glazfolk

This might well get the prize for the stupidest question ever asked on these forums, but here goes ...

My partner and I are taking a trip to Seoul later this year, staying at the Ibis Ambassador in Myeongdong. We chose it largely because it is close or reasonably close to many places of interest and our preferred method of exploration is always on foot if possible.

However, when I try to make plans using Google maps to plot routes from A to B, it keeps coming up with "walking not available", wanting to send us round in circles on various bus routes instead. This is even the case, for example, with walking from the hotel to City Hall, which appears on the map as little more than a stone's throw away.

Can someone advise me please, are there really whole areas of Seoul where pedestrian access is simply not possible, or is this just an issue with Google maps?

If the latter, can anybody recommend an alternative source of wisdom?

Thanks in advance!

Explorer789

You can thank the SK government for that. They blocked Google from exporting the maps data they collected within the country, hence the very limited gmaps usefulness.

Two alternatives I found recently for my upcoming trip are:

- Maps.me is probably the closest to gmaps and it has offline access.
- There's a ton of maps and guides on visitseoul.net

glazfolk

Thank you so much, I was starting to build in my head a nightmare vision of a city with no footpaths!

mikesaidyes

The other poster is correct. Google Maps is very limited.

BUT you can walk VERY easily in that area. I always recommend visitors staying there to walk and taking a taxi or subway is just a waste of time and money.

I recommend you walk west to City Hall and Gwanghwamun. From there, go to Gyeongbokgung. You can exit out of the east gate and you will be in Samcheon-dong and also near Hanok Village. From there, you can walk south to Insadong area. From Insadong, go east to Gwangjang Market. From the market, you can walk the Cheonggyechon back west to your hotel.

And that's your day of tour haha.

gpy

We used naver maps and you can type in the search field in English (for the most part). It's helpful to cross reference with Google maps. I found it to be the best but I also have a rough understanding of Korean.

glazfolk

Thanks a heap Mike, this is really helpful and encouraging! Reckon that little tour deserves more than a day though!

MSPeconomist

In the immediate area of your hotel, there are a few intersections where you cannot cross the street, but it seems easy to find a workaround. In a few places, you must go to an underground passageway to cross a major street while not every street has a bridge across the creek.

glazfolk

Thanks mate, I don't think that will be a problem.

ksandness

Yes, for example, my low-budget hotel was in the same area as the Hilton, and to get there from Seoul Station, the safest way was to take a tunnel under the bus plaza.

Otherwise, I found Seoul to be very walkable, took a bus tour to get the lay of the land, and otherwise used the subway only to get from one major neighborhood to another (e.g. from Seoul Station to Dongdaemun).

mosburger

When living and working several years in the Namsan/Myeong-dong/Seoul Station (said Hilton was a focus point of my work life) I always walked everywhere if without luggage.

Only times when using cabs was with guests, when going to banquets or with luggage to the airport bus stop at the Hilton.

Worked out very well and can only recommend to visitors.