5 things to do as a non-first-timer in Seoul

I was a typical tourist when I first went to Korea in the spring of 2015. I was armed with a printed color-coded excel itinerary complete with directions, budget, and photos. Pocket wifis were not a thing back then and looking back, I’m quite amazed that I survived by relying on Seoul’s free public internet.

At the time, my itinerary was a blueprint of what to do for first-timers in Korea. I went to all the palaces mentioned by travel websites, devoured the must-eat food I read in blogs, made sure to go to Nami Island, and visited Everland. I knew that there was still so much to see in this beautiful country so I told myself that I would go back one day, I just didn’t know when.

Travel is a way for me to reset. I used to go out of the country every year, but the COVID-19 pandemic ruined my travel funds. All my booked flights got cancelled and I accumulated a hefty amount of travel funds because of that. International travel was not in my plans, but an email that said that P12,000 of the fund will expire in three months pressured me into booking a flight.

Long story short, I impulsively booked a flight to Seoul.

Thankfully, I had friends who were also dying to travel then. And since it wasn't our first time, there really was no pressure to strictly follow an itinerary so long as we got to shop and eat.

If you're planning to go to Seoul soon and like us, you’ve already done all the touristy stuff during your first trip, check out this roundup of things to do as a non-first-timer in this picturesque destination.

✓ Visit green spaces and simply admire the autumn foliage

One of the things I love about Seoul is the number of gardens and green spaces within the city—it's something that I wish we had more of in Metro Manila. We went during autumn and the trees were all in lovely shades of yellows, oranges, and reds.

We visited two places that were accessible by the subway. Seoul Forest is a 1200-hectare nature park located in Seongsu-dong, which is popular for cherry blossoms in spring and ginkgo trees in autumn......

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