Samseong-dong has a lot of areas to feel various cultures, from COEX, which has an aquarium and the largest movie theater in Korea, to a trampoline park and Bongeunsa temple. You can get a little bit of everything all in one district.
For more infromation about cafes, restaurants and accomodations in Samseong-dong, click here.
COEX Aquarium
Visit the COEX Aquarium, a sea in the city center, where you can see over 650 species and about 40,000 marine plants in a total of 90 tanks! It's oneof COEX's most popular tourist attractions and attracts 1 million tourists every year, including friends, couples, workers and families.
A total of 16 theme zones are decorated, including 'Rainbow Lounge' with children's favorite model toy boats, 'Korea's Garden' with incense sticks from Gyeongbokgung Palace, and 'Imaginary Fish Country' where you can find fish like ia hidden picture.
You can see various creatures sucha as 'Golden Sawfish,' the guardian of the Han River that protect the Korean native fish. The Piraruka, a large South American fish that lives in the Amazon River and grows to be 5 to 6 meters long. In particular, the Undersea Tunnel, which feels like entering a huge aquarium, is also a phpoto zone famous for dramas and movies.
Come visit COEX Aquarium, a beautiful marine village full of fun to see and take pictures.
COEX Aquarium | Information
Address: 서울 강남구 영동대로 513 (삼성동) 지하1층 101호
513 Yeongdongdae-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Building 101, B1
Hours:
10:00 - 20:00
Price:
Kids - 21,000 KRW
Teens & Adults - 23,000 KRW
Book with Creatrip for the discounted price
Directions: 201m away from Exit 1 of Bongeunsa Station (봉은사역)
Starfield Library
Starfield Library is the most famous landmark within the COEX, which boasts an overwhelming size of about 2800 square meters. The large exhibit changes from season to season so it's fun to look around.
During the Christmas season, thanks to the beautiful large tree made of crystals and snowflakes, that is displayed every year has become famous on social media as a popular photo spot.
If your friend is late for your meeting time, then Starfield Library is a great place to wait. Expereince relaxation in various spaces decorated with approximately 70,000 books and study concepts.
If you take the escalator to the second floor, you can get a better view of the double-decorated panoramic view. A small cafe and books filled with walls combines to give you a comfortable but luxurious atmosphere.
In addition, it is a complex cultural spacewhere various book-themed events such as a writer's talks where you can meet actual writers and see book concert's with music as well.
Starbucks is also right in front of it so you are able to drink coffee or see the cute character shops like Kakao Friends . It's right in the center of COEX Mall, so make sure to visit Starfield Library, a perfect place to relax while shopping.
Starfield Library | Information
Address: 서울 강남구 삼성동 영동대로 513 스타필드 코엑스몰 B1
513 Yeongdongdae-ro, Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Starfield COEX Mall B1
Price: Free
Directions: It's about 274m away from Exit 6 at Samseong Station
Vaunce Trampoline Samseong Center
If you visit Samseong-dong, try this fun activity! Vaunce is Korea's first and largest trampoline sports theme park.
In particular, you can do a VR experience, climbing, and get active jumping on the trampolines, making it the best playground for children, friends, and couples.
If you have completed safety education and warm-up exercises according to the guidance of managers who have sports leadership certificates, then you'll definitely eenjoy it.
It's an indoor playground where children and adults alike can have fun doing VR activities in addition to the trampoline sports with lights and dance music.
If you don't want to use the play zone, you can wait in the lounge and if you get hungry, you can eat Korean food like tteokbokki and chicken. We also recommend you bring a shoort-sleeve shirt or comfortable training clothes and sneakers since you might break a sweat.
If you want a Creatrip member discount, click here!
Vaunce Trampoline Center | Information
Address: 서울 강남구 영동대로 325 지하 3층
325 Yeongdongdae-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
B3
Hours: Tues - Sun 10:30 - 20:00 (Last entry at 19:00); Mondays OFF
Admission: 1 Hour - 15,000 KRW; 2 Hours - 25,500 KRW
Directions: 135m from Bongeunsa Station, Exit 1
MegaBox COEX
MegaBox is the largest movie theater brand in Korea, similar to CGV. The COEX MegaBox in particular is the largest with good facilities, so various movies are shown.
There is also a Dolby Cinema special hall that features 3D sound and clear picture quality on a large screen so they movie experience is way better.
At the entrance of the movie theater, there is a sofa space where you can rest while waiting for the movie time, and a table where you can charge your cellphone or library. It has great modenr decor and a lot of plants so it's quite comfortable and feels like a cafe rather than a movie theater.
There are a lot of people during the evenings on weekends and weekdays, so you have to go early an make a reservation to watch the movie in a good place.
Many famous foreing movies are also the first Asian countries to show, so you can watch the ones your anticipating as well.
