I recently planned a trip to Seoul, South Korea for my family and I. My biggest concern when booking the trip was ensuring I booked a hotel in the right area of Seoul. It is such a big city and each ‘dong’ caters to different interests. We stayed in Seoul for 9 days together (and my Mum and I even longer in two different areas). So, it was important to get the area right. Thankfully I feel that I nailed it for us as a group, so I wanted to write this guide on where to stay in Seoul.

An image of the streetscape of Haebangchon, Seoul — The gorgeous backstreets of Haebangchon

Where to stay in Seoul

Seoul is an absolutely huge city, so there are a number of considerations to be made when choosing where to stay.

How old are you and what are your interests?
Have you been to Seoul before?
What are you going to Seoul to do? (ie shopping, sightseeing)
What sort of transport will you be using, if any?
How long do you have in Seoul?

A bit about my trip, for context. I am 33 and I travelled with my 34 year old sister, my Mum and my Aunty. We had never been to Seoul or South Korea before so we wanted to see the sights. Although we enjoy shopping, that wasn’t our primary aim for the trip. Because there were 4 of us, we used Uber taxi as our primary mode of transport (which was very cost efficient). Finally, as we discussed, we had 9 days together in Seoul.

An image of a shopfront in Insadong covered in cherry blossoms — Jongno/Insadong area

My personal ranking of where to stay in Seoul

I figure this may help people similar to me decide where best suits them. To be clear: I absolutely loved every minute of Seoul and every area. I am speaking only in terms of what would have worked well as a home base for our trip.

One thing to note: I didn’t make it to Hannam-dong. By all accounts it is a nice, trendy little area that sits next to Itaewon. There might also be other, less touristed but lovely areas I missed. However, I feel I covered the more touristed places well.

Insadong, Ikseondong and Jongno areas. These were all walkable and had the best of everything, in my opinion. The Bukchon hanok village is walkable, as are the palaces and Jongmyo shrine. There are lots of temple food options but also regular Korean restaurants (and Western style ones, too). There are also plenty of brunch options that open relatively early (something Korea isn’t known for). This is very helpful if you don’t have breakfast included at your hotel (which we didn’t). Finally, you can walk to Myeongdong and there are good public transport options. Eujilro is also an option – a bit further away from Myeongdong but closer to Gwangjang market and Dongdaemun.
Myeongdong. People often complain that Myeongdong is touristy and crowded. As a first timer, I didn’t necessarily mind ‘touristy’ as it was still novel to me. Myeondong is also very well connected in terms of public transport and has all the amenities you could need. It is walkable to a number of sights, as well as to Insadong area and the Bukchon hanok village. The Cheonggyecheon stream is a fun place to wander and there is plenty to discover in the back streets. DMZ tours also end here, so this is something to consider if you are doing lots of day tours.

My personal ranking continued

Seongsu-dong and Seoul Forest area. I absolutely loved the vibe here and felt we didn’t get enough time to explore. It’s known as the Brooklyn of Seoul – trendy, warehouse style cafes and restaurants as well as plenty of shops. It’s not the most convenient in terms of location (if you intend to travel to many other areas of Seoul) but it is super cool. If I went back for a second trip, this is probably where I would stay.
Cheongdam in Gangnam. My Mum and I arrived earlier than the others, so we spent our first few days in Gangnam. I had intended to stay in Seongsu-dong for this period, but the hotels were mostly booked. We stayed by the Coex mall and found the area quite soulless on the whole. If you stay in Gangnam, I highly recommend the Cheongdam area. It has lots of cool cafes, restaurants and shops to explore. There is also a street with plenty of good cocktail bars.
Haebangchon. When I look at Naver, the lines are sort of blurred as to where Haebangchon ends and Itaewon starts. The area up the top of the hill near Vin Vin was absolutely gorgeous and had stunning views of Seoul. It’s probably not a practical area of Seoul to stay, but it is gorgeous and filled with cute things to do. I would rank it higher, but it is small and not super accessible compared to other areas.
Hongdae and Itaewon. For me as a 33 year old who has absolutely retired from the party scene, these were the least appealing areas. Everyone was very young and they were crowded, bar focused and overwhelming (to me! everyone is different).

