Seoul

1. ~8:30a●Gukbap breakfast

   A steaming bowl of seolleongtang — milky ox-bone soup you season yourself with salt, scallion, and rice — the classic Seoul morning warmer.

2. 9:30a◆Gyeongbokgung Palace

   The grand Joseon palace at opening — catch the changing-of-the-guard ceremony at the gate. Rent a hanbok nearby and your palace entry is free.

3. ~11:30a→Bukchon Hanok Village

   Steep lanes of curved-roof hanok houses between two palaces — a living neighbourhood, so walk quietly; the view back over tiled roofs to the city is the shot.

4. ~1:00p●Insadong lunch

   Bibimbap in a hot stone bowl (scrape the crispy rice at the bottom) or a traditional Korean tea, among Insadong's craft shops and galleries.

5. ~3:00p◆Changdeokgung & the Secret Garden

   The most beautiful palace and its UNESCO-listed rear garden — book the timed Secret Garden tour; the pavilions over the lotus pond are exquisite.

6. 8:00p✦Mingles ★★★Anchor table

   Korea's defining modern table — Mingles reinterprets Korean flavour with jang (fermented pastes) at its heart. The country's most celebrated restaurant; book a month ahead as the trip's fixed point.

The palaces cluster in the old centre — keep this day on foot. Most palaces close Mondays, so check the day; the hanbok-for-free-entry trick is worth it.

1. ~9:30a✦Gwangjang Market

   The legendary food market — bindaetteok (mung-bean pancakes ground and fried to order), mayak gimbap, and live octopus if you're brave, at the elbow-to-elbow stalls.

2. ~11:30a◆Jongmyo Shrine or Cheonggyecheon

   The solemn royal ancestral shrine, or a walk along the restored Cheonggyecheon stream that runs through the heart of downtown.

3. ~1:00p●Korean BBQ lunch

   Grill-your-own samgyeopsal (pork belly) or marinated galbi at the table — wrap it in lettuce with ssamjang, garlic, and kimchi. The full Seoul ritual.

4. ~3:00p→Myeongdong shopping

   The neon retail heart — K-beauty flagships, the street-food carts (tornado potato, egg bread, hotteok), and the buzz of the city's busiest blocks.

5. ~6:00p✦N Seoul Tower at dusk

   Cable car up Namsan for the city laid out in light — the love-locks on the rail and the 360° panorama as the neon comes on.

Gwangjang is busiest and best around lunch — go hungry. Myeongdong's street-food carts only really fire up late afternoon, so time the shopping for then.

1. ~9:30a✦A jjimjilbang morning

   The Korean bathhouse ritual — hot pools, the scrub, and the heated jade rooms — or a quiet morning meditation at a city temple.

2. ~11:30a→Hongdae's youth quarter

   Indie cafés, vinyl shops, street performers, and the art-school energy around Hongik University — the city at its most creative.

3. ~1:00p●Cafe-street lunch & dessert

   A modern Korean café for knife-cut noodles or a hearty kimchi jjigae, then the famous café culture — bingsu (shaved-milk ice with red bean) if it's warm.

4. ~3:30p✦Han River picnic

   Down to a riverside park — rent a mat, order fried chicken and beer (chimaek) to your spot by app, and watch the city cycle and kite by the water.

5. ~6:30p◆Dongdaemun Design Plaza

   Zaha Hadid's silver spaceship glowing after dark, the LED-rose field, and the all-night fashion markets around it.

This is the contemporary-Seoul day — bathhouse, indie cafés, the river, and Zaha Hadid's DDP lit up at night. The Han River chimaek picnic is a beloved local ritual; lean into it.