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Seoul is a journey vacation spot the place the outdated and new coexist. Touring right here brings you up near century-old palaces, conventional cafes, and superbly preserved pure landscapes. However on the similar time, you get additionally high-tech trendy points of interest, bustling procuring districts, and all of the creature comforts of a cosmopolitan metropolis, which you’ll simply navigate with the environment friendly practice community.

For many who want nature spots and historic websites, I beforehand shared some basic locations and experiences in Seoul for first-timers together with hanbok leases on the Gyeongbokgung Palace, Nami Island, Deoksugung Stonewall Walkway, Haneul Sky Park, Cheonggyecheon Stream, in addition to conventional Korean delicacies you need to strive. The locations with historic and cultural significance will attraction to the entire household, together with seniors.

Under are among the extra trendy points of interest that households with youthful children and vacationers who bought hooked on Ok-dramas and Ok-culture through the pandemic may go to throughout their journey to Seoul.

In case you’re a fan of Ok-dramas, you is perhaps acquainted with the Starfield Library, an enormous library with 13-meter-tall bookshelves positioned throughout the heart of the elegant Starfield COEX Mall.

Fashionable Ok-dramas filmed on this Insta-famous library embody Document of Youth, Lovestruck within the Metropolis, and Kkondae Intern, to call just a few. On this public area, which opened in Could 2017, anybody can simply sit down and browse books free of charge.

The 2-storied library has 1000’s of books in numerous genres, together with home and international magazines accessible for searching. Alongside conventional books, the library additionally has iPads that anybody can use to learn e-books and tables with electrical plugs for these with laptops, who have to compensate for emails.

The advanced additionally homes the COEX Aquarium, film theaters, trendy eating places, and low retailers. Outdoors the constructing, yow will discover an interactive sculpture, which pays homage to the 2012 mega-hit track Gangnam Model by PSY. When you get on the stage beneath the arms, the track immediately performs, so anybody can dance and take video clips.

For the previous 4 many years, Namsan Seoul Tower or N Seoul Tower has served as one probably the most iconic landmarks of South Korea. Stated to be the primary multipurpose tower established within the nation, N Seoul Tower incorporates a sightseeing observatory that overlooks town from the highest of Namsan Mountain.

Identified primarily as a romantic spot for {couples}, one space permits guests to place colourful love locks to seal their romantic guarantees as made widespread by exhibits like Boys Over Flowers, My Love From One other Star, and Rooftop Prince, to call just a few.

Whereas lively {couples} can take an extended scenic route up the tower by way of stairs, it may be fairly tiring for these with younger children. Fortunately, the entire household can simply go up by driving the Namsan Cable Automotive proper as much as the observatory.

On prime of being a prime vacationer landmark within the metropolis, the tower presents a spectacular sight to behold at evening even from afar. Utilizing the newest in LED expertise, the tower is lit up in an array of colours and patterns. The protected space round N Seoul Tower additionally exemplifies how nature and expertise can exist in concord.

Common automobile visitors is reportedly restricted to maintain the encircling space of Namsan Mountain space clear and inexperienced.

When touring with children, amusement parks will inevitably be a part of the agenda. And once you’re in Seoul, some of the widespread theme parks to go to is Everland. Often called South Korea’s greatest theme park, Everland receives round 6 million guests yearly and comprises many trendy amusement park rides alongside wildlife points of interest.

This theme park owned and operated by the Samsung Group of corporations is made up of 5 distinct themed zones, particularly International Honest, Zootopia, European Journey, Magic Land, and American Journey.

Whereas ready to get a journey may simply take up the entire day, among the greatest points of interest right here embody the T Specific, one of many world’s quickest wood rollercoasters, and Panda World, which is dwelling to a pair of big pandas gifted to South Korea by Chinese language President Xi Jinping as an indication of friendship. Panda World additionally comprises interactive installations the place visitors can be taught extra
concerning the bear species.

To maximise your time, attempt to guide an specific ticket forward of your go to with the intention to skip lining up for among the rides and make use of the theme park’s app to get up to date info on queues and points of interest. In case you’re in an enormous group, I’d additionally counsel that seniors provide you with a separate itinerary whereas households with children go to the amusement park, to maximise everybody’s enjoyment.

In case you’re a fan of the guide The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry or need a style of Europe whereas in South Korea, one web site you possibly can go to is Petite France. This French-style cultural village set within the Korean countryside of Gyeonggi Province was constructed in July 2008.

Designed with the theme idea, “Flowers, stars, and the Little Prince,” the village presents expertise applications, coaching services, and lodging with a French aptitude. It’s a colourful, family-friendly attraction amid the inexperienced and blue mountainside.