An image of a sunset over Seoul as viewed from a rooftop in Haebangchon — The view from Villa in Haebangchon

If you like to shop and party/are young

Personally I didn’t rate either place, but that’s likely because I have aged out of the party holiday. I’m sure if I was young I would think Hongdae and Itaewon were the perfect location. Both places are party central with plenty of shops and places to eat. I’m sure they would be a lot of fun in summer and at night.

The vibe I got personally is kind of a Phuket type vibe. If you like partying and having everything in one spot, Hongdae would probably suit you really well. Itaewon had a slightly less youthful vibe with more options to suit other age groups. If you wanted a bit of party and a bit of other stuff, I would consider Itaewon. I have also read that Itaewon is where international people live in Seoul, so it might have slightly more of a multicultural vibe.

An image of the neon streets of Itaewon at night — Itaewon at night

If you like to shop and to explore cool/trendy areas

For me, it would be Seongsu-dong and Seoul Forest area. It is a sprawling area that felt a lot larger than it looked in Naver maps. There are absolutely loads of shops, restaurants, cafes and cute little things to see and do.

On the Myeongdong side, you are somewhat close to Hannam-dong and Haebangchon, two trendy and well liked areas.

Seongsu-dong is also quite close to the Gangnam side, which means you can explore Cheongdam and Sinsa areas (two more trendy spots).

A cafe front decorated with understated Christmas decorations in Seongsu-dong, Seoul — A cute coffee shop in Seongsu-dong, Seoul

If you like culture and walkable holidays

Insadong, Ikseondong or Jongno! This is where we stayed and I might have mentioned that I thought it was perfect. We stayed at the Moxy Insadong, which was literally across the road from the Ikseondong hanok cafes and restaurants. If you Google the address it says the hotel is technically in Jongno. It was walkable to the Bukchon Hanok village, both the palaces, the Jongmyo shrine, Myeongdong and all that has to offer.

It is walking distance to the area near Bar Cham (a great bar, but also a super cute area called Seochon village (which I think is another Hanok village that we missed). Better yet?! It’s also walking distance to the Samcheongdong area. This is yet ANOTHER cute area with plenty of cafes, chops and hanok style buildings. There is a London Bagel Museum shop here which didn’t have a queue when we walked past.

There are a number of museums in the area and I actually feel that Korea manages to do museums in a beautiful and interactive way. I am not normally a museum girl but I found the craft museum very cute (and a great spot to heat up/go to the bathroom). My mum also raved about the folk museum.

An image of the hanok style cafes and alley streets in Insadong, Seoul — Ikseondong hanok style cafes

If you intend to utilise Seoul’s public transport to explore

Myeongdong for sure. The area is well connected in terms of train lines for each area of Seoul. Staying centrally will ensure you spend the least amount of time necessary on public transport. Choose a hotel close to a big station, as Myeongong is quite big.

Myeongdong is also the place to stay if you are doing a lot of organised day trips (DMZ, etc) as they generally end in Myeongdong.

The Cheonggyecheon stream in Myeongdong, Seoul during the winter Festa — Cheonggyecheon stream during Winter Festa in Myeongdong

If you have only a short amount of time in Seoul

Personally, I would say Insadong, Ikseondong and Jongno areas. Because they are walkable and have a lot of hanok style architecture, you can see both faces of Korea – old and new. There is the option to shop but you also have cultural landmarks and things to see at your fingertips.

If you are vegan or vegetarian

If you are vegetarian or vegan and plan to be eating dinner near your hotel, it absolutely has to be Insadong, Ikseondong or Jongno areas. These areas have plenty of temple food (which is vegetarian/vegan) – moreso than any other area I visited.

Temple food was an absolute lifeline in Seoul and it was so helpful to have so many options within walking distance. You can find my Seoul Naver map link here – it contains vegetarian restaurants, cute cafes, anything I found on TikTok that I wanted to visit, etc.