Overnight Layover in Seoul
South Korea Travel Itinerary & Guide
1 Day in Seoul, South Korea
Seoul is a bustling city with lots to see and incredible food. Incheon airport is also used quite often for layovers, so you might find yourself here!
When booking on Asiana Airlines to Japan, the fare was a great deal and I was able to choose a longer layover in Seoul with an overnight. (There are tour buses from Seoul for same day layovers that will help take you around, but since I was spending the night, I was on my own.)
My layover happened to have me landing in Incheon at 5:25PM and leaving the next day at 3:25pm (So about a 37 hour layover).
Day 1:
Travel to Seoul and Check-in
Clear customs and take the AREX (Airport Railroad Express) into Seoul to check into your hotel and drop off your bags.
Hongdae for Dinner
Freshen up, grab a taxi cab and head out to Hongdae to grab some delicious Korean cuisine. The main street in Hongdae has more coffee shops and clothing stores so veer off down a side street (being aware of your surroundings) and find a delicious mom and pop restaurant to have some mouth watering Korean BBQ. After you’re done and if you have room, stop in a coffee shop for a dessert waffle or patbingsu (Korean shaved ice). If you’re up for it, grab a quick drink (but remember you gotta be up early tomorrow!) Then grab a taxi back to your hotel to get some rest.
Breakfast
Wake up early (around 7am) and head to a train station or nearby coffee shop for a quick breakfast. I actually had Ox tail soup which was perfect on a cold day. (If your checkout is around 11am I would recommend going ahead and checking out then asking the hotel to hold your luggage.)
Gyeongbokgung Palace
Then catch a taxi cab to Gyeongbokgung Palace. The palace typically opens up around 9am but you can arrive around 8:30am or so to take some pictures outside.
Walk around the palace and be sure to check out the beautiful history and art museum located toward the back. I would limit your time here until around 11am to not miss your flight.
Return to Airport
Taxi back to your hotel, checkout (if you hadn’t already done so) and take the AREX, which is about 47 minutes to the airport.
This should get you to the airport around 1pm with plenty of time to check in, duty free shop, and check out some of the amazing restaurants in Incheon’s airport before your flight.
Tips and Tricks:
- My layover was during the middle of November so be sure to pack warm since there was already snow starting to fall.
- Most of the taxi drivers do not speak English, so be sure to have the name/lodging of your address written down.
- I stayed near Seoul Station which was very convenient to get to and from the airport.