Discover Seoul on this full or half-day walking tour, including Namdaemun Market, Mt Namsan and Myeongdong Street. Follow your guide to Namdaemun Gate, explore the traditional marketplace and gain insight into Joseon Dynasty history. Then travel by bus up Mt Namsan for panoramic views before strolling around Palgakjeong and riding the cable car down to Myeongdong Street. If you choose the full-day option, continue on for a Korean lunch and guided stops at Deoksugung Palace and Seoul Museum of History, concluding with a 75-minute performance at Jeongdong Theater.

Informative, friendly and professional guide
Great overview and orientation of the city
Pickup from a centrally located meeting point
Perfect introduction for first-time visitors
See the sights illuminated at night

What's Included

Professional guide
Dinner
Public transportation fare

Gratuities

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

24-1
24-1 Taepyeongno 2(i)-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Ciry Hall Station metro line 1 and 2 nearby The Plaza Hotel Seoul

Start time

05:30 pm

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Gwanghwamun Square

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Hongdae Art Market Free Market

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Gyeongui Line Forest Park

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Sinchon-dong

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Ikseon-dong Hanok Street

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Namsan Park

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
Infants must sit on laps

No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Most travellers can participate
This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Reviews

5.0

27 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travellers.

Showing 1-10 of 27 reviews

A nice way to spend your evening in Seoul

Cheryl_O, Oct 2022

Jack was a great tour guide, showed us lively locations near the universities through a walking tour, enjoyed awesome Korean bbq, a little coffee and dessert afterward, and ended our evening with a trip to Namsan.

Fun and informative night tour of Seul

PiaM_R, July 2022

Ben was right on time at the meeting point. Although it was a tour using public transportation, Ben was very considerate and took me in taxis some parts. The sunset from Namsan Mountain Park was beautiful with 360 views of the City and the tower. Korean BBQ dinner at Iksadong was the top and we had fun. Ben was very knowledgeable about most of cultural, social and historical aspects of Korea which made it a very interesting and worth experience. Thanks Ben!

Excellent tour guide

l0ra113, Oct 2019

Phoebe was amazing, friendly, available and knowledgeable. This was definitely a very good experience. 😊

We had a private tour with Ben. He...

Lauralea Q, Aug 2018

We had a private tour with Ben. He was very friendly and we learned a lot of history and current events from him. My daughter and I had a great time wandering around the market and learning all about Seouls rich history.

This was a tour that I would highly...

Derek N, May 2018

This was a tour that I would highly recommend to anyone. I had the fortune of being the only person that booked this tour for the day that I went so I had a private tour with my tour guide Ben. Ben was fantastic! He taught me so many things about Korean culture and history through this tour which made all of the sights so much better. For example, I had visited Gyeongbokgung before this tour and loved seeing the palace and its beauty, but visiting it again with Ben was even better because he taught me a lot of little details about the palace that I would never have learned on my own. This goes for all of the other places in the tour as well. I chose the full-day option so my tour included an observatory where you can look out over the area around City Hall, Namdaemun Market, the area around Namsan Tower, Myeongdong, Gyeongbokgung, Bukchon Hanok Village, Jogyesa Temple, and then the Nanta cooking show. The full day option was definitely worth it because the places I visited after the morning only tour ended were some of my favorites. Ben took me to an area of Bukchon Hanok Village that was away from the more popular areas of the village, but it was amazing because you can look out over the city and see all the beautiful rooftops. The Nanta cooking show was very good and entertaining and I am glad I got to see it. You don't even need to know a word of Korean to enjoy it because they only say a very, very small amount of words and the context is very clear what they're saying. I highly recommend this tour to anyone! It was a lot of walking, but I enjoyed that aspect more because you get to see the city in person rather than being underground in the subway or quickly flying by everything in a bus. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

My tour guide was Ben. It was my...

Greg_V, Apr 2018

My tour guide was Ben. It was my first time in Seoul so I very much appreciated his knowledge of the recent and past history of Korea. Ben's English is very good. The tour itself gives an excellent glimpse of Seoul's past blended with the new. Well thought out route and overall highly recommended. Greg

I would recommend anyone to go to...

Paul V, Dec 2017

I would recommend anyone to go to this tour my guide was Ben he was very knowledgeable . He explains well . The best experience.

We only had a short layover in Seoul...

Barbara P, Nov 2017

We only had a short layover in Seoul on our way to Cambodia and thought a half day tour would give us a taste of the city. Our tour guide Sook did an outstanding job of showing us the highlights and even accommodated our request to try a lunch of ginseng chicken soup...yummy. Excellent tour. Highly recommended.

Wow! Is all I can say about this...

Nathan B, Nov 2017

Wow! Is all I can say about this tour! After just completing a 2 week trip of Korea, Japan and Taiwan I would have to say this tour was the highlight. It ended up being a private tour so it really felt special! Amazing sites, great information and the show at the end is simply amazing. Thanks so much!

Our guide Ben met us promptly on...

