South Korea moves fast, eats well, and keeps its palaces close to its skyscrapers. Plan Seoul and beyond here.
Seoul’s Joseon-era palaces make their impression through contrast: centuries-old wooden halls and garden courtyards set against a city of glass towers and neon. They’re best seen early, before the crowds and midday heat, when the quiet lets the older Korea come forward.
South Korea suits a fast-moving itinerary: compact, superbly connected, a bullet train from Seoul’s neon to a Silla-era temple in a couple of hours. Much of the appeal is the whiplash between the two, palaces and street food one day, tech and nightlife the next.
South Korea runs smoothly for visitors who learn a few of its unwritten rules before arriving. The transit is superb but assumes you know the system; the etiquette around elders, shoes, and dining shapes every interaction; the country is nearly cashless. None of it is hard, but knowing it in advance is the difference between gliding through and constantly feeling a step behind.