Jongno Cheonggye Special Tourist Zone (종로 청계 관광특구)

8.6Km 2021-12-30

99, Yulgok-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
+82-2-2148-1861

Jongno Cheonggye Special Tourist Zone stretches from Seorin-dong to Changsin-dong between Cheonggyecheon Stream and Jong-ro. It includes Youth Street, Gwangjang Market, Sewoon Electronics Department Store, lighting stores, pharmacy & medical device stores, badge stores, Stamp Street, Stationery · Toy Market, Aquarium Street, Shoes Market, and other markets totalling to approximately 14,000 shops. Nearby attractions include modern high-story buildings as well as Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung, and Unhyeongung Palaces, Jongmyo Shrine, and Insa-dong, merging traditions, modernism, culture, and markets alike.

Thought to be at the heart of Seoul, Cheonggyecheon Stream is located in the dense cultural area of Seoul where various press networks, organizations, bookstores and other major corporations are situated. Walking along Cheonggyecheon Stream is a famous activity for tourists. Also, the area is the venue for the Seoul Lantern Festival every winter. Keeping its traditional scene including narrow alleys, old-fashioned hanok buildings and various stores still fully intact, the tourist zone has enough fun places for sightseeing as well as tasty restaurants in every corner for a more enjoyable visit.

Kyobo Book Centre Gwanghwamun (교보문고)

8.6Km 2024-12-04

1 Jong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
02-3295-0312

Kyobo Book Centre is the first large-scale bookstore in Korea, and this particular store can be found next to Gwanghwamun Square. Kyobo Book Centre Gwanghwamun divides its internal area into 11 sections and organizes them in a way that allows readers to find books easily. The store also has specialized shops for stationery, digital devices, and accessories, as well as exhibition spaces and cafés.

Hottracks - Gwanghwamun Branch [Tax Refund Shop] (핫트랙스 광화문점)

8.6Km 2024-04-23

1, Jong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul

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Banhadang (반하당)

8.6Km 2024-02-15

36 Seongbuk-ro 5-gil, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul

Banhadang is a café located 20 minutes from the UNESCO World Heritage site Changdeokgung Palace. Renovated from a hanok, it preserves the charm of hanok with open spaces, leaving only the pillars of the original structure. The signature menu includes a Strawberry latte made with homemade strawberry syrup and milk. During the summer season, the jeontong pat bingsu (traditional shaved ice with red beans), made with domestically sourced jujube and red bean, is also popular.

Seoul Museum of Craft Art (SeMoCA) (서울공예박물관)

8.6Km 2025-06-19

4 Yulgok-ro 3-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul

The Seoul Museum of Craft Art (SeMoCA), the first public museum of craft art in Korea, opened its doors in Anguk-dong, Jongno-gu, in July 2021 after renovating five buildings of the former Pungmoon Girls’ High School. SeMoCA studies and shares not only works, but also information, records, people, and environment related to craft art with the goal of becoming a dynamic platform for experiencing the technical, practical, artistic, and cultural values of craft.
SeMoCA holds a collection that comprises various crafts and craft materials covering multiple fields and eras from the traditional to the present. SeMoCA also holds exhibitions that feature the history of craft from traditional to contemporary art as well as local and children’s crafts, along with programs that utilize the museum’s craft installations, craft archives, craft library, and craft resource management system.
The site of the museum has deep historical roots as it is also the Andong Secondary Palace Site, where a detached palace was constructed as a royal residence for King Sejong’s son Prince Yeongeung, and served as a venue for royal celebrations, such as the wedding of King Sunjong. The site is also at the center of Jongno-gu, where Joseon-era master artisans (“gyeonggongjang”) of the royal palace produced and delivered craft works.

Hosujip (호수집)

8.6Km 2021-03-30

443, Cheongpa-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul
+82-2-392-0695

It is a restaurant where people wait in line as a hidden restaurant for locals in Chungjeong-ro. The best menu at this restaurant is spicy braised chicken. This Korean dishes restaurant is located in Jung-gu, Seoul.

Seosomun Historical Park (서소문역사공원)

8.6Km 2023-08-11

5, Chilpae-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul

The Seosomun Gate area, which is located outside Seosomun Gate, was used as a persecution site in the 19th century before it turned into the local park of today. Many Catholics were suppressed and martyred here, making the area a holy site for Korean Catholics. Seosomun Gate was a gateway to Chilpae Market located near Namdaemun Gate. It was always busy with passerbys and the persecution site was established outside the gate to set an example of crime punishment to all the witnesses.

On May 15, 1999, a memorial tower was raised at the center of the park in honor of the martyrs. In 2013, Seoul's Jung-gu district also founded Seosumun Holy Shrine History Museum with a memorial exhibition hall in their honor.

Seoul Public Hanok Week (공공한옥주간)

8.6Km 2024-05-24

37 Gyedong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
+82-2-741-1033

The Seoul Public Hanok Week offers a full week of traditional culture at public hanok, traditional Korean buildings, throughout Seoul and Bukchon Hanok Village. Experience the beauty, charm, and history of these buildings while learning about the eco-friendly impact of their construction and methods to apply this to our modern lives.

Public Hanok Night Out (공공한옥 밤마실)

8.6Km 2025-06-10

37 Gyedong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
+82-2-741-1033

Public Hanok Night Out is a special evening event that allows limited access to the nine public hanok buildings, including the Bukchon Culture Center, after sundown. The event is carefully prepared to make the hanok buildings accessible as much as possible. In addition, the event also offers a variety of programs to entertain the visitors. The event aims to raise awareness about embracing differences and diverse values during this time of ever-changing global society, as well as expand the the cultural values of hanok as something more unique.

The Sool Gallery (전통주갤러리)

8.6Km 2025-06-19

18 Bukchon-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul

The Sool Gallery is an exhibition and experience space for traditional Korean liquor, established to promote the taste, style, and cultural values of the time-honored traditional Korean liquor. It provides various information about traditional Korean liquor for consumers or international tourists who can rarely obtain such information elsewhere. In addition, it provides traditional liquor education and business counseling to food service businesses and sales experts to continuously create demand for traditional liquor and expand the market. It is run by experts specializing in traditional liquor, including traditional liquor sommeliers, and it holds events to introduce various traditional liquors with different themes every month, as well as tasting events. Moreover, according to the monthly changing “Recommended Traditional Liquor by Month,” it displays a drinking glass and a bottle of the month recommended by the Korea Craft & Design Foundation.

Jongno Cheonggye Special Tourist Zone (종로 청계 관광특구) - Area information - Korea travel information