3-Day Seoul Itinerary for First-Timers

Three days is enough to see Seoul's biggest highlights without rushing every hour. This plan groups sights by neighborhood so you're not crisscrossing the city, and it assumes you're using the subway with a T-money card. If you haven't sorted out transit or a SIM yet, do that first — see our guides on getting a Korea eSIM and using the Seoul subway.

This itinerary assumes you're already in Seoul. If you're still working out how to get from the airport, check Incheon Airport to Seoul or Gimpo Airport to Seoul first.

Day 1: Palaces, Hanok, and Traditional Seoul

Start in Jongno, the historic core of the city.

• Gyeongbokgung Palace (경복궁): Arrive by 9:30am to beat tour groups. Entry is around ₩3,000, or free if you wear a hanbok (rentable nearby for ₩15,000-25,000/day). Catch the Royal Guard Changing Ceremony if the timing lines up — check the official site for the schedule, as it varies seasonally. Nearest stop: Gyeongbokgung Station (Line 3), Exit 5.
• Bukchon Hanok Village (북촌한옥마을): A 15-minute walk from the palace. This is a residential area with hanok houses on hillside streets — it's a photo stop, not a museum, so keep noise down; locals do live there.
• Insadong (인사동): Lunch and tea house browsing. Try a traditional lunch (₩12,000-18,000) or duck into a tea house for a break. This area overlaps with our dedicated Jongno and Insadong guide if you want more detail on tea houses and galleries.
• Evening: Head to Myeongdong (명동) for dinner and street food. It's touristy but convenient, with night markets running until around 11pm. For a fuller breakdown of what to eat and skip there, see the Myeongdong Travel Guide.

Where to sleep for Day 1 convenience: staying in Myeongdong or nearby puts you within a short subway ride of everything above. Our Myeongdong hotel guide covers the best blocks.

Day 2: Shopping, Street Food, and Nightlife

This day covers two very different neighborhoods: Myeongdong in the morning, Hongdae at night.

• Morning: If you didn't finish exploring Myeongdong the night before, use the morning for duty-free shopping and skincare stores before crowds build. Most shops open around 10am-11am.
• Afternoon: Take Line 2 to Hongik University Station (홍대입구역) — about 25-30 minutes from Myeongdong. Hongdae (홍대) is built for wandering: street performers, indie shops, and a young crowd. Grab lunch at one of the neighborhood's casual Korean or fusion spots (₩10,000-15,000).
• Evening: Hongdae's nightlife starts late and runs later. Expect cover-charge clubs, hongdae playgrounds with buskers, and karaoke (noraebang) rooms open past midnight. If nightlife isn't your thing, the area still works well for dinner and browsing.

For a deeper dive into what to do, eat, and where the nightlife clusters, see the Hongdae Travel Guide. If you'd rather base yourself here overnight, check Where to Stay in Hongdae.

Day 3: Modern Seoul — Gangnam and Seongsu

Your last day shows the contrast to Day 1's traditional sights.

• Morning: Take the subway to Gangnam (강남), Line 2 or the Shinbundang Line depending on where you're starting. Walk Garosu-gil (가로수길) for boutique shopping and cafés, or visit COEX Mall and the Starfield Library if you want an indoor option (both free to browse).
• Lunch: Gangnam has everything from cheap gimbap counters to higher-end Korean BBQ (₩15,000-30,000 per person for BBQ).
• Afternoon: Head to Seongsu (성수), one stop past Gangnam-adjacent areas on Line 2 (roughly 20-25 minutes from Gangnam Station). This former industrial district is now full of converted warehouse cafés and pop-up stores from Korean and international brands. It's a good contrast to the palace visit on Day 1 — same city, completely different era.
• Evening: Dinner back in Gangnam or Seongsu depending on where you're staying, then an early night before departure prep.

For more on either area, see the Gangnam Travel Guide and Seongsu Travel Guide. If you're deciding where to base yourself for this side of the trip, check Where to Stay in Gangnam.

Suggested Itinerary at a Glance

Choosing a Base for 3 Days

Where you sleep affects how much transit time you lose. Myeongdong is the most central for this specific 3-day route since it sits close to both Jongno and the subway lines toward Hongdae and Gangnam. If you'd rather compare all the major areas before booking, our best areas to stay in Seoul guide breaks down the trade-offs.

Practical Notes

• Budget: Plan roughly ₩60,000-90,000 per person per day for food, entry fees, and local transit, excluding accommodation and shopping.
• Pace: This itinerary is full but doable on foot with subway connections. If you prefer a slower trip or want to add Busan, look at the 5-Day Seoul Itinerary or 7-Day South Korea Itinerary.
• Payments: Most places take cards, but keep some cash for smaller street food stalls and markets. See how to pay in Korea as a tourist for specifics.
• Navigation: Google Maps has limited transit data in Korea. Use Naver Map instead — our Naver Map guide walks through the basics.

Final Tips

Book any popular restaurant ahead where you can, especially for dinner on Day 2 or 3 — see how to book restaurants in Korea for the apps locals actually use. And if you're shopping at all on this trip, keep your receipts; foreign tourists can claim VAT back on qualifying purchases, detailed in our Korea tax refund guide.