Myeongdong
Seoul'S Best Known Shopping And Street Food District; Myeongdong Cathedral Dates From 1898 · Seoul, Seoul
Seoul's best-known shopping district, a tight grid of pedestrian lanes in Jung-gu between the downtown towers and the foot of Namsan. By day it is a parade of Korean cosmetics and skincare shops, fashion chains, department stores and duty-free floors, where staff greet shoppers in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese and hand out sample masks at the door. From late afternoon the middle of each lane fills with street-food carts selling hotteok, tornado potatoes, grilled lobster tails with cheese, egg bread and glazed strawberry skewers, and the district becomes a slow river of people until late evening. At the top of the rise stands Myeongdong Cathedral, the Gothic brick seat of the Catholic archdiocese, completed in 1898 and a landmark of Korea's democracy movement. Around the edges sit the Lotte and Shinsegae flagship department stores, the base of the Namsan cable car and the Nanta show theatre, with Namdaemun Market a short walk away. It is touristy and prices are high, but it is central, safe and lively, and it remains the easiest first evening in Seoul.
Myeongdong 8-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul, Seoul, 04536, South Korea
NO OPENING TIME HERE WAS CHECKED. The typical pattern: the district itself is open at all hours; shops open about 10 or 11 am and close around 10 pm; street-food carts trade from about 4 or 5 pm to 10 or 11 pm, fewer in heavy rain and deep cold; department stores open about 10:30 am and close around 8 pm, with occasional closing days each month. Myeongdong Cathedral is open by day with services at set times. Nanta runs set evening and afternoon shows. Traps: arriving at noon and finding no street food; department stores closed for their monthly holiday; forgetting the passport for the tax refund; Namdaemun shut on a Sunday; paying lobster prices without checking.