Seoul on a budget ๐Ÿค‘

Seoul on a budget ๐Ÿค‘

Angela Huo
For the financially smart (or broke) girlies visiting Seoul ๐Ÿ’…๐Ÿ’… My guide covers: โ—‹ Cheap eats ๐Ÿฝ๏ธ โ—‹ Free activities ๐Ÿ‘Ÿ โ—‹ Shopping ๐Ÿ›๏ธ โ—‹ Cheap hotels ๐ŸŒ™ Bonus: โ—‹ How to save extra $$ Use (and save) this guide to explore Seoul without needing to scrape by ๐Ÿ’ช๐Ÿป NaverMap links included :)
Updated ago
13
Share

Cheap eats ๐Ÿฝ๏ธ

Everything underย โ‚ฉ10,000 (roughly $10)

Mammoth Coffee Express
@angelahuoo
Iced americano for only $1 ๐Ÿค‘ This chain has multiple locations
Add to
Details
๋นต์‚ฌ์ด์—๋‚€๊ณผ์ผ
@angelahuoo
My former Korean classmate recommends their kimchi fried rice!
Add to
Details
Queen's Bakery
@angelahuoo
Huge variety of pastries if you want to venture outside of Paris Baguette ๐Ÿ˜‹
Add to
Details
Namdaemun Market
@angelahuoo
Famous market with classic Korean food ๐Ÿคฉ bring cash!
Add to
Details
Mangwon Market
@angelahuoo
Smaller than Namdaemun Market but still has a lot of delicious food
Add to
Details
Gwangjang Market
@angelahuoo
The fried donuts ๐ŸคŒ๐Ÿป
Add to
Details

Free activities ๐Ÿ‘Ÿ

I love anything free

Insa 1010
@angelahuoo
A cute little gallery in Jongno, this area actually has a cluster of galleries. Tip: search โ€œ๊ฐค๋Ÿฌ๋ฆฌโ€ on NaverMap and a bunch will pop up!
Add to
Details
Seoul Forest Park
@angelahuoo
Getcho steps in ๐Ÿ‘Ÿ
Add to
Details
Jogyesa Temple
@angelahuoo
A Buddhist temple with a gorgeous garden and intricate paintings
Add to
Details
SeMA - Seoul Museum of Art
@angelahuoo
There werenโ€™t many exhibitions when I went but it is a famous gallery
Add to
Details
MMCA (National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art) Seoul
@angelahuoo
I saw some sick 3D pieces and installations here ๐Ÿ˜ฎโ€๐Ÿ’จ
Add to
Details
Gallery Hyundai
@angelahuoo
A very quiet gallery in Jongno-gu
Add to
Details

Shopping ๐Ÿ›๏ธ

Make sure to have cash on hand!

Gotomall Underground Shopping Mall
@angelahuoo
Hair clips, socks, and scrunchies for only $1 ๐Ÿคฉ The mall is right beside the Express Bus Terminal; I stumbled across this place by accident haha
Add to
Details
ALL MASK STORY No.4
@angelahuoo
This is where youโ€™ll find discounted skincare and makeup ๐Ÿค‘ I bought the cosrx snail mucin for only $12
Add to
Details
Nyunyu
@angelahuoo
Wholesale accessories yessir
Add to
Details
Object
@angelahuoo
A hidden gem in Hongdae with super cute stationery ๐Ÿฅฐ
Add to
Details
Sappun Hongdae Branch
@angelahuoo
The place for CHEAP and TRENDY shoes
Add to
Details

Cheap Hotels ๐ŸŒ™

Nightly rates underย โ‚ฉ100,000 (roughly $100)

Hotel MIDO Myeongdong
@angelahuoo
Super close to the Namdaemun Market!
Add to
Details
Wegoinn Hostel
@angelahuoo
SUPERIOR LOCATION ๐Ÿคฉ This hostel is a 3 mins walk from the No. 2 Line and it is also within walking distance to Hongdae. Definitely a top stay if you are thinking about hitting the clubsโ€”the subways are closed after 12am and calling a cab is a nightmare during peak hours
Add to
Details

I stayed atย ๐‡๐จ๐ญ๐ž๐ฅ๐ž๐ญ๐ญ๐ž'๐ฌ Single Room for 1 night. It was very clean and the staff was very friendly. Excellent location as it was very close toย ๐’๐ž๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ ๐’๐ญ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง, which has the Express Train that takes you directly to the airport! I recommend this stay for people with early flights ๐Ÿฅฐ

The only drawback was that the building is on a slope so dragging my luggage uphill was tough.

Hotelette Seoul Station
@angelahuoo
Bang for the buck stay near Seoul Station ๐Ÿ’ธ
Add to
Details

Bonus: How to save extra $$

I'm still figuring out how to optimize cost savings myself, but here are the tips and tricks that I've learned ๐Ÿ‘‡๐Ÿป

Rakuten Chrome plugin for % ๐œ๐š๐ฌ๐ก ๐›๐š๐œ๐ค:

Sign up for Rakuten and install its Chrome plugin to get cash back onย  ๐‡๐จ๐ญ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฌ.๐œ๐จ๐ฆ, ๐„๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ž๐๐ข๐š, car rentals, and air tickets. For large expenses such as these, a little % of cash back can go a long way!!

Download theย ๐‡๐จ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ž๐ซ app for cheaper stays:

This is Montreal-based travel startup that uses its advanced algorithms to predict cheap flights and cheap hotels so that you can get the best rates โšก๏ธโšก๏ธ Hopper is one of my fav apps because it's so user-friendly!

Feel free to use my code for $10 off:ย ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฅ๐š๐ก81๐ž

If you're a ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐ž๐ง๐ญ:

Register for UNiDAYS to get a unique code for 8% off Hotels.com

Thanks for reading! Feel free to check out my other Korea guides :)

First time visiting? Check out my quick ๐ฌ๐ญ๐š๐ซ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐ฉ๐š๐œ๐ค!ย 

Topics: must-download apps, payment methods, data & SIM, navigation, items to pack, emergency numbers, Seoul districts breakdown

* * *
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Angela Huo
Hello! My name is Angela, and I'm a Gen Z from Canada ๐Ÿค ๐Ÿ“ฑ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ฆ My favorite destination is ๐Ÿ‡ฐ๐Ÿ‡ท, but I've also travelled to ๐Ÿ‡ฏ๐Ÿ‡ต๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ผ๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ Follow me if you like: food ๐Ÿœ art & culture ๐ŸŽจ shopping ๐Ÿ‘— makeup & skincare ๐Ÿ’„ nightlife ๐ŸŒƒ unique experiences ๐ŸŒŽ and hidden gems ๐Ÿ’Œ Happy to share my experiences and research with everyone ~~ Tiktok: @angelahuoo Pinterest @angelahuoo Instagram: @angela.huo
Send A Tip
Support Angela Huoโ€™s work.
Select your tip amount
$5
$10
$20
$50
Or type in other amount
Powered by Thatch
The home for unique & authentic travel
Powered by Thatch: Where great trips are made.
ยฉ Angela Huo 2024 โ€ข Help โ€ข Privacy โ€ข Terms โ€ข Copyright โ€ข Become a Seller โ€ข Seller Academy โ€ข About โ€ข Careers โ€ข Blog โ€ข Explore Places