Originally Posted by
mikesaidyes
Those are weekday times and they should be ok for seats to just get a walk up ticket. There are trains every 20 minutes to Busan on KTX, so really, you don't even have to schedule it. Same for the return.
Also, for you, if you use the foreigner page, you still have to go to a ticket window and get your tickets there.
One more tip - you can save a few bucks by getting a standing ticket. This means that you don't have an assigned seat on the train. You can sit wherever you want in any seat until someone shows you their ticket. You don't have to say or do anything. Just sit until someone shows you their ticket for you to move. Alternatively, in the vestibule of each car, there is a single seat you can fold down and sit in.
The standing seat tip is slightly inaccurate. Each train departure will have one or two cabs designated as "free seats." This means you pay for standing seats but you can sit in either cab 18 and sometimes 17 on a first come first serve basis and no one can kick you out of your seat. As there is a departure at most 30 minutes apart on the KTX to busan, buy the ticket for the next train and when it pulls up to the platform, usually 15-20 minutes prior to departure, be among the first to board and you will get a seat. I never had a problem with this even during weekends and normal holidays. Only time you need to be concerned with booking in advance is during the big holiday seasons. This only works for departing cities, if you are in a connection station such as Yongsan or Daegu and don't have confirmed seats, expect to stand