Seoul Shopping

  1. Abby's Book Nook

    Now centrally located, this excellent second-hand, 2nd floor bookshop has helpful staff, stacks of books that sell for half the cover price, and others that go for around ₩2000 or less. It also has a café.

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  2. ABC Mart

    The biggest and best place for shoes with thousands of pairs on a number of floors - enough to make Imelda Marcos swoon. Another branch is at the other end of Myeong-dong.

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  3. Ahyeon-Dong Wedding Street

    Enjoy a bridal fashion show as you walk past the window displays of the more than 50 wedding shops in this street of romantic dreams. Hanbok wedding gowns are on show but Western-style ones are more popular these days.

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  4. Bandi & Luni's

    This new and very large bookshop with seats has one of Seoul's best selections of books in English (section D2). Another branch is in the COEX Mall.

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  5. Beautiful Store

    Bargain hunters love the second-hand clothing (around ₩2000 per item) as well as the household goods, while upstairs are reasonably priced artworks, CDs and a few English-language books. All profits go to charity. There is another store in Hongik in B1, next to Merae Plaza.

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  7. Boon The Shop

    This slimmed-down version of Galleria has stairways and balconies around an atrium courtyard, which provides a chic atmosphere as you browse lesser-known but cutting-edge brand-name stores.

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  8. Central City Mall

    A popular mall next to the express bus terminal that includes Shinsegae department store (3479 1234; ; - ) and Youngpoong Bookshop (595 4700; ; - Mon-Sat, - Sun) where books in English are on the 2nd floor in Sections E1 and E2. A food court and the Central 6 Cinema multiplex are other attractions.

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  9. Coex Mall

    This huge underground mall contains innumerable shops, including an excellent bookshop, record store and department store, but don't expect many bargains.

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  10. Crow

    Body piercing shops in Seoul are as rare as hen's teeth, but piercing is available in this little hut of a shop that sells studs, henna tattoos and more.

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  11. Dongdaemun Market

    This huge market is famous for the thousands of small shops packed into four neighbouring high-rise shopping malls. Fashion and textiles rule the area, but there are also massages and a 10-screen multiplex cinema. While many shops close on Sunday, the four big malls stay open. Inside the old soccer stadium is the undercover Pungmul flea market.

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  13. Donghwa Duty-Free Shop

    This extensive shop is packed with brand-name goods at prices that seem pretty steep despite their being 'duty free'.

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  14. Dynasty Tailor

    Dynasty has a good reputation and charges reasonable prices - pure wool custom-made suits start at around ₩250 ,000 and take about three days to make.

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  15. Filipino Sunday Market

    Join the jolly Filipino community in Seoul who gather here in this lively Little Manila every Sunday to meet each other and buy CDs, DVDs, call-back phone cards and second-hand mobile phones. Chefs in the back of vans cook up tropical Filipino treats - cassava cakes, adobo chicken, pancit noodles, longaniza sausage, purple rice, stews and banana spring rolls.

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  16. Gajukgongyebang

    Hand-crafted leather goods are made on the spot by an elderly artisan in this tiny shop.

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  17. Galleria

    Experience brand-name nirvana in this luxury boutique department store which packs dozens of world-famous fashion designer stores into two buildings, one of which is covered in plastic discs that look psychedelic at night. On top of the west wing is an Italian restaurant with a vineyard patio with set meals.

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  19. Galleria Concos

    Experience brand-name nirvana next to Seoul train station in this brand new department store where top world designers sell status and style to folk burdened by too much spare cash.

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  20. Gyeongdong Market

    Walk straight ahead from the subway and you'll soon be struck by the odours of the traditional Asian herbal remedies that this market specialises in. The leaves, herbs, roots, flowers and mushrooms piled up in the shops and stalls are all medicinal. Bark is sold to be made into soup, while jine is a long millipede that is boiled to make a soup or eaten dry.

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  21. Gypsy

    The handcrafted goods in this tiny shop (stuck in a '60s Woodstock time warp) are all individually made by the owner.

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  22. Headrush

    In this 4th-floor salon above US 66 bar, the English-speaking stylists are not the cheapest but have studied and worked in London. Making an appointment is recommended.

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  23. Hongdae Artists' Saturday Market

    With its hair-braiding stalls, tarot-card readers, handmade jewellery, hand-painted hats and T-shirts, appliqué bags, fans with a political message and soap made from rice and honey, this small Saturday market in the park outside Hongik University has a '60s Woodstock feel. Singers and pasty-faced magicians put on shows in the entertainment corner.

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  25. Huckleberry Farms

    Organic produce is rare in Seoul but this large health food shop stocks Seoul's widest range of organic food and drinks - including Founders organic beer from New Zealand (around ₩7900 ).

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  26. Iriver

    All the latest miniature miracle MP3 players and accessories are on display from Korea's top manufacturer, which has 10% of the global market and is adding new features almost every month.

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  27. Janganpyeong Antiques & Collectables Market

    Over a hundred small shops are packed into four arcades, and they're so full of old furniture, paintings, embroidery, pottery and stone statues that customers can hardly squeeze inside. They're pretty quiet compared to other markets but if you love browsing - from yangban (aristocrat) pipes and hats to fish-shaped locks and Buddhas it's worth it.

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  28. Jewel Button

    The award-winning handmade jewellery designs are created by two top Seoul designers.

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  29. Kim Young Joo Milano

    A boutique of a well-known local designer who is famous for adapting traditional hanbok , the striking traditional clothing that followed the principle of unadorned modesty, into a modern style.

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