Last updated on October 5th, 2025
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From wandering the charming Bukchon Hanok Village, to trying the best Korean street food in Myeongdong—this itinerary will show how to spend the perfect 24 hours in Seoul.
After spending three months living in and exploring the South Korean capital, I’ve curated this itinerary to take you through the most quintessential, unmissable stops for anyone visiting Seoul for the first time.
While the city expands far and wide with many neighborhoods, each with its unique vibe and personality, this itinerary will narrow it down to the must-sees and dos for a short trip.
Always with a well-rounded approach, including some of the best places to eat in Seoul, and stops at some of the best coffee shops as well—both a must in my itineraries!
So let’s get to it. How do you spend a day in Seoul, including the main sights to visit, the best foods to eat, and the perfect way to finish your day of exploring?
📍 Where to stay in Seoul for first-timers:
An important thing to consider when planning your Seoul itinerary is choosing the right base for your trip to make the most of your time in the city. Some of the best areas to stay in Seoul as a first-time visitor are:
- Insadong: Close to Seoul’s top cultural attractions, like the Bukchon Hanok Village and Gyeongbokgung Palace. This is where I lived for 3 months and loved it!
- Myeongdong: Central, packed with great shopping, food, and bars.
- Gangnam: For the big-city Seoul vibes.
If you want an in-depth breakdown of the neighborhoods and hotel recommendations, check out our guide on where to stay in Seoul for first-timers.
⭐️ PS: If you have an extra day, check out our itinerary for 2 days in Seoul as well. But you will still want to read this one, as this is more detailed on how to spend that first day in the city.
24 Hours in Seoul: What to Do, See, and Eat
When spending a short time in a city, it’s best to arrive as prepared as possible. To help you with this, check out our Seoul travel guide, covering everything from using public transportation and Uber to getting data in Korea, local etiquette, and more.
Start the day with breakfast at Salt 24
As much as I loved exploring the best Seoul coffee shops for weeks on end, the breakfast and brunch culture is simply not there. So to get the closest to “Western breakfast”—more on the European side though—you’ll want to visit Salt 24.
Salt 24 is a small bakery close to the Bukchon Hanok Village, which gets us two birds with one stone: you get to fuel up on a tasty pastry while being on your way to the first stop of the day.
The croissants here are some of the best I’ve ever had outside of France, and their pain au chocolat is perfection!
They also have some savory breads, like ham and cheese croissants, and sausage rolls, as well as other decadent-looking pastries, so surely you will find something you’ll like.
Grab your morning coffee at Blue Bottle
After fueling up on the perfect pastry from Salt 24, head over to the neighborhood Blue Bottle location for the perfect cup of coffee.
I’m convinced that no matter what you order, you will have some of the best coffee here.
Blue Bottle is generally known for its attention to detail and consistency in drink preparation, but I feel like in South Korea and Japan, their coffee is just next level.
Their basic lattes are perfectly prepared. If you want something a little sweeter, but not too sweet, make sure to try their mocha, which is one of my favorite ones ever.
Stroll through Bukchon Hanok Village
Now that we are fed and caffeinated, the day can start, and the perfect start to a day in Seoul is to wander through the historic Bukchon Hanok Village.
The Bukchon Hanok Village is a preserved area in Seoul that is home to hundreds of charming traditional Korean houses, or hanoks.
Visiting this historic area gives you the feeling of stepping into a small Korean town, while being very much in the heart of a metropolis.
Admire the adorable Hanoks that line the streets here, and wander through the alleys quietly and respectfully, as this is all a residential area.
It’s common for visitors to visit a Hanbok shop to rent traditional ethnic Korean attire for a few hours to take photos in the neighborhood; that’s why you might see a few people doing this.
The area surrounding the Bukchon Hanok Village is packed with museums, boutique shops, and cafes, so make sure to explore the area fully before moving on to our next stop.
Visit the nearby Gyeongbokgung Palace
One of the top things you cannot skip while spending 24 hours in Seoul is to visit the beautiful grounds of the Gyeongbokgung Palace.
Gyeonbokgung Palace is the largest of the five palaces in Seoul, as well as one of the most beautiful and well-preserved ones, and it’s right next to the Bukchon Hanok Village, making it an easy next stop.
The palace grounds display some of the living accommodations of the Joseon dynasty, a beautiful artificial lake, and gorgeous traditional Korean houses, or hanoks.
Make sure to check at the entrance booth for the next tour available, as this will show you around the grounds and give you some historical information about the place, all in English, and for free!
Lunch: Dumplings or comforting chicken soup
After all that wandering around, you will probably be getting hungry by now, so for lunch, I have two options for you, both within walking distance of the Gyeongbokgung Palace.
Option A is KKangtong Madu, a locally-loved dumpling restaurant serving, as you would have guessed, various kinds of tasty dumplings.
The place is popular, with locals lining up for both lunch and dinner, so if visiting, make sure to arrive with a little bit of extra time in your hands.
