Korea

[Pangolin]

Aston100 wrote:

Right then, this on/off/on/off trip is back on again.
And this time I’ve booked non-refundable flights so am committed.
We’re going to do 8 nights in Seoul this coming May half term (basically the last week of May).
We’ll probably return to Korea for a fortnight at Easter 2026 depending on how we get on in Seoul this year.

So….
I’ve decided that we’ll get a flat in Seoul through AirBnB.
My very limited internet searching suggests that Myeongdong might be the most convenient place.
I note that flats in this area seem to be lacking a living room. Is that normal due to space limitations?
Anyone able to confirm this is a very good location, or else advise a different one please?
Priority has to be access to public transport in order to visit the usual touristy places.

Thanks.

Myeongdong is certainly well located but I found it a bit soulless compared to places like Namdaemun (which is also a decent location), so I’d check around there also.

[Aston100]

Thanks for the info Peggerz, Meta and Pangolin.

I’ve booked an apartment near Sadang – 5 minutes walk to a couple of metro stations on lines 4 and 7 and seemingly 30ish minutes to many attractions.
Hotel rooms were small and pricey. I could not see any advantage in getting a hotel room over the apartment.
As Peggerz says, most apartments I looked at were lacking a room – so the kitchen and dining rooms were usually combined, and sometimes the bed would be in the extended kitchen and dining area. Also, almost every place seems to have a wetroom where you shower next to the sink and toilet rather than having a dedicated shower cubicle.
However, after much searching (literally dozens of apartments) I have fortunately found a place that has a separate living room, kitchen, bedroom and a bathroom with a shower cubicle.

Only issue thus far seems to be the availability of Vegan or vegetarian food since Mrs Aston is on that vibe again. Cross contamination might be an issue from what I can tell.

[Peggerz]

Aston100 wrote:

Thanks for the info Peggerz, Meta and Pangolin.

I’ve booked an apartment near Sadang – 5 minutes walk to a couple of metro stations on lines 4 and 7 and seemingly 30ish minutes to many attractions.
Hotel rooms were small and pricey. I could not see any advantage in getting a hotel room over the apartment.
As Peggerz says, most apartments I looked at were lacking a room – so the kitchen and dining rooms were usually combined, and sometimes the bed would be in the extended kitchen and dining area. Also, almost every place seems to have a wetroom where you shower next to the sink and toilet rather than having a dedicated shower cubicle.
However, after much searching (literally dozens of apartments) I have fortunately found a place that has a separate living room, kitchen, bedroom and a bathroom with a shower cubicle.

Only issue thus far seems to be the availability of Vegan or vegetarian food since Mrs Aston is on that vibe again. Cross contamination might be an issue from what I can tell.

Hi @Aston100.

It’s good you got your accommodation sorted.

It looks like I’ll also have a vegan travelling with me and found this a good resource.

https://heyroseanne.com/vegan-restaurants-in-seoul/

I hope it helps.

[bruinbrown]

Aston100 wrote:

Only issue thus far seems to be the availability of Vegan or vegetarian food since Mrs Aston is on that vibe again. Cross contamination might be an issue from what I can tell.

You might find it difficult to find good vegetarian and vegan food in Korea. A very small percentage of the population is vegan and it doesn’t have as broad acceptance as in the uk or us. You’ll also find that in Korea the vast majority of the best restaurants focus exclusively on one dish, eg just pork bbq, just beef bbq, just chicken stew etc and there’s no other menu options. And finally it’s worth being aware that lots of Korean cooking which might appear vegan contains meat or seafood, eg kimchi contains shrimp and fish sauce etc.