Myeongdong Shopping Street

Myeongdong is where Seoul shops. Its pedestrian streets are lined with flagship stores for Korean skincare and cosmetics, fashion chains and department stores, and assistants often hand out samples at the door. An underground shopping arcade extends the browsing below street level.

From late afternoon, food carts fill the middle of the streets, selling everything from spiral-cut tornado potatoes and fruit skewers to hotteok, sweet pancakes filled with brown sugar and nuts, which are good choices for vegetarians. The Gothic-style Myeongdong Cathedral and the Namsan cable car are a short walk away.

Evenings are busiest and most atmospheric. Many shops offer tax refunds to tourists, so carry your passport. Big department stores, including Lotte and Shinsegae, stand at the edges of the district.