14 -Day South Korea Itinerary

museum

Janggyeong Panjeon

🍽️

What to eat today

Korean BBQ (Galbi & Samgyeopsal)

Korea's most social meal: charcoal or gas tabletop grills around which friends and families assemble to cook galbi (short ribs marinated in soy, sesame and Asian pear) and samgyeopsal (uncured pork belly); eaten by wrapping grilled meat in perilla or lettuce with ssamjang paste, kimchi and garlic; the act of grilling together and pouring each other's soju is central to Korean culture.

Day 2

⭐ Top Attractions

1 place

Seongsan Ilchulbong

A dramatic tuff cone formed by hydrovolcanic eruptions 5,000 years ago; rising 182 metres directly from the East China Sea with a serrated 600-metre wide crater; the basalt cliffs are perpetually moss-slicked from the ocean spray; hike the eastern ridge at 5:15 am; the sun breaks the horizon over the dark Pacific; silhouetting the volcanic crown against an indigo sky while the wind whistles through the jagged rock.

🍽️

What to eat today

Bibimbap

Korea's most perfectly composed bowl: steamed rice topped with individually seasoned namul vegetables (spinach, fernbrake, bean sprouts, mushroom, carrot), sliced beef, a soft-fried egg and gochujang (fermented chilli paste) in a stone dolsot bowl that continues to cook the rice into a crispy bottom layer (nurungji); Jeonju is the designated bibimbap capital of Korea.

Day 3

⭐ Top Attractions

4 places

Dongdaemun Design Plaza

Zaha Hadid's neofuturistic landmark is a seamless aluminum-clad pod composed of 45,133 unique silver panels; the building functions as a vast; fluid landscape without a single vertical pillar; traverse the undulating exterior ramps at twilight; the 40;000 integrated LED lights pulse through the perforated skin; turning the metallic surface into a glowing; liquid texture against the chaotic neon of the surrounding district.

Also nearby

museum

National Museum of Korea

Hwaseong Fortress

Bukchon Hanok Village

🍽️

What to eat today

Tteokbokki

Seoul's most popular street food: chewy cylindrical rice cakes (tteok) and fish cakes simmered in a sauce of gochujang, gochugaru and anchovy broth until the sauce reduces to a sticky, spicy-sweet glaze; sold from pojangmacha (street food tents) in every neighbourhood; the heat level is calibrated by generations of Korean palates; comfort food at its most intense.

Day 4

⭐ Top Attractions

4 places

Seoraksan National Park

The jagged spine of the Taebaek Mountains peaks at Daecheongbong (1,708m); featuring the sun-bleached granite spires of Ulsanbawi and the 14th-century Sinheungsa bronze Buddha; hike the Cheonbuldong Valley during the autumn equinox; the low sun turns the maples a saturated blood-red against the grey; weathered basalt; the air is cold and carries the sharp; resinous scent of dwarf pines clinging to the rock face.

Also nearby

historic

The DMZ (Joint Security Area)

Seokguram Grotto

Manjanggul Cave

🍽️

What to eat today

Kimchi

Korea's most defining food and UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage: napa cabbage fermented with gochugaru, garlic, ginger, salted fermented shrimp and spring onion in an ancient process called kimjang; over 200 regional varieties exist; the lacto-fermentation produces a probiotic, funky, pungent, crisp result that Koreans eat at every meal; the kimchi refrigerator is standard in every Korean home.

Day 5

⭐ Top Attractions

1 place

Gamcheon Culture Village

A terraced labyrinth of brightly painted houses clinging to the foothills of the coastal mountains; originally settled by refugees during the 1950s; the district is a mosaic of turquoise; pink; and lemon-yellow plaster; explore the 'Little Prince' vantage point at sunset; the city light ignites across the harbor below while the smell of saltwater and frying fish drifts from the nearby Jagalchi market.

🍽️

What to eat today

Japchae

Korea's most celebratory noodle dish: sweet potato glass noodles stir-fried in sesame oil with julienned vegetables (spinach, carrot, mushroom, onion) and beef, seasoned with soy and a touch of sugar; the glass noodles have a uniquely slippery, chewy texture; served at every Korean feast, birthday and new year celebration.

Day 6

⭐ Top Attractions

4 places

Haedong Yonggungsa Temple

A rare seaside Buddhist temple built in 1376 onto a jagged rock plateau overlooking the Sea of Japan; the structure is guarded by twelve zodiac stone figures and a golden Hwaeom-seong Buddha; visit at dawn during the Lunar New Year; the waves crash against the moss-slicked basalt foundations while the pre-dawn chanting of monks competes with the roar of the ocean; the horizon turns a saturated orange.

Also nearby

historic

Gongsanseong Fortress

Dongpiran Mural Village

historic

Jinju Fortress

🍽️

What to eat today

Haemul Pajeon

Busan's seafood pancake and Korea's greatest rainy-day food: a thick, crisp-edged batter of flour and egg packed with spring onion, squid, prawn and clam, pressed flat on a cast-iron pan and cooked until the base is golden and the seafood caramelises into the crust; dipped in a soy-vinegar sauce; the sound of rain, Koreans say, makes them crave pajeon.

Day 7

⭐ Top Attractions

1 place

Hahoe Folk Village

A 16th-century clan village shaped like a lotus flower; where the Nakdong River loops around traditional thatched-roof houses and tile-roofed villas; the site is famous for the Hahoe Mask Dance; cross the river to the Buyongdae Cliff at sunset; the panoramic view reveals the village's prehistoric layout; the smoke from wood-burning 'ondol' heaters begins to rise in thin; white plumes over the thatched eaves.

Day 8

⭐ Top Attractions

1 place

Lotte World Tower

At 555 metres; this 123-storey tapered monolith is the tallest building in the OECD; its design is inspired by traditional Korean ceramics and calligraphy brushes; the glass skin consists of 42;000 panels; ascend to Seoul Sky on the 118th floor at night; the city becomes a sprawling grid of neon violet and gold; the view stretches across the Han River to the dark; distant silhouettes of the Bukhansan peaks.