The Republic of South Korea is a country that more than ten million visitors from abroad come to visit every year. With its long history in culture and tradition, the country has a lot to offer to travelers.
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update too: Sk destinations, places to visit in korea
Map with South Korea tourist spots
At the map below you’ll find an introduction to just some of the South Korea tourist spots. This is not an extensive list. There are many more historical, beautiful or fun places to visit during your stay in South Korea. For reference I included Incheon International Airport.
Just zoom in at the map and click the markers for details explanations.
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 | Hakata port terminal, Fukuoka Japan |
| Ferry to Fukuoka Japan |
 | mask dance festival |
 | busan tower movie week special district temples ferry to japan |
 | Changdeokgung (Hangul, 창덕궁, 昌德宮; literally, "Prospering Virtue Palace"), also known as Changdeokgung Palace or Changdeok Palace, is set within a large park in Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the "Five Grand Palaces" built by the kings of the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1897). As it is located east of Gyeongbok Palace, Changdeokgung—along with Changgyeonggung—is also referred to as the "East Palace" (동궐, 東闕, Donggwol). |
 | The Gyeongju Historic Areas of South Korea were designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2000. The protected areas encompass the ruins of temples and palaces, outdoor pagodas and statuary, and other cultural artifacts left by the Silla Kingdom. The historic areas are sometimes known as one of the largest outdoor museums in the world. |
 | Historic Villages of Korea: Hahoe and Yangdong Founded in the 14th-15th centuries, Hahoe and Yangdong are seen as the two most representative historic clan villages in the Republic of Korea. Their layout and location - sheltered by forested mountains and facing out onto a river and open agricultural fields – reflect the distinctive aristocratic Confucian culture of the early part of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). The villages were located to provide both physical and spiritual nourishment from their surrounding landscapes. They include residences of the head families, together with substantial timber framed houses of other clan members, also pavilions, study halls, Confucian academies for learning, and clusters of one story mud-walled, thatched-roofed houses, formerly for commoners. The landscapes of mountains, trees and water around the village, framed in views from pavilions and retreats, were celebrated for their beauty by 17th and 18th century poets. Unesco World heritage site |
| Haeinsa Temple Janggyeong Panjeon, the Depositories for the Tripitaka Koreana Woodblocks The Temple of Haeinsa, on Mount Gaya, is home to the Tripitaka Koreana , the most complete collection of Buddhist texts, engraved on 80,000 woodblocks between 1237 and 1248. The buildings of Janggyeong Panjeon, which date from the 15th century, were constructed to house the woodblocks, which are also revered as exceptional works of art. As the oldest depository of the Tripitaka , they reveal an astonishing mastery of the invention and implementation of the conservation techniques used to preserve these woodblocks. Unesco world heritage site |
| Hwaseong Fortress When the Joseon King Jeongjo moved his father's tomb to Suwon at the end of the 18th century, he surrounded it with strong defensive works, laid out according to the precepts of an influential military architect of the period, who brought together the latest developments in the field from both East and West. The massive walls, extending for nearly 6 km, still survive; they are pierced by four gates and equipped with bastions, artillery towers and other features. |
 | Just off the coast of South Korea, Jeju Island pulls in vacationers and honeymooners by the thousands. April to June is prime time for school trips. "You get a lot of students on field trips from April to June," says Kim Mi-ryang, of the Korea Tourist Organization's Jeju branch. But there is plenty of space for all. With half a million people spread over an area that's three times as big as Seoul, there’s a lazy feel to the place. Even if you haven't just gotten married, a vacation here sure can feel like it. Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes together comprise three sites that make up 18,846 ha. It includes Geomunoreum, regarded as the finest lava tube system of caves anywhere, with its multicoloured carbonate roofs and floors, and dark-coloured lava walls; the fortress-like Seongsan Ilchulbong tuff cone, rising out of the ocean, a dramatic landscape; and Mount Halla, the highest in Korea, with its waterfalls, multi-shaped rock formations, and lake-filled crater. The site, of outstanding aesthetic beauty, also bears testimony to the history of the planet, its features and processes. |
| Jongmyo Shrine Jongmyo is the oldest and most authentic of the Confucian royal shrines to have been preserved. Dedicated to the forefathers of the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910), the shrine has existed in its present form since the 16th century and houses tablets bearing the teachings of members of the former royal family. Ritual ceremonies linking music, song and dance still take place there, perpetuating a tradition that goes back to the 14th century. |
 | fisherman's village nearby forests |
 | Namhansanseong Namhansanseong was designed as an emergency capital for the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910), in a mountainous site 25 km south-east of Seoul. Built and defended by Buddhist monk-soldiers, it could accommodate 4,000 people and fulfilled important administrative and military functions. Its earliest remains date from the 7th century, but it was rebuilt several times, notably in the early 17th century in anticipation of an attack from the Sino-Manchu Qing dynasty. The city embodies a synthesis of the defensive military engineering concepts of the period, based on Chinese and Japanese influences, and changes in the art of fortification following the introduction from the West of weapons using gunpowder. A city that has always been inhabited, and which was the provincial capital over a long period, it contains evidence of a variety of military, civil and religious buildings and has become a symbol of Korean sovereignty. |
 | Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty The Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty refers to the 40 tombs of members of the Korean Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910). These tombs are scattered in over 18 locations across South Korea. They were built to honor and respect the ancestors and their achievements, and assert their royal authority.[1] The tombs have been registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2009. The Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty form a collection of 40 tombs scattered over 18 locations. Built over five centuries, from 1408 to 1966, the tombs honoured the memory of ancestors, showed respect for their achievements, asserted royal authority, protected ancestral spirits from evil and provided protection from vandalism. Spots of outstanding natural beauty were chosen for the tombs which typically have their back protected by a hill as they face south toward water and, ideally, layers of mountain ridges in the distance. Alongside the burial area, the royal tombs feature a ceremonial area and an entrance. In addition to the burial mounds, associated buildings that are an integral part of the tombs include a T-shaped wooden shrine, a shed for stele, a royal kitchen and a guards’ house, a red-spiked gate and the tomb keeper’s house. The grounds are adorned on the outside with a range of stone objects including figures of people and animals. The Joseon Tombs completes the 5,000 year history of royal tombs architecture in the Korean peninsula. |
 | Electronics DMZ shopping gangnam k-pop |
| Seokguram Grotto and Bulguksa Temple Established in the 8th century on the slopes of Mount Toham, the Seokguram Grotto contains a monumental statue of the Buddha looking at the sea in the bhumisparsha mudra position. With the surrounding portrayals of gods, Bodhisattvas and disciples, all realistically and delicately sculpted in high and low relief, it is considered a masterpiece of Buddhist art in the Far East. The Temple of Bulguksa (built in 774) and the Seokguram Grotto form a religious architectural complex of exceptional significance. |
