Itinerary · South Korea · 5 days
South Korea in 5 days: ₩47,000 in tickets
Five days for South Korea's World Heritage sites: Seoul's royal palaces and Jongmyo Shrine, Suwon's Hwaseong Fortress, the temples and tombs of Gyeongju, and Jeju's volcanic Seongsan Ilchulbong. Every ticket is priced from the official sites, and the whole trip costs less in tickets than one London attraction.
- Day 1: Seoul's palacesGyeongbokgung Palace, Bukchon Hanok Village, Changdeokgung Palace, Jongmyo Shrine₩11,000
- Day 2: Modern SeoulGwangjang Market, Cheonggyecheon, N Seoul Tower₩29,000
- Day 3: Suwon's Hwaseong FortressHwaseong Fortress walls, Hwaseong Haenggung Palace₩2,000
- Day 4: GyeongjuBulguksa Temple, Cheomseongdae and the royal tombsFree
- Day 5: Jeju's Seongsan IlchulbongSeongsan Ilchulbong₩5,000
- Total per adult₩47,000
about US$35 · £27 (2026-10-23 rates)
Each price checked on the attraction's official site in October 2026
The route
Every stop, numbered in order and coloured by day. Tap a number for its price.
- Day 1: Seoul's palaces
- Day 2: Modern Seoul
- Day 3: Suwon's Hwaseong Fortress
- Day 4: Gyeongju
- Day 5: Jeju's Seongsan Ilchulbong
Map: OpenFreeMap, OpenMapTiles and OpenStreetMap contributors.
Day 1: Seoul's palaces
₩11,000 in tickets
Three World Heritage sites in one day, all within a short walk of each other: buy the integrated palace pass at your first stop and it covers the others.
Gyeongbokgung Palace
₩6,000 Integrated palace pass: Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung and Jongmyo about US$5 · £3
The grandest of Seoul's palaces. Buy the integrated pass at the ticket office: it covers Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Jongmyo and two more palaces within six months, for less than three single tickets.
Hours, free entry and booking
Free entry: Visitors from abroad aged 18 and under or 65 and over; anyone wearing hanbok (Korean traditional dress); registered disabled visitors (with one companion for more severe disabilities). Proof is needed.
Booking: Buy at the palace ticket office. Local residents of the district get 50% off.
Bukchon Hanok Village
Free
Lanes of traditional tiled houses on the hill between the two palaces. Free; people live here, so keep your voice down.
Changdeokgung Palace
₩5,000 Secret Garden (Huwon) tour, on top of the palace ticket about US$4 · £3
The palace buildings are in your pass; the price here is the Secret Garden tour on top, through the royal woodland garden. Its tickets go on sale online at 10am six days ahead and sell out fast in spring and autumn.
Hours, free entry and booking
Opening hours: Closed Mondays (open when Monday is a public holiday, closing the next weekday instead). February to May and September to October 9am to 6pm; June to August 9am to 6:30pm; November to January 9am to 5:30pm. Last entry an hour before closing.
Free entry: Foreign visitors 18 and under or 65 and over go free (Koreans 24 and under), as does anyone wearing hanbok. The palace buildings are free every Wednesday ("Culture Day"), but the Secret Garden isn't. Children 6 and under go free in the Secret Garden.
Booking: Secret Garden tickets are sold online from 10am six days before the visit until the day before, and on site from 9am on the day, first come, first served; they sell out very quickly in April, May, October and November.
Jongmyo Shrine
Included in the Gyeongbokgung Palace ticket
The royal ancestral shrine, a short walk south of Changdeokgung. On Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays you can only go in on a guided tour (in English at 10am, 12pm, 2pm and 4pm); on Wednesdays and at weekends you can walk round freely.
Hours, free entry and booking
Opening hours: Closed Tuesdays (open when Tuesday is a public holiday, closing the next weekday instead). February to May and September to October 9am to 6pm; June to August 9am to 6:30pm; November to January 9am to 5:30pm. Last entry an hour before closing. On Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays entry is only by guided tour of about 50 minutes, at set times: in English at 10am, 12pm, 2pm and 4pm. On Wednesdays, weekends and public holidays you can walk round freely.
Free entry: Foreign visitors 18 and under or 65 and over go free (Koreans 24 and under), as does anyone wearing hanbok. Entry is free for everyone every Wednesday ("Culture Day").
Booking: Guided tours take up to 200 people: 100 places are sold online in advance and 100 at the ticket office on the day. No booking is needed on Wednesdays, weekends and public holidays.
Day 2: Modern Seoul
₩29,000 in tickets, plus the optional Seoul Sky (Lotte World Tower)
Markets, the restored stream through the city centre, and the view from Namsan at night.
Gwangjang Market
Free
One of Seoul's oldest markets, famous for its street food stalls. Free to wander; come hungry.
Cheonggyecheon
Free
A stream restored as a sunken walkway through the city centre, lit up at night. Free.
N Seoul Tower
₩29,000 Observatory about US$22 · £16
The tower on Namsan, reached by cable car or a steep walk, with the whole city lit up around it. Go after dark.
