What to Do in Gangnam in South Korea

If you started singing PSY’s Gangnam Style when you read the title and now you’re wondering what to do in Gangnam, you’re in the right place.

Seoul, South Korea is known all around the world for its fashion, cafes, and more. There are countless things to do in Seoul and you’ll want to do them all! Let’s take it one district at a time and figure out what to do in Gangnam.

If you’re going to live or stay in South Korea for a bit, I highly recommend downloading Naver or Kakao Maps. These navigation apps will help you get to where you want to go by giving you the times and locations where to pick up a bus or take the metro.

Check out 10 Popular Apps in Korea.

Google Maps finally works in South Korea too. It’s about time.

what to do in gangnam

Where is Gangnam and What is it Like?

Gangnam is in the southern part of the capital along the famous Han River. Gangnam translates to “south of the Han River” in Korean.

Gangnam in Seoul is the upscale part of the capital. It is the third-largest district in Seoul and the most expensive to live in. There are high-end restaurants, skyscrapers, designer brands, luxury hotels, and stylish nightclubs all in Gangnam Seoul.

The shopping malls in Gangnam are top tier, with Starfield COEX Mall having an aquarium and library inside.

There are plenty of stores to choose from and there are things to do for everyone. You can even do some underground shopping at Gangnam Station.

Of course, there’s no shortage of cafes in Gangnam.

And if you want to see Lotte World while you’re in Korea, it’s just a half-hour subway ride away from Gangnam.

Line Store

How to Get to Gangnam

After you’ve figured out what to do in Gangnam, you probably need to know how to get there. Luckily, South Korea’s transit system is stunning so you will find that going anywhere in South Korea will be easy and usually very quick.

You can take the bus, a taxi, or travel around Seoul using just the metro system.

There are bus stops and metro lines all along the streets of Gangnam Seoul and using a navigation app will help suggest a simple route for you to take around the city.

What to Do in Gangnam Korea

Gangnam-gu has stuff for everyone. You can take a look inside the Kakao and Line stores, grab a bite to eat at one of the assorted cafes and restaurants, and buy some new clothes and shoes at Zara or New Balance.

At the Starfield COEX Mall, they have the Starfield Library at the center of the mall. The library features 2 levels of the mall with bookshelves from the ceiling to the floor at 13 meters (43 feet) tall and 2,800 square meters (30,100 square feet) wide.

Inside Artbox, they have Kakao-themed pens, pencils, diffusers, masks, stickers, and just about everything else you can think of. Literally.

Bongeunsa Temple is another one of the Gangnam attractions that you don’t want to miss. It is quite close to the Starfield COEX Mall so you can check a few things off your list when coming to this part of Seoul.

If you’re a BTS fan then you can check out the House of BTS.

Me & Ryan

Things to Eat in Gangnam

The Gangnam tourist spots will have restaurants of all types. If you’re looking for pizza or some bbq, you’ll find it.

Some of the places to eat in this area include

  • Billy Angel Cake Company
  • Brick Oven New York Pizza
  • Dos Tacos
  • Paris Baguette
  • Shake Shack
  • Starbucks
  • Tom n Toms Coffee

There will be plenty of Korean restaurants to choose from as well.

If you are in Gangnam at night, check out the night market.

If you go to Chicago Pizza & Pub, be warned that their pizza will be sweet. I got the plain pizza and macaroni and cheese and split it with a few other people and we could not finish it. Inside the pub was quite nice but the food was not what we were looking for.

Stores in the Gangnam District

Still wondering what to do in Gangnam?

If you enjoy shopping, this is the perfect place for you. There are high-end name brands but there will also be affordable brands as well.

  • Aldo
  • Chanel
  • Loius Vuitton
  • Nike
  • Uniqlo
  • Versace
  • Zara

If you’re familiar with South Korea, you will also see other popular stores such as Artbox and Olive Young.

Since Gangnam is known for having underground malls, you should check out the countless stores that are throughout the station. Vin Prime is an affordable thrift store that has a variety of clothes and you can try them on while you’re at it.

They have jeans, skirts, jackets, and dresses. I got two shirts for KRW 18,000 (USD 14).

The Kakao and Line stores are on Gangnam-daero and they are right next to each other. The Kakao store even has a cafe on the top floor! You can find products such as jewelry, pens, facemasks, t-shirts, and even infusers inside the Kakao and Line stores.

And don’t forget to take a picture with Brown (Line) and Ryan (Kakao) before you leave!

Hopefully, you’re not still wondering what to do here, and if you are, then ask some locals for help!

Gangnam in Korea is a great place to visit, even if it’s just for a day! You will get to see South Korea on a whole different level.

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12 Comments

  1. Great post! I’ve been wanting to visit South Korea for a while now, but I hadn’t heard of Gangnam, so adding that to the bucket list. As a stationery lover, I really like the look of Artbox, in particular. Thanks for sharing!

  2. This was fascinating to read as I know virtually nothing about Gangnam — what an interesting place! It was a shame about the amount of sugar in the pizza and mac — that seems like such an unusual thing to add/use so much in these kinds of foods but if it’s common then it would be difficult to get used to. Thanks for sharing this — I felt like I had a mini holiday!

  3. This was a great post and you captured some awesome shots! I don’t think I would be a fan of sweet pizza either. Lol! Sounds like a good trip though

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