Kevin_M, Oct 2017

Our guide Ben met us promptly on time, it became a private tour, only the two of us. He was very informative and took us to many places we would have missed. We experienced all forms of transport, getting up to Seoul Tower was very busy by bus, but it was worth it. Ben was very willing to talk about anything we asked him, and all the places that we visited were great. Lunch was lovely with a couple of beers, and then we walked it off. The archictecture between old and new is amazing. We finished the tour with a wonderful performance at the theatre, it was a very enjoyable tour. Be prepared, the all day option there is quite a lot of walking. Liz

My tour guide was Ben Kim, and he...

JOHNNY_L, Oct 2017

My tour guide was Ben Kim, and he was fantastic! He was extremely knowledgeable and accommodating. I was the only one on this tour, so it was a unique and memorable experience. The last time I was in Korea was 30 years ago when I was very young, so I was really interested in reconnecting with my culture and learning more about Korean history. Ben accommodated my interest in practicing Korean, so he did the tour in both English and Korean. The tour moved at a great pace and I learned a lot of interesting things, both historic and current. The Namsan Mountain portion of the tour was my favorite. The elevated vantage point provided breathtaking views and an opportunity to learn more about Korea in terms of significant landmarks, buildings, and mountains.

I had a wonderful day with Jessie...

Anne C, July 2017

I had a wonderful day with Jessie who filled in for Ben. She was fantastic and knew a great deal about her amazing city of Seoul. She spent the entire day with me walking the city and pointing out key areas and talking about the rich culture and history of Seoul and South Korea. We had lunch at a local restaurant, visited a museum and ended the day with a wonderful performance at the Jeongdong Theater. I really felt like I had a great introduction to Seoul through the eyes of a native! I highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Seoul. Thank you, Jessie!

Our guide was Ben who was wonderful...

Christine G, June 2017

Our guide was Ben who was wonderful. He made it fun and interesting and accommodated the different needs in the group. I enjoyed the Namsan Mountain section but found the shopping areas were not really for me. That was not a fault of the tour but rather of my own preferences. Worth doing though as I saw parts of the city that I probably would have missed if I had not gone with such a knowledgeable guide.

This tour was more than worth the...

Cole N, May 2017

This tour was more than worth the money! Ben was my guide and he was incredibly well informed. He taught me many interesting things about the country and was extremely open and personable. When I come back with friends I will without a doubt be doing this tour again. I did all day tour. Concert= :)

This walking tour was very enjoyable...

Maree_C, May 2017

This walking tour was very enjoyable and informative. Our guide Ben has excellent knowledge with the history both old and new of Seoul. Ben had special spots for views that were amazing. I would recommend this tour and it is quite manageable for moderately mobile travellers. Maree and Phil Australia

This tour was so much fun, we highly...

Colleen B, May 2017

This tour was so much fun, we highly recommend it! Ben was our tour guide and he was fantastic! I have already recommended him to my friend who will be visiting Seoul in the Fall. His English was great and he was so enthusiastic and passionate about Seoul and it's history. Ben took us to the observatory deck in City Hall, shopping at both Namdaemun Market and Myeongdong, and Nansam Tower which also included riding the cable car. He even carried our bags for us after we went shopping! We were just a small group my daughter and I, plus another group of 2 so it was almost like a private tour, and that was on a Saturday! Per the recommendations of other people who have taken this tour, we did this on our first full day in Seoul so we could get to know the city before venturing out on our own....definitely a good idea! My only regret is taking the half day tour instead of the full day!

Great walking tour to know more...

Elisa B, Apr 2017

Great walking tour to know more about Seoul and Korea's history and culture. My guide Junga was highly adorable and informative. I highly recommend it

We booked this tour and another tour...

Owenita E, Dec 2016

We booked this tour and another tour in the morning, History and Culture of Seoul Walking Tour, requesting for Ben Kim. These tours became a private tour for my husband and myself. Ben Kim is an excellent guide. He let us change our itinerary and went to the places we wanted to go. We had morning coffee at the old Seoul City Hall and had a panoramic view of Deoksugung Palace and Seoul, lunch at Seoul Museum of History and Patbingsu dessert at one the coffee shops. We asked to go to Jongmyo Shrine before we started the afternoon tour. We were everywhere in Seoul with Ben Kim all day till we finish the tour in Myeongdong at around 7pm, and after he showed us which restaurant to go to eat Samgyetal chicken ginseng soup. We actually had to go back to Myeongdong another day to eat at that restaurant because we had fun sampling the street foods in Myeongdong. We highly recommend this tour with Ben Kim.

The guide, Ben, was excellent. I...

Richard A, Nov 2016

The guide, Ben, was excellent. I was the only participant, so it was in fact a private tour. Ben added a couple of unscheduled stops, which were truly a bonus.

I thought this was a public group...

Paula S, Oct 2016

I thought this was a public group tour but I turned out to be a private tour. Not bad for the price, since it included everything plus lunch! I was also impresses that I didn't need a minimum 2 persons which almost all the other tours need. Very glad I booked this tour! My tour guide was very knowledgeable with Korean history and how it has shaped the Korea we see today. The language barrier is very real and many locals are very guarded when approached by foreigners, I'm glad I was accompanied by a local tour guide to smooth over my trip. I loved visiting Namsan Mountain. I also recommend getting as many souvenirs at Namdaemun Market! I regret not getting more since the remainder to my stay I spent it rushing from metro to metro with my friends trying to get to some place or another. Over all I completely recommended this tour!