FACT: It has been a tradition for me that every time I visit Korea, my boyfriend and I would always visit Namsan Tower and leave a "love lock" with our wishes/messages for each other. Call it cheesy but that's just our own way of "renewing" our love in our happy place called Seoul.
Since 2011 up to this year, I've been to Korea thrice which is why I know the place very well and I'm sharing with you several options on how to get there and the activities you can do with your loved ones and family.
Note: I've combined all 3 years worth of Namsan Tower photos in this post. So in case you've noticed, I'm wearing 3 different attires here.
Namsan Tower, is a communication and observation tower located on top of Mt. Namsan in central Seoul. It is the highest point of the city and many tourists visit this place because it is dubbed as the romantic island in the city.
You can go there by public shuttle bus, cable car, tour bus, and car but the first two options are the cheapest and fastest way to get there compared to the other options.
In riding the public shuttle: ride shuttle bus No. 02, 03, or 05. Choose the station closest to your starting point. In our case, we were near Myeongdong station so we rode bus no. 05 --check out the stations here. The shuttle bus is different from the city bus because it's smaller in size and has Namsan cues all over it! :) it's an electric bus too so very eco-friendly.
OPTION 1: Shuttle Bus
When you ride a bus, it will drop you off in the bus/shuttle drop-off area. You'll know you're there if you see many Namsan Tour buses and a convenient store to your left. Then you need to walk around 15 min in an uphill road to get to the Namsan complex.
This is the path that you need to walk on. It will be quite challenging for senior citizens haha but a nice cardio won't hurt them they just need to do it slowly but surely.
Along the way, you may buy some dried seafood snacks like crab and squid!
OPTION 2: Cable Car
When you want to see Seoul in a bird's eye-view then I suggest you ride the Cable Car (at least one-way). However, you need to go to the Cable Car Station either by foot or by Taxi.
Choose among the two:
1. Ride a taxi going to the parking area of Namsan Tower or for a cheaper option...
2. WALK from Myeongdong Exit 3. Look for the Pacific Hotel across the MRT exit to your left side. You will see a "Y" intersection. Walk to your right side then just go straight and uphill for about 15-20 minutes until you reach Namsan Tower Cable Car station :) It is open from 10 am to 11 pm daily and fees are as follows:
ADULT- KWN 8,500 round trip ; KWN 6,000 one-way
CHILD- KWN 5,500 round trip; KWN 3,500 one-way
Namsan has a lot of picture worthy spots so be sure to take a lot of photos. It's even nicer during cherry blossoms and fall season because of the red and brown trees. I also heard that the view of Seoul is more romantic at night especially when you're on the observatory deck.
If you're a fan of the Korean Drama "Boys over Flowers" starring Lee Min Ho and Ku Hye-Sun then you will loooove this place because the team filmed one of the couple's date in Namsan Tower and can I just say it's one of the most NAKAKAKILIG episode!
The wooden post (see photo above) is the exact place where Lee Min Ho waited (while snowing) for Geum Jan-di during one of their dates. Back in 2011, My friends and I went crazy over that wooden post haha! But when we went back in 2014, the management renovated the area and turned it into a glass.
Namsan Tower is special to me because it's the place where I first experienced snow! We went there during March (end of winter) but because the area is on top of a mountain, the weather was still cold at that time and if you're lucky, you may experience snow too!
See the white spec on my hair? that's a SNOWflake! and see how happy we were experiencing snow to the point that we made "SNOWflake angels".
When you visit Namsan, make sure to leave a lock message on one of the trees or fences there. There are padlocks or "love locks" available in the gift shop in case you didn't bring any but it's quite pricey. What we always do is we buy padlocks from Manila (Ace hardware or Japan store! haha) and we bring markers so we can save money.
We tried searching for our old locks but we couldn't find it anymore.
Just an observation, Koreans are generally cheeeeezy! they like "couple stuff" and anything cute and related to love. You'll see couples in "couple shirts", "couple shoes", "couple caps" etc. everything is the same haha that's why when you're in Korea, you can't help but feel the love in the air haha. This is the best time to be cheezy with your partner haha. Look at us, posing with a big heart.
Next activity would be the Teddy Bear Museum. It is located inside the tower however I read in a news that it was closed since November 2013. I am not sure if it's up for renovation or they're totally changing the museum into another attraction.
Finally, the observatory deck. It is open daily from 10 am to 11 pm from Mondays to Thursdays and Sundays and it extends its operation until 12 mn during Fridays and Saturdays.
ADULT- KWN 9,000
ELDERLY- KWN 7,000
CHILD- KWN 5,000
When you're on top of the tower, you will see Seoul's panoramic and breath taking view and more LOVE stuff! There's a cafe and gift shop too but that's just about it--the inside is the same as Taipei 101's tower.
In my opinion, if you're willing to pay additional KWN 9,000 or around Php 360 and it's your first time in Namsan then I suggest you visit the observatory deck. Otherwise, you may skip this part and just stay where the locks are because you don't need to pay anything there.
Disclaimer: This is an old post from my Blogspot account dated September 15, 2014.
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