MegaBox COEX | Information
Address: 서울 강남구 봉은사로 524
Hours: 10:00 - 22:00 (Dependent on the movie schedule)
Directions: 13m from Bongeunsa Station, Exit 7.
COEX
Since its opening in March 1979, the COEX Trace Center has played an important role as a diploplomat as a leader of the Korean MICE industry, holding more than 200 exhibitions a year, as well as more than 2,500 international conferences and events such as the 2010 G20 Summmit.
It's always crowded with exhibitions and fairs that change every week. Now that COVID-19 restrictions are nearly gone, events are back in full swing. Some are free so make sure to check out the schedule if you plan to visit.
The recent event that became an issue was the 2021 KIAF SEOUL (Korea International Art Fair), which recorded the highest sales and largest number of visitors ever. It opened in 2002 to promote Korean modern art to the world.
In 2021, about 9,000 people viisted for five days and became popular with a number of famous Korean celebrities, including BTS' V, Jin Ji-hyun and Lee Byung-hun.
The 2022 event will be held on from September 2nd to 5th and the top galleries and artists from all over the world are expected to participate as it will be cohosted with Frieze, one of the world's top three art fairs.
In addition, various categories of fairs such as weddings, overseas studies, and pets are held. There is even a 'Seoul Cafe Show' where you can see the trend of coffee in Korea, the 'K-Illustration Fair' where you can look around the items and various stationery items that the MZ generation likes and even 'Food Week' where you can get full just by trying all the food.
Check out the updates on the COEX website for more details.
COEX | Information
Address: 서울 강남구 영동대로 513
513 Yeongdongdae-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Hours: 10:00 - 18:00 (Depends on the event)
Admission: Most people at least 20,000 KRW (Depends on the event)
Directions: 13m from Exit 7 of Bongeunsa Station.
Starfield Coex Mall
This shopping mall is located in the basement of the COEX. It is spacious, yet doesn't have many floors so shopping is not as tiring. There are digital guides throughout the mall with multiple language options such as English, Chinese and Japanese, so you can easily find your way around.
It is very popular so if you visit, we don't don't recommend going on the weekends. There will be so many people that you will likely not enjoy yourself.
It has a clean and safe infant rest room, reasonably priced coin lockers (1,500 KRW for 12 hours), and even an automatic tax refund machine so foreigners can enjoy shopping without any inconvenience.
There are also many delicious restaurants and cafes inside to so make sure to pay a visit.
Check here for more info.
COEX Mall | Information
Address: 서울 강남구 봉은사 524
524 Bongeunsa, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Hours: 10:30 - 22:00
Directions: Take Line 9 to Bongeunsa Station and take Exit 7 OR Take Line 2 to Samseong Station and take Exit 5 or 6.
Bongeunsa
Would you believe there's a temple in Gangnam? Bongeunsa Temple, located behind COEX in Samseong-dong, is one of the most popular temples in the city along with Jogyesa Temple. It's a large Buddhist temple in the city, built 1,200 years ago during the Silla Dynasty.
Unlike the urban atomosphere, y ou can feel the traditional beauty of Korea in a calm manner, and especially in the evening. You can see the beautiful night view thanks to the lights of the surrounding building, so it is one of the nicer night views in Seoul.
In Daeungjeon Hall, which retains its old history, you can worship freely and sometimes perform ancestral rites. There is an incense burner in front of of the stone pagoda, so you can light candles and make wishes.
Especially if you go up the stone steps behind Daeungjeon Hall, you can feel like you're in the forest, so it's a great place to walk. On events like Buddha's birthday, it's even prettier because they decorate it with colorful lanterns and flowers.
On the left side of the Daeungjeon Hall, there is a very large Buddha statue, and on the backside, small Buddhist statues spread out like a folding screen, which creates an amazing view. The Buddha statue can feel bigger than you expected.
Also, we recommend doing a Temple Stay if you have time so you can experience the life of nature along with Korean Buddhist culture, even if you're not religious. It is a temple stay you can enjoy in the Gangnam area and divide it into two nights. Detailed amounts and experience periods can be found on the website.
Bongeunsa | Information
Address: 서울 강남구 봉은사로 531
531 Bongeunsa, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Hours: 5:00 to 22:00
Admission: Free
Directions: 135m from Bongeunsa Station, Exit 5
- 주소 - 서울시 강남구 봉은사로 531
- 영업시간 - 05:00~22:00
- 입장료 - 무료
- 봉은사역 1번 출구에서 135m 떨어져 있습니다.
This was our Samseong-dong Activity Guide. If you have any questions, make sure to contact us at help@creatrip.com or you can join our Facebook group, the South Korea Travel Guide, to ask questions freely. Also make sure you're following us on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook to get all the latest content on Korea!
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