Seoul is one of the most exciting destinations in Asia right now. Every time I visit I’m blown away by how much there is to do but also the variety of things to do in Seoul.
If you’re looking for culture and history, you’ve got that, if you want incredible food there’s that too, if you want aesthetic cafes and Instagrammable places there’s that as well, if you’re into beauty, fashion, skincare and beauty treatments then there’s loads of that too.
But there’s also great day trips around Seoul which make an incredible addition to your Seoul itinerary and a really nice contrast with the hustle and bustle of Seoul city.
I’m going to share all the Seoul day trips that I’ve done, then I’m going to share two winter day trips from Seoul which unfortunately I didn’t get to do because Seoul had the heaviest snowfall in 40 years when I visited and my tour got cancelled (boo!) but I want to let you know about them in case you’re visiting Seoul in winter.
I also have longer, much more detailed guides and reviews about some of these trips, including a review of the DMZ day trip, how to visit Suwon for the day and how to visit Busan in one day, so I will include all the links for those so you have more details.
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The top day trips from Seoul to add to your trip
DMZ day trip from Seoul
My day trip to DMZ from Seoul was the first day trip I did in Seoul and it was probably the most eye-opening, fascinating and of course there’s the kick of adrenaline knowing how close you are to North Korea!
You can only visit the DMZ as part of a day tour from Seoul (you can’t visit independently) because you need to be registered with the military and you MUST take your passport with you as you are entering an active military zone.
In my DMZ tour review you can read my personal opinions and in-depth review of the tour and what it includes. But the short of it is: it’s absolutely worth doing.
Your DMZ tour will include a visit to a nearby site, ours was the Gamaksan Suspension bridge, this is in order to space out the tour buses arriving in the DMZ throughout the day as there is a limit to the number of tourists who can be in the DMZ at any one time.
After the suspension bridge or similar stop, you will head to the DMZ to get registered and arrive for your slot with the military. While in the demilitarized zone, you’ll visit the War Memorial, Freedom Bridge, Peace Bell and Steam Locomotive. They you’ll visit the Third Tunnel - one of the many secret tunnels made by North Korea in an attempt to attack South Korea. Then you’ll visit the Observatory where you can see North Korea’s landscape from.
DMZ sign
DMZ
Nami Island
This is probably one of the best day trips from Seoul in summer thanks to the variety of outdoor activities available there.
We had a rental car in Korea on this trip as we were doing a longer road trip around Korea, so we drove ourselves there (there’s plenty of parking) but there are loads of options for day tours from Seoul to Nami Island and many of them include other activities on the tour such as the next item on this guide: the Rail Bike.
This is the top Nami Island day trip from Seoul.
Or check out this alternative if the one above is booked.
If you’re visiting independently, make sure you check Klook or Trip.com as these sites sometimes have a discount (tickets were 15% discounted on Trip when we visited).
The activities you do in Nami Island will depend on the time of year you visit. In the summer there are water activities on the lake, outdoor events and so much more.
I highly recommend hiring a bike to cycle around the island - we hired a tandem which was a lot of fun! We also visited the gardens, the animals and the library and eateries in the centre of the island.
It’s packed with nature, family friendly activities and in the summer you could easily spend a whole day here. In the cooler months you’d probably only want to spend 2-3 hours.
Your ticket includes the boat ride over from the main car park and Nami Island terminal. Or you can pay a small amount more to ride the zipline across the lake to reach the island - if you fancy a bit of adrenaline!
Nami Island
Bike rental
Gangchon Rail Bike Park day trip near Seoul
The Gangchon Rail Bike Park was undoubtedly the most fun day trip from Seoul!
It’s not far from Nami Island and we had stayed in Chuncheon the night before on our side trip from Seoul, which was only 20 minutes away.
Tickets cost 40,000 won for a 2-seater and 56,000 won for a 4-seater bike. You can book the rail bike as part of one of these day tours from Seoul, in which case the ticket cost will be included in the tour price or you can visit independently, tickets can be booked here.
The rail bike starts from the terminal and you can book either a 2-seater or a 4-seater bike. The route then follows old railway tracks on an 8km route through the valley and hills along the river.