Hours, free entry and booking
Opening hours: Open every day of the year. Observatory weekdays 10am to 10.30pm, weekends and holidays 10am to 11pm; last entry 30 minutes before closing. Hours can change with the weather.
Free entry: Children under 36 months (one per adult).
Booking: Buy at the tower. Visitors with a Korean disability card get 30% off (with one companion for grades 1 to 3).
Seoul Sky (Lotte World Tower) Optional
₩33,000 General admission about US$25 · £19
For a higher view from the glass-floored top of Lotte World Tower, across the city in Jamsil. Bookings open on the 1st of each month.
Hours, free entry and booking
Free entry: Children under 36 months with a guardian (bring proof of age).
Booking: Buy online, on mobile or at the ticket booth; bookings open on the 1st of each month. Arrive by your entry time. Screenshots and copies of tickets aren't accepted.
Day 3: Suwon's Hwaseong Fortress
₩2,000 in tickets
A day trip south of Seoul, about an hour by subway or train, to the walled city built by King Jeongjo in the 1790s.
Hwaseong Fortress walls
Free
Walk the 5.7 km circuit of walls, gates and watchtowers, or the stretch from Hwaseomun to Paldalmun. The walls are open all day and free.
Hwaseong Haenggung Palace
₩2,000 Hwaseong Haenggung and Hwaryeongjeon about US$2 · £1
The king's temporary palace inside the walls. From May to 1 November it also opens on Friday to Sunday evenings.
Hours, free entry and booking
Opening hours: Open every day, 9am to 6pm; last entry an hour before closing. Night opening 1 May to 1 November 2026 on Fridays to Sundays and public holidays, 6pm to 9:30pm (last entry 9pm).
Free entry: The fortress walls of Hwaseong are open all day, every day, and free; the ticket is for the palace. Over-65s with ID and children 6 and under go free, and everyone gets into the palace free on the last Wednesday of each month ("Culture Day"), except at the night opening.
Booking: Pay at the palace ticket office.
Day 4: Gyeongju
Free in tickets
The old capital of the Silla kingdom, about two hours from Seoul by KTX to Singyeongju. Rent a bike or take the local buses between the sights.
Bulguksa Temple
Free
Silla's great temple, with stone stairways and pagodas from the 8th century, in the hills east of town. Free to enter.
Cheomseongdae and the royal tombs
Free
One of Asia's oldest surviving observatories, among the grassy burial mounds of Silla's kings in the centre of town. Free to see from the paths, and lovely at dusk.
Day 5: Jeju's Seongsan Ilchulbong
₩5,000 in tickets
Take the train from Gyeongju to Busan the evening before and fly to Jeju (about an hour), then cross the island to its eastern tip.
Seongsan Ilchulbong
₩5,000 Summit trail about US$4 · £3
The 'sunrise peak', a crater rising straight from the sea. The climb takes 30 to 40 minutes, mostly on steps. Stay nearby to climb for sunrise: the gates open as early as 4:30am in summer.
Hours, free entry and booking
Opening hours: Closed on the first Monday of each month (the next day when that Monday is a public holiday). November to February 6am to 6pm (tickets until 5pm); March, April, September and October 5am to 7pm (tickets until 6pm); May to August 4:30am to 8pm (tickets until 7pm).
Free entry: Jeju residents, Korean national merit holders and disabled visitors go free with proof.
Booking: Cash and cards are accepted. The climb to the summit takes about 30 to 40 minutes, mostly on steps. No food may be taken in.
Before you go
Before you book
- Changdeokgung is closed on Mondays and Jongmyo on Tuesdays, so keep day one off both. Seongsan Ilchulbong closes on the first Monday of each month.
- Anyone wearing hanbok, Korean traditional dress, gets into Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung and Jongmyo free. Rental shops near the palaces hire it by the hour.
- Visitors from abroad aged 18 and under or 65 and over go free at Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung and Jongmyo. On Wednesdays ("Culture Day") Jongmyo and Changdeokgung's palace buildings are free for everyone, though the Secret Garden isn't.
- Book Changdeokgung's Secret Garden as soon as tickets open, six days ahead: they sell out very quickly in April, May, October and November.
Questions
How much do the tickets cost for South Korea in 5 days?
The entry tickets on this route come to ₩47,000 for an adult, about US$35 · £27 (day 1 ₩11,000; day 2 ₩29,000; day 3 ₩2,000; day 4 free; day 5 ₩5,000). Free places and optional stops aren't counted. Each price was checked on the attraction's official website in October 2026.
Is 5 days enough for South Korea?
Five days covers Seoul's palaces, Suwon, Gyeongju and one day on Jeju at a brisk pace, with fast trains between them. A week lets you add Busan, Andong's Hahoe Folk Village or Haeinsa Temple, all World Heritage sites.
How do you get around South Korea?
By KTX high-speed train between cities (about two hours from Seoul to Gyeongju), the subway to Suwon, and a short flight to Jeju from Busan or Seoul.