Jongmyo & Sewoon Plaza

Getting to the start

5 min walk from Jongno 3-ga Station — Exit 11 on Line 1, or Exit 8 on Lines 3 and 5 — to Jongmyo's outer gate. On weekdays entry is by timed guided tour at set times; only on Saturdays and public holidays can you walk in freely, so check the day first.

The route

1. 1

   Jongmyo Shrine

   Jongno 3-ga · 1h 30m

   The royal ancestral shrine of the Joseon dynasty, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Unlike the palaces it is almost undecorated — one long roof running on and on — and that restraint is the whole point. On weekdays entry is by timed guided tour only; you can walk in freely on Saturdays and public holidays.

   Official site →
2. Walk10m

   From Jongmyo's main gate, cross Jongno and walk south to Sewoon Plaza. Climb to the elevated walkway and you look back down on the roofs you just walked through. It carries on to the roof deck.

   2

   Sewoon Plaza

   Euljiro · 1h

   The 1968 Sewoon Sangga arcade, reworked into an elevated walkway and plaza. From the roof deck you get the roofs of Jongmyo and Namsan in one frame. The shops inside close on Sundays and holidays, but the walkway, plaza and viewing deck stay open all year.

   

Map

• Jongmyo Shrine →
• Sewoon Plaza →

Also close by

Other places close to this route's stops — useful if you have time left or want to swap something out.

• Gwangjang MarketStreets & city · 1h343m
• Ikseon-dong Hanok StreetStreets & city · 1h452m
• Changdeokgung PalaceHeritage · 1h 30m477m
• SsamziegilStreets & city · 1h815m
• Marronnier ParkStreets & city · 50m921m

Good to do next

• Gwangjang Market & Naksan WallJongno, Seoul · Half day

  Start in a market that has run for over a century and end on a wall-topped hill at sunset. Begin late afternoon and you catch both at their best.

• Ikseon-dong & DDP After DarkJongno & Jung-gu, Seoul · Half day

  Start in hanok alleys, end under the lit curves of a Zaha Hadid building. A century-old lane and contemporary architecture, two subway stops apart.

• Anguk & Insadong in a DayJongno, Seoul · Full day

  A temple, a craft market, a hanok neighbourhood and a palace — all on foot. After you arrive you never touch the subway again.