Option B is Baeknyeon Tojong Samgyetang, another gem loved by locals, a popular restaurant specializing in ginseng chicken soup, a comforting and healthy meal option, particularly appreciated during the chilly autumn days.
Whichever you choose, you can’t go wrong, so just pick whatever you crave the most.
Recharge with an afternoon coffee at Cafe Soodal
If you are anything like me, you might want a little afternoon pick-me-up, and the perfect place for it is Cafe Soodal.
Cafe Soodal was my go-to spot while living in Seoul for three months. I was here at least twice a week.
Their coffee is always prepared to perfection, their cakes are delicious, and the space is the perfect combination between traditional and modern, housed inside a renovated Hanok with lots of light coming in.
If you have a bit of time, sit down and enjoy a coffee in one of their cute nooks; if not, pick up a coffee to go, and let’s continue the adventure.
Wander along Insa-dong’s charming shopping street
After the little coffee break, walk down Insa-dong Culture Street, en route to the city center.
Insa-dong Culture Street is a busy pedestrian street lined with independent boutique shops of all sorts. Making it the perfect place to find some unique souvenirs, such as locally-made art pieces, beautiful ceramics, and even cashmere socks.
So make sure to take your time strolling through this street while on your way to Myeongdong, in the city center.
Stop by the Cheonggyecheon Stream
While en route to Myeongdong from Insa-dong, you will come across an interesting sight, a stream running down the center of an avenue. In the heart of the city. Surrounded by buildings.
Cheonggyecheon Stream is an 11 km-long stream in the heart of Seoul that has existed since the Joseon dynasty, and was restored as an urban renewal project, adding a little bit of greenery and life to Seoul’s busy city center.
If you have a little bit of time, make sure to get down to the stream level to explore the area a little bit before continuing to the city center.
Head to Myeongdong for shopping, street food, and an Olive Young stop
Arriving in Myeong-dong in the late afternoon, you will see the area come alive, with locals passing through the city center, and the famous Korean street food stands starting to pop up around the streets.
Myengdong is a fun neighborhood to explore, full of surprises—packed with great shopping, restaurants, and bars.
And one of my absolute favorite stops here—and one you cannot miss—is the massive Olive Young.
If you don’t know what Olive Young is, it’s basically the Korean Sephora of Korean skincare, but everything is half the price of items at Sephora.
It’s basically heaven for skincare lovers! And I miss it dearly every day.
Make sure to stop by and stock up; you will never find Korean skin care and face masks at these prices back where you are from, so it’s really worth it to stock up on some goodies.
Dinner: Myeongdong street food stalls or a bowl of dumpling soup
After doing a little bit of shopping in the popular Myeongdong, it’s time for some dinner, and once again, I have two options for you.
If you want to go casual and try a little bit of everything when it comes to the Korean street food scene, you can easily create a food tour for yourself while walking around and trying different street food stands in Myeongdong.
One of my favorite ones, and one I visited often while living there, is a dumpling street food cart by where a “Holika Holika” is on Google maps.
If you’re tired of walking and standing, and would rather have a sit-down dinner, head over to Myengdong Kyoja restaurant, one of the best places to eat in Seoul.
This popular dumpling soup restaurant is loved by both locals and tourists alike, and its many Michelin Bib Gourmand awards just validate how good it is.
The food tastes homemade, everything on the menu is delicious, but the star of the show is the dumpling soup, so make sure to give it a try!
End the night with cocktails at a bar near Insa-dong
To end the night, you will want to head back in the Insa-dong direction. Don’t worry, if you are done with all the walking, you can call an Uber; they are very affordable in South Korea.
While living in the Insa-dong neighborhood for three months, I discovered this little city pocket with a handful of incredible cocktail bars, close to an area called Naesu-dong.
The bars are all tucked away inside small alleys, making it a mission to find some of them, but a very fun one.
My favorite bar I visited here is Bar Abyss, an incredibly small bar with only a handful of seats at the bar, incredible cocktails, and a friendly bar cat that greets the customers throughout the night.
You could stop for a drink here, and then go discover a few more in the area, or stay around at this cozy bar with friendly bartenders.
Final thoughts on 24 hours in Seoul: What to do, see, and eat
With its numerous small traditional eateries, street food stands, tucked-away cocktail bars, charming neighborhoods, and beautiful palaces, there is so much to explore in the South Korean capital.
While you can spend days and weeks on end exploring Seoul and not see it all, after having spent three months living in this incredible city, this is what I would recommend to anyone spending only 24 hours in Seoul.
With this one-day itinerary, you’re covering the top unmissable sights, like the Bukchon Hanok Village and Myeongdong, while also having great food and coffee along the way, making for a well-rounded day in Seoul.
If you have more time to explore this unique city, there are many other neighborhoods to explore and unique experiences to have, but we do the best we can with the time we have.
So I hope this itinerary for how to spend the perfect 24 hours in Seoul helps you make the absolute most out of your trip, and I truly hope you can come back for a round two at one point, to do this city justice.
Is there anything else you think you would want to add or switch around while spending 24 hours in Seoul? Let us know in the comments.