After a few days resting in Seoul, we were greeted with a city tour that allowed us to have a quick preview of potential sites we could visit. The tour we were invited to was the Downtown Palace Namsan Route which began at Gwanghwamun Station. Despite the heatwave, each site was extremely insightful into Korean culture and overall breathtaking.
For those touring Seoul for the first time, tour buses will have pre-recorded information about each site in a multitude of languages, so do not worry about not understanding what’s going on around you. The buses were clean and filled with not only foreigners but also locals. Despite the tour being covered by our program, the price was worth every penny for the time, view and experience gained. The Namsan route will go for 90 minutes touring on a double-decker bus which provides a high view of the city and landscape.
Beginning at Gwanghwamun station, we were given the opportunity to view famous sites such as Seoul tower as well as view historical sites such as Namsangol Hanok Village and Cheong Wa Dae. Though briefly we were able to also view many hotels and shopping districts which peaked many of our interests for our personal free time. Though it was unfortunate we had to stay as a group, the tour also allowed for a hop-on hop-off system which allowed for sightseers to fully immerse themselves at each location with a tour bus arriving for pick up approximately every hour.
The overall experience was fantastic and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who would want to learn about the local area and explore Seoul in one quick scoop. The convenience the tour offers is worth too much to pass on with a clear route as well so take advantage and take in every moment.
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