Seoul, neighborhood by neighborhood
No photos, no star ratings — just what I'd tell a friend. I live here, and these
are the 1092 places I actually go, across 27 neighborhoods.
Open the guide — Bukchon is free
North Seoul
북촌·안국 · 62 places · a walk
the old heart of Seoul: palaces, hanok lanes, the best museums
서촌 · 94 places · a walk
the palace's quiet side, where the locals slipped off to
부암동 · 12 places
a hillside hush — bookshops, small galleries, room to breathe
Central Seoul
광화문·서울시청 · 34 places
Seoul's civic heart — palaces, a great square, City Hall
종로 · 47 places
600 years of Seoul, packed into a few blocks
남대문 · 13 places
Korea's biggest market — the city at work, not on show
을지로 · 61 places · a walk
print shops by day, hidden bars by night
동대문 · 19 places
the 24-hour fashion machine that never sleeps
약수 · 17 places
a residential pocket the food crowd just found
한남동 · 80 places · a walk
Seoul's moneyed center, where Korean brands plant their flag
이태원·해방촌 · 59 places · a walk
Seoul's most international corner, and its nightlife
삼각지·신용산 · 51 places
rough old drinking blocks, now a young chef's quarter
효창공원·남영동 · 38 places
a green memorial hill, and the quiet old streets below
East Seoul
청량리 · 13 places
old-market Seoul, where the city's chefs come to shop
마장·답십리 · 9 places
working Seoul: the giant meat market, and antiques
서울숲·성수 · 152 places · a walk
old tanneries turned the city's loudest lifestyle strip
신당 · 16 places
tteokbokki alley, now the chefs' favorite address
잠실 · 3 places
Lotte World, the tallest tower, and a lake to walk
West Seoul
공덕·대흥 · 25 places
everyday Seoul, threaded along an old-railway park
연희동 · 39 places
Seoul's grown-up taste — writers, slow bakeries, quiet galleries
연남동 · 46 places
Hongdae's youngest, liveliest neighbor
홍대·서교 · 67 places · a walk
Hongdae's roots, where Seoul's new ideas show up first
망원동 · 34 places
market, river, and an easy pace — Hongdae, exhaled
여의도 · 3 places
finance island — a giant store, the river, the blossoms
South Seoul
반포 · 5 places
a department store and the riverside, by the bus terminal
신사동 · 36 places
Garosu-gil's quieter, better second act
압구정·청담 · 57 places
Seoul's high-end address — labels, clinics, the fine dining