3 Days in Seoul: What I Wish I Knew on Day One

I took an overnight flight and landed at Incheon early in the morning. So my first day in Seoul started with the SIM and the bus to the hotel. Then I walked.

Here’s what I did and what it cost me. I’ve laid it out as a plan for 3 days in Seoul. Move things around if you like.

Landing at Incheon

Incheon is huge. It felt about 20% bigger and busier than Bangkok. The numbers are close: Incheon handled about 74 million passengers in 2025. Suvarnabhumi handled about 63 million in AOT’s 2025 fiscal year, October to September. That’s roughly 18% more.

And it’s well organized.

Getting connected and into the city

I did my research with AI before leaving, for the SIM and the bus. Everything was exactly as expected.

SIM card. I paid about 40,000 won at the airport. Bring your passport. A data-only plan won’t give you a Korean number for calls or SMS codes, so pick a voice option if you need one.

T-money card. This is the transport card for the subway and city buses. A plain card costs 3,000 won at convenience stores (CU, GS25, 7-Eleven), and you load credit on top.

Airport bus. About 17,000 won, direct to Jongno. The airport is about 1 hour from where I stayed. The 6002 limousine is the line that serves Jongno; check its stops for your hotel. At Terminal 1 you can board with cash, a transport card or a ticket. At Terminal 2, buy a ticket first. Big bags go in the hold.

The ride was clean, neat, efficient and quick. The bus dropped me right in front of a coffee place. It smelled so good. The hotel was about 100 meters away.

Where I stayed: near Jongno 3-ga

I chose to stay near Jongno 3-ga. It’s trendy right now, and I think it’s nicely located. The old palaces, Ikseon-dong and Gwangjang Market are all close. I am not joking : It was voted COOLEST AREA in the world recently.

Hotels in Seoul are expensive. I paid about USD 60 a night at Kanso Stay in Jongno. It’s kind of a capsule hotel. The place was renovated, nice design. There’s coffee, a lounge, a nice shower, and very nice soap and shampoo. It’s clean. It’s not so small, and the bed is fine. The first night I barely slept, because of the flight so I needed to get back but so far so good.

Day 1: land, check in, walk

Don’t plan too much for the first day. Get your SIM and your T-money card, take the bus, check in. Then walk the streets.

Red wine and gelato

At night, I was recommended a bar that serves red wine and gelato. I didn’t think it would be a great match. It is. It does not really matter if you are in Seoul or Firenze!

Day 2: Myeongdong, shopping and Gwangjang Market

Myeongdong: look, don’t eat

Myeongdong is what I expected. It’s beautiful, and very touristy. Lots of tourists.

The street food there is made for them. From what I saw, it costs 2 to 5 times more than at the markets or in authentic places. So walk around and take photos. Eat somewhere else.

Shopping: Olive Young and Daiso

There’s Olive Young for beauty products, and Daiso for everything else.

The Daiso I went to has 12 floors. The floors are not big, but each one has its own theme: camping, kitchen, bathroom, beauty, even pets. It’s a bit crazy. Everything I saw was under USD 5. Does it worth it? Well, it’s Daiso. Cheap stuff but not quality.

Gwangjang Market: a gem

For food, go to the markets. Gwangjang Market is a gem. It’s touristy too, but I love it anyway. It’s difficult to describe but it’s packed of people, full of places to eat. I went to a small place without much tourists.

Over there, I tried Korean beef tartare. In Korea it’s called yukhoe, and I had it as a bibimbap: raw beef and an egg yolk on rice and vegetables. I’m not a fan of tartare. But so many foodies promote it, I wanted to try. They add sesame oil, which is nice. To my taste, the Dijon mustard in a French tartare gives more flavor.

Day 3: old Seoul, palaces and Ikseon-dong

A day in old Seoul is nice. You can visit temples and old palaces at a cheap price. I actually saw Ikseon-Dong the first night and felt in love. So I went back and back. Let’s talk about it later…

Gyeongbokgung Palace, and the hanbok trick

Gyeongbokgung is the main palace. It’s beautiful, and very clean.

Entrance is about USD 2. The official fee for foreign adults (19 to 64) is 3,000 won.

Free if you wear a hanbok. You’ll see a lot of people in rented traditional dress, and that’s why. It has to be a full hanbok: a top (jeogori) and a skirt or pants. A hanbok top with jeans doesn’t count.

Combined ticket. If you want to see the other palaces, the integrated pass is 6,000 won, about USD 4. It covers Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung and Jongmyo Shrine, one entry each. It does not include the Secret Garden at Changdeokgung, which is a separate timed ticket.

Very affordable.

Changing of the guard. It’s at 10:00 and 14:00, near the main gate. The palace is closed on Tuesdays.

Ikseon-dong: my favourite

So back to my love place : Ikseon-dong. I loved it for the cafes, the restaurants and the vibe. It is located on traditional Korean house in wood, not tall buildings. Small street. Jongno has it all : These restaurants and bars, also the cultural or art of Insadong, and the ancient templates like you see on the pictures. All walkable.

Bring your wife or girlfriend if you go to these cafés. Romantic, nice. I even heard that if you bring both at the same time, you might have a discount! (joke, of course).

Insadong: arts and walking

Insadong is less crowded than Myeongdong, and more colorful. There’s less street food, though.

What I ate

I already had twice Korean BBQ in 3 days. They always serve you side dishes with your meal. Many restaurants (maybe 80% of where I went) have a small TV screen where you order in different languages. Handy, but not personal.

A normal Korean BBQ meal is around 20,000 won, with all the side dishes included.

Back in Thailand, I use Seoul as the benchmark. Here are the Korean places in Hua Hin I’m comparing. And few years ago I wrote about Annyeong, a Korean BBQ place in Korat. Yes, these places are fine but I have the real deal here. 🙂

I also had street food, spicy octopus in bowl, Korean fried chicken (really good with beer) and more.

Be careful with the Soju! It can have 4 times more alcohol than beer. Most soju is about 16 to 20%. A Korean lager like Terra is about 4.6%. So pace yourself.

Getting around

Public transport is super nice and cheap. Tap your T-money card in and out, and tap again when you leave a bus.

Use Naver Map. It works way better than Google Maps in Korea.

If you’ll ride a lot, Seoul’s Climate Card has a 3-day pass for 10,000 won, plus 3,000 won for the card. It covers the Seoul subway and city buses. In 3 days of public transport, I only spend about 10,000 won, or less than 10$ US.

A simple 3-day plan

Day	Daytime	Evening
1	Land at Incheon, SIM, T-money, airport bus, check in near Jongno 3-ga	Walk around Jongno, red wine and gelato.
2	Myeongdong walk (look, don’t eat), Olive Young, Daiso	Gwangjang Market, Korean BBQ
3	Gyeongbokgung (guards at 10:00), temples, other palaces	Ikseon-dong cafes and restaurants, Insadong walk

If the flight wipes you out, don’t push.

What it cost me

My own numbers, first days in Seoul

• SIM card: about 40,000 won
• Airport bus to Jongno: about 17,000 won
• My Capsule hotel: about USD 60 a night (more info in my next post)
• Daiso: everything I saw was under USD 5
• Gyeongbokgung: about USD 2, free in hanbok
• Combined palace ticket: about USD 4
• Korean BBQ: around 20,000 won, side dishes included

The hotel was the expensive part.

FAQ

More from my travels

• Hong Kong in Three Days
• Korean Food in Hua Hin: Four Places, With Seoul as the Benchmark
• Chinese Restaurants in Hua Hin: Where I Actually Go

Back home, my advice about markets is the same. If you’re in Hua Hin, here’s which market to go to, and on which day.