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We are big fans of Seoul already. We love the fact that it’s a big city, with lots of restaurants, hotels and shopping areas. In addition, Seoul also offers a cultural experience with traditional temples and palaces. The best part of Seoul is that it doesn’t feel busy or too crowded, which is different than most big Asian cities. We were surprised to see how peaceful it was walking on the streets, marketplaces and tourist attractions. Seoul is best to experience for at least one week. As there is so much to explore, it’s convenient to go on a fun day tour.

We were lucky to partner up with Lotte Hotels. With their help we had a fantastic first time in Seoul. Together with Artee Riders Club they showed us around Seoul in just one day. Not only did we explore the city during the day, at night we enjoyed a relaxing foot spa and had some of the finest cocktails and food at the L7 Hotels rooftop. Furthermore, we spent the night at the friendliest hotel of Seoul.

For your stay in Seoul, we recommend the L7 Hotels Myeongdong, as the location is excellent. If you are looking for a way to see a lot of Seoul in one day, we also recommend going on one of their rides with Artee Riders Club. If you rather explore on your own, use this article as inspiration for a day trip in Seoul!

This article is a great inspiration for a day trip in Seoul, but we definitely recommend to stay longer if you can. Check out our extensive guide for Seoul here, with 7 fun things to do, tips on where to sleep and where to eat and how to travel around!

Seoul in one day – exploring with Artee Riders Club

On one of our first days in Seoul, we had the pleasure of being shown around in a pedicab by partners of Lotte Hotels, called the Artee Riders Club. Artee is a Korean word, meaning a good friend. Our guide was Joonsu, known as The Fun Guy. He was definitely very fun and he made sure we had a great time. As it is not that common in Seoul to ride in a pedicab, local people all waved and smiled at us. Yes, we were real tourists!

Artee Riders Club offers three different routes in Seoul. We decided to go with the Jeong-dong course (120 minutes, ₩120,000). Jeong-dong in downtown Korea is full of traditional buildings, history and cultural heritage. We found it fascinating.

This route includes the following places: Jeong-Dong Observatory, Appenzeller Noble Memorial Museum, Deoksugung Stonewall Walkway and the Cheonggyecheon stream.

Jeong-Dong Observatory

This observatory, located on the 13th floor of Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Seosomun Building 1, gives a great view over Seoul. Open since 2013, it’s a less known attraction in the city, but we definitely recommend going to this place. The view includes all the Jeong-dong sites, including the Deoksugung Palace. Next to having a great view over the city, you can also get drinks and some snacks.

Appenzeller Noble Memorial Museum

The Pai Chai Hakdang, the first Western all boy school in Korea, is founded by the missionary Henry Gerhard Appenzeller in 1885. In this museum we learnt about the history of education in Korea, and we could experience what the classrooms looked liked. The graduates of this school were some of the most influential men in Korea’s modern history, such as the independence activist Ji Cheong-cheon and Korea’s first president Syngman Rhee.

Deoksugung Stonewall Walkway

The Deoksugung Stonewall Walkway, which leads you from Jeong-dong to Deoksugung Palace, is selected as one of the Top 100 beautiful roads of Korea. In the surrounding area you can find multiple historical places, making it an ideal place for tourists to explore. Furthermore, it is a romantic road, which is an ideal spot for couples to stroll along. Ironically, our guide Joonsu told us that it was bad luck to walk there as a couple. Thus, he said, it was a good thing we were at the back of a pedicab.

Cheonggyecheon stream

Cheonggyecheon is an eleven kilometers long river stream that runs through downtown Seoul. Cheonggy Plaza, a cultural arts venue, is the starting point, and the stream passes 22 bridges before joining with the Hanging river. We visited the stream at one of the bridges.

There is a lot of history to be found here, as it is a restoration of the stream that was already there during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). After the Korean War in the 50s, it was covered with an highway. Later, in 2003 this highway was removed to restore the stream. More information can be found here.

Lotte Hotels and Artee Riders club offer two other courses in Seoul. One of them is the Experience course of 60 minutes (₩60,000). With this course you visit the Seoul Plaza, Clock Tower and the landmark Spring. The other course is the Bukchon course of 180 minutes (₩150,000). This big loop brings you to City Hall, Cheonggyecheon Stream, Bukchon Hanok Village and Insa-Dong.

Drinks, food and a foot spa

Our tour with the pedicab ended at the late afternoon. After that it’s a good time to take some rest in your lovely room. Luckily, we didn’t have to go far to have a fun night. As we said before, the L7 Hotels Myeongdong is conveniently located, but even more handy is the fact that there is a restaurant and rooftop bar on top of the hotel. Thus, we only had to take an elevator up for some cocktails and food. The hotel has an outside patio with a great view and even a foot spa. It was quite chilly outside, but once you put your feet in the foot spa, you’ll be warm and cozy.

Check out our extensive guide to Seoul for even more fun things to do! 

Where to stay in Seoul

Myeong-dong Area

Myeong-dong is one of the biggest shopping districts in Seoul. There are two main streets that meet in the center of the block. Multiple big department stores are located here, including Lotte Department Store, Myeong-dong Migliore and M Plaza. Next to shopping possibilities, it’s also a great place for restaurants, and you can choose from family friendly places to fast food and street food shops. Major tourist sites can be found in this area, such as theatres, cultural centers and more. Most importantly, it’s also easy to travel from this area, as there are various subway stations and busstops. We took the subway to almost everywhere, which is a cheap and easy way to travel in Seoul.

L7 Hotels Myeongdong

One of the friendliest, most trendy and chic hotels we have come across: L7 Hotels Myeongdong. This conveniently located boutique hotel in the heart of Seoul offers easy access to many must-see destinations. Thus, even when you are not deciding on going on a tour, it is easy to explore on your own from this hotel.

What we enjoyed most about this hotel is not only the convenient location, but also the trendy, artsy and cozy interior. For instance, we adored the wall art in the main areas. These included photos of the famous barbie dolls, a project of l7 Hotels and photographer Garosukim Tom, posing in L7 Hotels Myeongdong. Furthermore, the main color is the hotel is that of sunshine: yellow. From the keycard to the interior, it was definitely their theme color.

Besides the rooftop bar, you can also find a Instagrammable bar at the reception area on the 3rd floor. On this floor there are lots of seating areas with chairs and sofas. Furthermore, here they have a fun vending machine with customised candy and toys. We loved how playful it all was.

Our room was spacious and even included a personal rooftop area – we have never experienced anything like it. The beds were soft and comfy, the shower was good and we loved having a seating area next to our bedroom. Last, but not least, the included breakfast had a wide selection of choices, ranging from an egg station to seafood platters. We have nothing but good things to say.

If you don’t stay at L7 Hotels Myeongdong we recommend checking out their restaurant and foot spa at the top floor!

Check prices and availability here.

Address L7 Myeongdong 137 Toegye-ro Jung-gu, Seoul +82-2-6310-1000 

Check out some more photos of L7 Hotels Myeongdong below!

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Photos L7 Hotels Myeongdong

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