There are fun features along the way like a music tunnel and a bubble tunnel.
This is honestly a great activity for all ages and we saw couples, families, young and old children there.
The rail bike route is a one-way route and at the end you then change onto a scenic train which takes you the rest of the way through the gorge until you reach a small village where a bus will pick you up and take you back to the start.
It’s definitely not a long experience and I wouldn’t hire a car to go all the way over here for this, but it’s a great addition if you’re already in the area and it’s also why it’s included on so many day trips from Seoul - I think it’s definitely worth it if you’re looking for unique things to do in Korea.
Gangchon Rail Bike
Rail bike view
Garden of Morning Calm
This is another popular Seoul day trip with many tour options available, some of which include both Nami Island and Garden of Morning Calm.
The Garden of Morning Calm is a Korean style garden with stunning flowers and plants among winding pathways, sculptures and trees. There are over 5000 species of plants and it’s set in over 300,000m2 of arboretum space. It’s set to the backdrop of Chungryeongsan Mountain and is also a K-drama filming location, making it popular for Korean tourists to visit too.
It will look different depending on the time of year you visit and honestly, I’d perhaps not recommend it before March as it will not be colourful or full of flowers. But there are festivals throughout the year such as the Spring flower festival.
In the winter they do also have a Winter lights festival where the plants and pathways are lit up in a vibrant light park and light show. I’ve not been during this festival but the pictures and videos online do look pretty cool!
Suwon
A day trip to Suwon from Seoul is probably one of the easiest day trips from Seoul by train. This can be a KTX day trip from Seoul where the KTX train from Seoul station will get you there in 30 minutes for 8,400 won.
Or for a cheaper, slower option take the Subway Line 1 out to Suwon which takes 1 hour and costs just 2,100 won.
Suwon is a fun, vibrant city with a mix of old and new and a Suwon day trip from Seoul a great, easy way to experience another city that’s not too far from Seoul and can easily be done in 1 day or less.
Best things to do in Suwon:
Suwon Hwaseong Fortress - walk the Fortress walls for free
Suwon Starfield Library
Go shopping in the Starfield Mall
Workshop Street
Eat Dakgalbi (it's from Suwon)
explore the coffee shops
Suwon Hwaseong Fortress
Suwon Starfield Library
Busan
If you’re thinking, Busan is really far away isn’t it…?
Yes, yes it is. It’s the opposite end of the country on Korea’s south coast.
However the rail network in Korea is incredibly efficient and it is possible to visit Busan on a day trip.
Although it does depend how much you want to fit into your day, I would recommend getting a train from Seoul as early as possible so you can fit in 3-4 activities or places in Busan.
You can follow my Busan day trip guide to plan your trip and timings in detail but I would highly recommend including:
The Haeundae Blueline
Gamcheon Culture Village
Haedong Yonggungsa Temple
To maximise our time in Busan, this is the Busan day tour we did which included all the transportation between the sights we wanted to visit.
Find my full guide of over 30 things to do in Busan here - hopefully there’s a few you can include on your day trip from Busan from Seoul!
Blue line park Busan
Seoraksan National Park
This was by far the biggest surprise and the place that exceeded all of my expectations, so you can imagine how excited I was to find that there are day trips to Seoraksan from Seoul!
If you’re interested in a hiking day trip from Seoul, This Seoraksan day tour from Seoul includes a hike in the park and the temple, alternatively this Seoraksan National Park tour includes the cable car, temple and Nami Island on the way back to Seoul.
If you are specifically visiting South Korea in the autumn, Seoraksan National Park is one of the best places to see autumn foliage in the country, This Seoraksan day trip takes you on an autumn foliage tour of the park.
Yes, these are very long day trips (14+ hours) but going on a tour is still quicker than a public bus which takes around 3 hours, so it is the longest day trip from Seoul in this guide!
Alternatively if you do hire a car like we did, we stayed in Sokcho the night before and it was a 30 minute drive from there. From Seoul it is 2.5 hours drive.
In Seoraksan National Park I highly recommend taking the Seoraksan cable car to the top and doing the short walk along the trail to see the incredible viewpoint including the view of the famous Ulsanbawi Rock.
