become ironic in Eastern Europe remains iconic in the DPRK, with colourful murals found all across the country – send one home on a postcard.