First Trip to South Korea: What to Know Before You Go
A practical pre-departure guide for European travelers — covering visa requirements, the T-money card, daily budgets, cultural etiquette, and the essential stops beyond Seoul.
First Trip to South Korea: What to Know Before You Go
South Korea doesn't ease you in gently. From the moment you step off the plane at Incheon, you're met with a country that operates at full intensity — dazzling and efficient and layered in ways that take days to fully absorb. It's the kind of destination that European travelers often discover late, after Japan or Southeast Asia, and then immediately wish they'd found sooner. If you've already explored the region through something like A Passage Through Japan, Korea makes for a natural and rewarding next step.
If you're planning your first visit, this is the guide I'd want to have had: the practical mechanics, the cultural nuances, and the honest lay of the land for someone flying in from Spain or anywhere else in Europe.
Entry Requirements: Easier Than You Think
Good news for European travelers: Spanish and EU passport holders don't need a visa or a K-ETA (Korea's Electronic Travel Authorization) to enter South Korea for stays up to 90 days. The K-ETA exemption has been formally extended through December 31, 2026, according to KPMG's immigration advisories, covering all EU member states.
There is one new step to be aware of: as of January 1, 2026, all foreign nationals must complete a mandatory e-Arrival Card before boarding. It replaces the old paper disembarkation card and takes about five minutes to fill out online at e-arrivalcard.go.kr — the official government portal, which is always free. Complete it within 72 hours before your flight departs, and you'll receive a QR code to present at immigration. EY's global tax advisories confirmed this requirement as applying to all arrivals without exception.
Beware of third-party websites charging fees for this form — the official portal costs nothing.
After 2026, K-ETA requirements may resume. Check current requirements before booking.
Getting Connected: SIM Cards and eSIMs
The first decision after landing at Incheon is how to get a local connection. Korea's mobile infrastructure is world-class, and you have two clean options.
Buy before you leave: Purchasing an eSIM before departure (via providers like Airalo or Holafly) means you're online the moment your wheels touch down — no queuing at airport counters after a long-haul from Barcelona. Plans typically range from €6 for a few days to €25–30 for a month's worth of daily data.
Buy at the airport: All three major Korean carriers — KT, LG U+, and SK Telecom — have counters in the arrivals halls of both Terminal 1 and Terminal 2. Bring your passport, which is required for SIM activation. Trazy's 2025 guide has a solid breakdown of the current plans.
Wi-Fi is genuinely excellent throughout Korea — cafes, metro stations, and most accommodations have fast, reliable coverage — so a data-only SIM is usually sufficient. Load €20 on an eSIM, pick up a T-money card, and you're functionally set for the week.
The T-Money Card: Don't Leave the Airport Without One
The T-money card is a rechargeable transit card that works on Seoul's metro, city buses, intercity buses, and taxis. It also functions as a payment card at convenience stores like GS25, CU, and 7-Eleven — which matters, because convenience stores in Korea are genuinely excellent (think fresh kimbap, hot coffee, decent ramyeon at 2am).
Pick one up at any convenience store or metro station kiosk for ₩3,000–5,000 (roughly €2–3). Then top it up at convenience store counters or subway station kiosks. A starting balance of ₩30,000–50,000 covers a week of city transit comfortably.
A few mechanics to know: on buses, tap both when you board and when you exit — skipping the exit tap triggers a maximum-distance charge. On taxis, tap the reader inside the cab at the end of the ride. The Korea Tourism Organization's official transit page has the full breakdown.
T-money also gives you a slight fare discount over cash (₩1,550 vs. ₩1,650 per metro/bus ride) and unlocks free or discounted transfers between metro and bus within 30 minutes. Over a week, those savings add up.
What to Budget
Korea is meaningfully cheaper than Japan for European travelers, and the value scales well. Here's a realistic daily breakdown:
| Style | Per day (EUR) | What it gets you | |---|---|---| | Budget | ~€45 | Hostel dorm, street food, metro, free attractions | | Mid-range | ~€115 | 3-star hotel, mix of restaurants and street food, some KTX | | Comfortable | ~€185–230 | 4-star hotel, restaurant meals, occasional taxi, paid tours |
Street food is the great equalizer: tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes), hotteok (sweet pancakes), and bindaetteok (mung bean pancakes) each cost €1–2. A sit-down lunch at a local restaurant runs €5–8 per person. Korea Handbook's budget guide remains one of the most honest cost breakdowns available, cross-checked against 2025 prices.
Credit cards (Visa and Mastercard) are accepted almost everywhere in cities. Carry some cash — Korean Won — for street food vendors and smaller establishments. ATMs at 7-Eleven branches and KB Bank accept foreign cards reliably.
Cultural Etiquette: The Essentials
Korea is warm and welcoming to visitors, but a few cultural norms will help you navigate more gracefully.
Remove your shoes before entering any home, traditional guesthouse (hanok), many temples, and traditional restaurants with floor seating. Wear socks you're not embarrassed by.
Tipping is not done. Not in restaurants, not in taxis, not in cafes. It can create genuine awkwardness. Skip it entirely. Service charge is sometimes included at higher-end establishments.
Chopstick etiquette matters. Never stick chopsticks upright in a bowl of rice — it mirrors funeral offerings and is considered deeply inauspicious. Use the spoon (not chopsticks) to eat rice. Place chopsticks on their rest when not in use.
