Valerie Emily

A series of one-day Seoul itineraries built around different interests, from history and culture to cafes, photography, and solo travel.

Are you visiting Seoul soon, but have no idea where to go? After spending three months in Seoul as a solo female traveler, I’ve put together a one-day itinerary based on some of my favorite historical sites, neighborhoods and cultural attractions in the city.

Morning

Having breakfast in Seoul is not really a thing, unless you know where to go! The place I would recommend to start off at is Ikseondong. In this neighborhood you can find countless hanok-style restaurants and cafes. While it can be very busy during the day, the mornings are definitely less crowded. If you are struggling with finding restaurants and cafes to eat at, I recommend using Naver Maps. Here you can filter to solo dining options.

A restaurant I can recommend here is Songam Onban (송암온반). I’ve eaten here a couple of times and really enjoyed the atmosphere. Songam Onban has an amazing chicken ginseng soup with a light broth. While it can be a challenge if you’re not used to eating with flat chopsticks, the light broth and sticky rice at the bottom of the bowl make it well worth the effort. If the broth is too light for you, you can make it to your liking with the provided salt and other side dishes. The name of the dish is Banggyetang.

From Ikseondong you can take a short walk to one of the palaces. Yes, you read that right, one of them. In Seoul you can visit a total of 5 different palaces, which are still being preserved to this day. The one closest to Ikseondong is Changdeokgung Palace. Compared to Gyeongbokgung, it tends to feel a lot calmer, which is one of the reasons I like it so much. While you’re here, you can decide to go on a walking tour on specific days, but you can also choose to wander around the palace grounds by yourself. Please check the entry times before you go there though! When I went to Changdeokgung for the first time I could not enter the palace because they only did guided tours during that day. Changdeokgung is also a UNESCO World Heritage site and is especially known for its beautiful Secret Garden.

Afternoon

After exploring Changdeokgung and possibly Jongmyo shrine, which is right next to the palace, you’re probably in the mood for a nice lunch. Next to Jongmyo Shrine, you will find Seosulla-gil. This street is filled with cafes, restaurants and small businesses, with a view of the walls that surround the shrine. You can select any cafe you want in this area! What I like most about this street is that it feels a lot less hectic than some of the more famous tourist areas.

After lunch it’s time for the next stop: Anguk. You can walk here from Seosulla-gil, but it’s also possible to take the subway from Jongno-3(sam)-ga. It’s just one stop from here! In Anguk you can find museums with traditional art, and highly preserved hanoks. But there are also places where they offer workshops on traditional fermentation and perfume making. Next to Anguk you have Bukchon, which is a very famous neighborhood where you can also find hanoks. This is probably the most popular hanok neighborhood in Seoul. I’ve found myself wandering these streets a couple of times and still notice new shops and cafes in these neighborhoods.

Evening

Nightlife in Seoul is something else… Even during the weekdays, you’ll be able to find places that are open until 2 AM, and some even 5 AM. So while that sounds thrilling, it’s not the best for a first day in Seoul. So instead, we won’t be traveling too far and we’ll go to the main palace: Gyeongbokgung Palace.  We won’t be entering the palace today, but we will head to the area next to the palace which is called Sejong Village Food Culture Street. This street is filled with BBQ’s and restaurants where they serve traditional Korean food. I would recommend going to Chebudong JanChijip Dwaejigalbi (체부동잔치집돼지갈비 on Naver Maps), which is a barbeque place. When you order meat for grilling, you will probably get Doenjang Jiggae as a side dish. This is a fermented soybean stew. In this restaurant they will add seafood (specifically crab) to the soup. So be careful if you are allergic. 

After dinner I would recommend going to Cheonggyecheon, which is one of Seoul’s most famous urban streams. In the evening this area will be lit up with streetlights and it is my favorite place to wind down after a long day of walking around. 

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