24 hours in Seoul

Flying next month with Korean Air from Auckland to LHR and get a stopover in Soeul.

We arrive at 8pm Saturday night, get put into randomly allocated accomodation, then fly out the next day at 1pm.

We will eihter be put up at the airport or in the city.

1) If in the city, is there anywhere we should try to get to early on a Sunday morning before we have to leave to go back to the airport?

2) If staying at the airport, is it even worth trying to scoot into the city at all?

We%26#39;re both early 30%26#39;s, experienced travellers, with small hand baggage only, so up for a bit of walking etc as required.

Any advice welcome.

24 hours in Seoul

Time will be v tight.

The city is big, so if you get allocated a hotel in city, it all depends on where!There is a City Air Terminal, but to use it- you can check in and complete emigration there, so it can save time - they limit you to being there by 10- 3 hrs before departure. (It really can take 90 mins on the bus, and I guess you%26#39;d need to allow 1 hr at the airport if you check in there instead. That could be tight if queues are long)

Worst situation is that you get allocated a hotel in Incheon Airport City -nowhere near either airport or city itself. There IS a train to Seoul but it%26#39;s not quick and involves a change at Gimpo airport.

If you don%26#39;t get put in Seoul, then you could go in during the evening, but you might need to get a taxi back. In town most sights will not be open at that time, but to walk through Myeongdong or that general area could be worth it, if you %26#39;ve not done an Asian city before.

Again if in town, most places won%26#39;t be open early Sunday. So it would just be a look around.

Personally, knowing that you%26#39;ll arrive at LHR about 2 am (in your head) I might think of taking it a bit easy and not getting up too early on Sunday.

24 hours in Seoul

The airport is a LONG way from the city (like an hour without traffic). But I%26#39;d recommend it just so you can get a flavor for the city. In your limited time, I%26#39;d recommend walking around the Myongdong neighborhood at night. Lots of neon, crowds - everything you expect from a huge Asian city. In the morning, I%26#39;d try to visit Changdoekgung Palace, assuming it%26#39;s open. Of all the ancient architecture in Seoul, it%26#39;s the best in my opinion.

After that you could head back to the airport, hopefully traffic wouldn%26#39;t be too bad on Sunday.