Unfortunately doing the Ulsanbawi hike on a day trip from Seoul would likely not be possible unless you’re a very fast hiker! But you can do the cable car and the short walk to the viewpoint. You can visit the Seoraksan Sinheungsa Temple, explore the trails in the valley and enjoy a waterfall hike or shorter trail such as Biryong Falls or Towangseong Falls.
We used AllTrails to plan our hikes which was super helpful and had plenty of detail.
Seoraksan National Park
Eunpyeong Hanok Village and Jingwansa Temple
The Eupyeong Hanok Village has been all over social media in the last few months and it’s easy to see why. This is a stunning Hanok village with a backdrop of mountains and there’s a beautiful cafe with views over the tiled rooftops too.
I will say that I was slightly disappointed with my visit here. It’s actually a new building development styled on the traditional Hanok village, it isn’t actually a traditional village - it was built in 2013.
Nevertheless, it is beautiful and it’s easily reached by public transport from Seoul in around 1 hour. Either take the 701 Blue bus direct from Seoul Station to the village (takes 50 minutes and costs 1,500 won) or take the GTX-A from Seoul station then change to the Green 7211 bus at Yeonsinnae Station (takes 35 minutes and costs 3,200 won).
You can also visit the 1in1jan cafe for the iconic views of the mountains and rooftops of the houses. You can just grab a coffee or they also do set meals in their restaurant.
Tie it in with a visit to nearby Jingwansa Temple to make more of a day trip of it!
Eunpyeong Hanok Village
Eunpyeong Hanok Village Café
Hwadam Botanical Garden
This is one of the best day trips from Seoul in autumn, with stunning autumn foliage and a unique pod train which rides on an elevated track through the trees. Be warned though - you will need to book tickets in advance for this!
If you are travelling here independently, you can book tickets here.
Unfortunately it’s not easy to get here on public transport, it takes around 2 hours 15 minutes and involves a bus, a train and a bus from Seoul (Naver Maps will give you the most accurate route to take).
However driving is only 1.5 hours, or you can take a day tour like this one which includes Hwadam Botanical Garden, Namhansanseong Fortress and a Korean Folk Village.
Day trips from Seoul in winter
Eobi Ice Valley
This is definitely one of the more unique day trips from Seoul!
Unfortunately this was a day trip I was so excited about when I visited Seoul in the winter, but Seoul experienced the heaviest snowfall in 40 years during our trip and our day tour here got cancelled.
But Eobi Ice Valley is a large ice wall, made of waterfalls which have frozen in the winter weather. You’ll also visit the snow covered Nami Island and see the Winter Light Festival at the Garden of Morning Calm.
This is the winter day tour from Seoul that I was planning to do if you fancy a winter day trip!
Note that this tour only runs between December and early March each year.
Hwacheon Ice Festival
Similarly this is an activity that is unique to winter in Seoul and only happens during January - February each year.
It happens once the Hwacheon Stream freezes over and visitors can take part in sledding, bobsledding, ice football and even ice fishing by drilling their own holes in the ice.
There’s ice skating, a street festival with street food stalls and drinks, the world’s largest indoor ice sculpture plaza, snow tubing and even Santa and his elves at the grotto!
Located in the mountains northeast of Seoul, it’s only 2.5 hours by car but is not easy to reach by public transport.
If you’re planning a visit I would recommend renting a car or doing a 1 day trip from Seoul using this Ice Festival tour from Seoul. The great thing about this tour is that it’s not actually a tour, you’re basically just paying for a car/van to take you to the ice festival from Seoul, then you have 6 hours of free time to enjoy the festival, then they bring you back again!
Summary: the best day trips from Seoul, South Korea
The great thing about day trips from Seoul is that there’s lots of options to fit your itinerary, whether you prefer an independent day trip via train or subway. Or an organised day tour that helps you cover as much as possible in a short amount of time.
Day trips near Seoul offer everything from active hiking trips to botanical gardens, family activities and cultural experiences.
The time of year will also dictate what is available as the winters can be harsh and the summers can get extremely hot! So do consider this before booking your trip!
