Must-see attractions in Seoul

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    Gyeongbokgung

    Like a phoenix, Seoul’s premier palace has risen several times from the ashes of destruction. Hordes of tourists have replaced the thousands of government…

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    Changdeokgung

    The World Heritage–listed Changdeokgung is the most beautiful of Seoul's five main palaces. You must join a one-hour guided tour to look around. English…

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    Leeum Samsung Museum of Art

    Amid the celebrity-owned apartments on the leafy southern slope of Namsan is Korea's premier art gallery. Beautifully designed and laid-out, it balances…

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    Deoksugung

    One of Seoul's five grand palaces built during the Joseon dynasty, Deoksugung (meaning Palace of Virtuous Longevity) is the only one you can visit in the…

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    National Museum of Korea

    This vast and imposing concrete slab of a museum takes visitors on a fascinating journey through Korea's past from prehistory all the way to the Korean…

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    War Memorial of Korea

    This huge museum documents the history of the Korean War (1950–53) using multimedia exhibits and black-and-white documentary footage, along with artefacts…

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    Bongeun-sa

    Located in the heart of ritzy Gangnam, the shrines and halls of the Buddhist temple Bongeun-sa, with its tree-filled hillside location, stand in direct…

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    Dongdaemun Design Plaza & Park

    Designed by the late Zaha Hadid, this neofuturistic cultural complex was commissioned to replace the Dongdaemun Stadium, built during Japanese rule in the…

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    Noryangjin Fish Market

    Providing terrific photo opportunities, Korea's largest fish market supplies every kind of aquatic life form to restaurants, fish shops and the general…

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    Namdaemun Market

    You could spend all day in this swarming night-and-day market and not see it at all. The largest market in Korea, each section has hundreds of stalls,…

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    Seodaemun Prison History Hall

    Built in 1908, this former prison is a potent symbol of Korean suffering at the hands of Japan during colonial occupation in the early 20th century…

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    Cheong-gye-cheon

    With its landscaped walkways, footbridges, waterfalls and a variety of public artworks, such as the enormous pink-and-blue shell entitled Spring in Cheong…

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    N Seoul Tower & Namsan

    The iconic N Seoul tower (236m), atop the city’s guardian mountain Namsan, offers panoramic views of this immense metropolis from its observation deck…

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    Bukchon Hanok Village

    Meaning ‘North Village’, Bukchon, between Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung, is home to around 900 hanok, Seoul’s largest concentration of these traditional…

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    Tangent

    Hyundai Development Company commissioned Daniel Libeskind to work with Seoul-based firm Himma on its headquarters opposite COEX Mall. The result, Tangent,…

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    Gyeongui Line Forest Park

    This 6.3km park, named for the former Gyeongui Line (on which it was built), is a narrow, long green space that runs along the discarded railroad tracks…

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    Korean Stone Art Museum

    A score of centuries-old stone sentinels stand guard on the hillside at this terrific museum overlooking Seongbuk-dong. A road winds through sculpted…

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    Korea Furniture Museum

    You need to apply several days in advance via a reservation page on the website to visit this museum, but you absolutely should to admire the fabulous…

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    Seoul K-Medi Center

    Learn about the history and practice of traditional Korean medicine at this impressive facility styled to resemble Bojewon, a clinic from the early Joseon…

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    Ihwa Mural Village

    High on the slopes of Naksan is one of the city's old daldongnae (literally ‘moon villages’) where refugees lived in shacks after the Korean War. Sixty…