Seoul: how to get there and around
Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.
Seoul is the capital of South Korea, 38 m (125 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Seoul Gimpo International Airport (GMP), 17 km (11 mi) from the centre. It has a dozen or more railway stations on record, including Yeongdeungpo Station. Our booking partner lists 3,299+ places to stay.
Key facts
Daylight in Seoul runs from about 9 h 37 min a day in late December to 14 h 49 min in late June (computed for 37.57° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
Seoul is served by 3 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is Seoul Gimpo International Airport (GMP), 17 km (11 mi) from the centre, whose 11,811-ft runway is long enough for long-haul wide-body aircraft. The alternatives are Incheon International Airport (ICN, 48 km), Wonju Airport / Hoengseong Air Base (K-38/K-46) (WJU, 88 km).
Flights to Seoul: every airport, routes and times
By rail: stations on record include Yeongdeungpo Station, Gaebong Station, Oryu-dong Station, Oksu Station, Guil Station, Yangwon Station. Trains to Seoul
Buses to Seoul · Driving and car hire
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 3,299+ places to stay in Seoul (statistics below are from the first 1,000). Of the 718 with a star rating, the largest group is 4-star (282), and 33 are five-star. Across 693 properties with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.5 out of 10. Guests have left 538,068 reviews in total.
Hotels in Seoul: the full picture, and book
Our booking partner lists 224 hostels in Seoul, out of 3,299 places to stay of every kind — 6.8% of everywhere it lists in the city, which puts it in the top tenth of the cities we hold hostel figures for — a well-established backpacker trail. Across 107 hostels with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.1 out of 10, 0.4 below the 8.5 its hotels average. Guests have left 59,179 reviews across them.
Hostels in Seoul: the full picture, and book
What people come for
| Sight | Visitors a year | Year |
|---|---|---|
| National Folk Museum of Korea | 2,286,276 | 2019 |
| National Museum of Korea | 1,262,562 | 2021 |
The busiest is National Folk Museum of Korea at 2,286,276 visitors in 2019. At that volume, anything with a gate is worth a timed ticket or an early start.
UNESCO World Heritage in the city: Changdeokgung; Jongmyo; Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty.
Tours, tickets and day trips from Seoul
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- Busan, 330 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental
- Pyongyang, 195 km (North Korea) — flights
- Incheon, 27 km — car rental · tours
- Daegu, 237 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Daejeon, 140 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Gwangju, 268 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Suwon, 31 km — buses · car rental · tours
- Ulsan, 307 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental
- Goyang-si, 16 km — tours
- Changwon, 301 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental
Twin towns and sister cities: San Francisco, Cairo, Jakarta, New Delhi, Taipei, Ankara, Guam, Tehran, Bogotá, Tokyo, Moscow, Sydney, Beijing, Ulaanbaatar.
Common questions
Which airport serves Seoul?
Seoul Gimpo International Airport (GMP), 17 km (11 mi) from the centre, plus 2 other airports with scheduled flights within 100 km.
How big is Seoul?
About 10.3 million people live in Seoul, across 605 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is Seoul in?
Asia/Seoul, currently UTC+9.
What currency is used in Seoul?
The Won (KRW). Traffic drives on the right.
Are there hostels in Seoul?
224 of them, bookable on this site. Hostels in Seoul.
How many hotels are there in Seoul?
Our booking partner lists 3,299 or more places to stay in Seoul, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near Seoul?
Busan (330 km), Pyongyang (195 km), Incheon (27 km), Daegu (237 km), Daejeon (140 km).
Where these facts come from
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
- Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
- OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
- Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines
Data compiled 14 September 2026. Hotel and hostel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.