Inside this village in Gapyeong, yow will discover memento retailers, cafes, eating places, and particular galleries all styled after conventional French homes. There’s a memorial corridor devoted to Saint-Exupery, the writer of the French novel, Le Petit Prince (1943), an Vintage store, a Doll Home, and Orgel Home the place you possibly can hearken to a 200-year-old music field. There’s additionally a gallery of various puppets and puppet present performances.

Other than the hyperlink to the French novel and IG-worthy backdrops, Petite France is widespread with Ok-drama followers because it’s served because the filming location for some basic Korean dramas together with  Beethoven Virus (2008), Secret Backyard (2011), and My Love from the Stars (2014).

In case you’re on the lookout for a spot to immerse your self on the earth of contemporary Korean popular culture and Ok-dramas, you’ll want to move by HiKR Floor. HiKR, which mixes “Hello” and “Korea” with the idea of a playground (”Floor”) is a comparatively new interactive museum-like exhibition corridor in Seoul.

This promotional corridor takes a brand new strategy to sharing numerous Korean content material, together with the areas of Hallyu, arts, and extra by integrating Prolonged Actuality (XR) and sensible expertise aimed on the youthful technology.

On the primary ground is an extra-large media wall showcasing the Panorama of the New Metropolis, together with prime vacationer points of interest, locations featured in Ok-pop, Ok-drama, and extra. On the second ground, Hallyu followers can stay out their Ok-Pop goals by utilizing XR expertise to make their very own music movies by choosing from over 100 completely different backgrounds, and music, all shareable on social media.

The third ground contains a Korean Artwork Museum the place consultant Korean content material is reinterpreted by Korea’s trendy artists. An entire part additionally gives detailed info on filming areas from Hallyu media content material and newer Ok-dramas like Hometown Cha-Cha and Netflix originals just like the historic zombie collection Kingdom and All of Us Are Lifeless.

The fourth ground presents a multi-experience zone the place guests can expertise numerous themed points of interest utilizing all 5 senses, whereas a lounge on the fifth ground provides guests an opportunity to do a journey mission.

Positioned within the neighborhood of Sangam-dong, Digital Media Metropolis, or DMC was constructed to accommodate Korea’s media, leisure, and IT industries to turn out to be the brand new epicenter for Hallyu content material and manufacturing.

It’s right here the place yow will discover the principle studios and places of work of KBS, MBC, and SBS, three of Korea’s main broadcasting corporations. The principle MBC constructing homes Korea’s first Hallyu Broadcasting Theme Park the place guests can stay out their Ok-drama fantasies, expertise digital actuality content material, be taught dance strikes from holographic Ok-pop stars, and extra in guided excursions.

In entrance of MBC’s new constructing is a well-liked artwork set up referred to as “Sq. M-Communication” which options two standing males in a purple body virtually touching fingers. The sculpture was famously featured in Marvel Studios Avengers: The Age of Ultron film filmed in 2015.

The close by Star Park comprises hand imprints of Korean celebrities, together with Kim Woo Bin (Black Knight), Park Shin Hye (#Alive), Ha Ji Gained, Hyung Sik Park (Secret Backyard), Nam Joo Hyuk (Begin Up), in addition to worldwide celebrities.

The world can be recognized for having a number of nice eating places, so the entire household can take pleasure in a superb meal earlier than or after their digital media tour.

The bustling Myeongdong district is considered one of Seoul’s principal procuring districts, and it’s the place yow will discover every little thing from mid-to-high priced retail shops and worldwide model shops.

The colourful neighborhood is a good place to remain and eat. In case you’re not into procuring, you may as well simply take pleasure in eating, visiting cat cafes, looking down craft beer spots on this space, and making an attempt completely different road meals.

Among the greatest road eats in Myeongdong embody:

Tteokbokki: Spicy stir-fried rice truffles in a candy and spicy gochujang (purple chili pepper paste) sauce.
Gimbap: Korean-style seaweed rice rolls full of numerous substances like greens, meat, and pickles.
Mandu: Korean dumplings full of a mix of meat and greens, often steamed or fried.
Bungeoppang: Fish-shaped pastries full of candy purple bean paste, a well-liked Korean road dessert.
Twister Potatoes: Spiraled potatoes on a stick.
Octopus Skewers
Grilled shrimp
Roasted Lobster topped with cheese
Grilled scallops with cheese

Myeongdon can be a fantastic place to drink. We tried out just a few craft beer bars within the space.

Seoul is a good journey vacation spot to expertise an unimaginable mixture of the previous and current. When you get a style of the normal tradition with the temples and palaces all through town and superbly embellished gardens, you may as well take pleasure in trendy museums, hi-tech points of interest, and immerse your self within the newest traits in Ok-entertainment, music, and tradition, and revel in trendy meals.

NOTE: A model of this text was first printed in Enrich Journal.

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