Seoul & Busan, South Korea

December 10 – 15, 2025

I am finally catching up on the end of my fall travels! After about three weeks in Japan, we flew up to Seoul for three nights, and took the high speed train down to Busan for two nights before heading off to Sapporo, in northern Japan.

We arrived in Seoul later in the day and right away we noticed how kind and welcoming Koreans were for us as tourists. Brian and I were paused in the metro station, and a passerby stopped to offer help with directions.

By the time we dropped our bags at the hostel, the sun had set, so we explored the night markets and popular stores – I stopped by Olive Young, a popular place for skincare, and Pop Mart, a store that has small stuffed animals that are very popular across Eastern Asia.

Our hostel was in Itaewon – the hostel was very industrial, and the staff were very welcoming.

We went to a local Korea bbq spot, recommended by the hostel staff. Although I typically stick to a vegetarian diet, when traveling I will flex to experience local cuisine.

On our first full day, we took a tour to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between North Korea and South Korea. The tour was fascinating as we learned about a relatively recent history of repatriation across the Freedom Bridge, monuments for family members lost or disconnected from each other in the Korean War, as well as more recent disputes between North Korea and South Korea. There were many areas we were not allowed to photograph.

At night, we explored the area around the hostel meeting an 80+ year old bar owner (left) who said she would die if she stops working, as well as a local couple that recently started a new bar and are training to be professional dart competitors (right).

On our second full day, we were lucky enough to stumble upon a reenactment at the Gyeongbokgung Palace.

In the evening, we visited the Seoul Tower for a sunset over the city.

We met another American in our hostel (left), and he was visiting his college friend who lives in Seoul (right). We were lucky to explore a bbq spot with a local and try a variety of dishes we otherwise would not have known to order.

Afterwards, we tried some more Korean dishes and capped the night with a Korean Karaoke spot.

On our final day in Seoul, we explored the Korean War Museum, highlighting the history of multiple wars with South Korean involvement.

We took a high speed train from Seoul to Busan. The train stations are immaculately clean, and when it is rainy they bring out an umbrella drier (left).

We stayed in a capsule hostel in Busan meaning we shared a larger dorm room, but our beds were divided by proper, locked doors. We stopped by another Korean BBQ restaurant for dinner.

We had one full day in Busan exploring the beach, complete with public workout machines (right) used by many older locals.

We ventured to the top of a skyscraper for a sunset view (right), before wrapping our last night in South Korea exploring street food vendors and the popular claw machine arcades.