Dining hierarchy: Wait for the oldest person at the table to begin eating before you start. When receiving a drink or an object, use both hands or support your receiving arm at the elbow — a sign of respect, especially toward elders.
Drinking culture: Pour for others, not for yourself. Let others pour for you, and hold your glass with two hands when receiving a drink from someone older. It's a pleasant ritual once you get the rhythm of it.
On the subway: Keep your voice down. Koreans are reserved on transit — phones are often muted, conversations are quiet. Eating is frowned upon. The contrast with Madrid's metro is stark, but you adapt quickly.
Rough Guides' etiquette overview for South Korea and the official Visit Seoul etiquette guide both go deeper if you want to read further before arriving.
Where to Stay in Seoul
Seoul is a sprawling megalopolis of 10 million people, so choosing the right base matters.
Myeongdong is the classic first-timer choice — central, convenient, and with easy metro access to palaces, markets, and shopping. The pedestrian street becomes an open-air night market after dark, lined with K-beauty shops and street food vendors. It's touristy but efficiently so.
Insadong offers more atmosphere for travelers interested in culture. Traditional craft shops, tea houses, and art galleries share streets with modern cafes. Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung palaces are walkable or a single metro stop away.
Hongdae is Seoul's university district — affordable, lively, and genuinely fun. Indie music, street performances, a weekend art market, and a density of budget accommodation options. Slightly further from historical sites, but excellent energy.
Gangnam suits those who want the modern, upscale version of Seoul. South of the Han River, it's the city's luxury and business district — designer shopping, upscale dining, a more cosmopolitan feel.
Spring and autumn see hotel occupancy above 80% across the city. Book 6-8 weeks ahead for April and October travel; 3 months for cherry blossom peak week.
Beyond Seoul: Three Essential Stops
Busan is Korea's second city and its coastal soul. Two and a half hours from Seoul on the KTX high-speed train (around €40–45 standard class), it feels entirely different — saltier, more relaxed, with seafood markets where you can point at something still moving in a tank and have it prepared upstairs. The Gamcheon Cultural Village — a hillside neighborhood of painted houses built by Korean War refugees — is one of the most visually striking neighborhoods in the country. Add Haedong Yonggungsa, a Buddhist temple perched dramatically on ocean cliffs, and you have the shape of a perfect two-day visit.
Gyeongju is ancient Korea in concentrated form — the former capital of the Silla Kingdom, with burial mounds rising from the city center like green hills and three UNESCO World Heritage Sites within an easy day. Bulguksa Temple and Seokguram Grotto alone justify the train from Busan (about an hour). It works as a day trip or an overnight, and it adds historical depth that Seoul and Busan don't provide.
Jeju Island deserves its own trip, but three or four days works if you rent a car. A one-hour flight from Seoul brings you to South Korea's volcanic island — a UNESCO Triple Crown site with a dormant volcano (Hallasan, the country's highest peak), dramatic coastal lava tube caves, and the Seongsan Ilchulbong sunrise crater rising from the sea. The Visit Korea website has solid orientation guides for each of these destinations.
When to Go
Late March to mid-May and October to mid-November are the twin peaks of Korean travel, and for good reason. Spring brings cherry blossoms — beginning in Busan and Jeju in mid-March, reaching Seoul in early April. The Yeouido riverside in Seoul, lined with 1,800 cherry trees, is genuinely spectacular during peak bloom (typically the first week of April). UME Travel's 2026 cherry blossom forecast tracks bloom timing by region if you're trying to time your trip precisely.
Autumn delivers cool temperatures (7–18°C), blue skies, and foliage that peaks in national parks by mid-October and reaches Seoul proper by late October. It's marginally less crowded than spring and equally photogenic. If autumn foliage in the region appeals to you, the Japan in Autumn: Where to See the Best Fall Foliage guide is worth reading alongside your Korea planning — the seasons align closely enough to combine both countries in a single trip.
Avoid July and August. Korea's monsoon season brings heavy rains from June through July, followed by intense heat and humidity through August — regularly 33–35°C with a humidity that makes it feel worse. Two-thirds of Korea's annual rainfall lands in those months.
Winter (December–February) is cold and dry, with Seoul averaging -2°C in January. But it's the cheapest window for flights and hotels, and if you're interested in skiing, Pyeongchang's resorts are excellent. One note for spring travelers: yellow dust (hwangsa) blown from the Gobi Desert occasionally settles over Korea in March and April. Check AirKorea's daily forecasts and pick up a KF94 mask at any convenience store — they're cheap and effective.
One More Practical Note
Some medications legal in Europe require prior authorization from the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety — this includes certain ADHD medications, opioids, and anything containing tramadol or pseudoephedrine. If you travel with prescription medication, check the requirements before you pack. The U.S. State Department's South Korea travel page (Level 1 — Exercise Normal Precautions, the safest rating) has links to the relevant Korean government contacts. It's also worth checking the Flying to Asia Right Now: What the Middle East Conflict Means for Your Trip guide before booking, as routing and flight times from Europe to East Asia have shifted in ways that affect journey length and cost.
South Korea rewards travelers who arrive prepared — not because it's difficult, but because knowing a little goes a long way. The logistics are smooth, the people are welcoming, and the country has an uncanny ability to feel simultaneously ancient and years ahead of everywhere else.
If you want to go deeper into building a real itinerary — Seoul to Busan to Gyeongju, or a private trip focused on a specific region — we plan this kind of journey at Viatsy regularly. Browse our South Korea tours or get in touch to start putting something together.