When you’re looking for a travel destination for your kids as reward for their great work in school and at home, there’s no way Seoul won’t be included in your options. Seoul, and the entire South Korea, has been slowly dominating the international scene in terms of popular culture, cuisine, and tourist attractions because of what they call the “Hallyu” or the Korean cultural wave. Likewise, the picturesque beauty of Seoul is irresistible. In Seoul, families can avail of the ease in transport when touring the large city because of Seoul’s efficient transportation center and meticulously planned cityscape.
Travelling with kids in tow is made easier in Seoul. There are lots of options should your kids crave to go to an amusement park, an edutainment center, a zoo, an aquarium, a park, a museum, or a shopping mall. In this list of things to do in Seoul with kids, which we are about to reveal, you’ll encounter several museums. But stop right there, these museums are not the typical ones which make the kids bored rather than entertained. The museums in Seoul are kid-friendly centers that promote creativity and artistry, so your kids won’t just walk around and pretend to be interested reading facts about artefacts and old documents. Instead, they’ll gladly spend several hours interacting with the displays inside. Now you’re really excited to take the children to Seoul, aren’t you? We’re here to help you make the most of your vacation in Seoul.
Cost: $20
A cool activity to start your first day of vacation in Seoul is a thrilling and creative adventure at the Dynamic Maze and the Alive Museum. The Dynamic Maze requires every team (can be your whole family) to complete 16 levels of obstacle courses in order to escape the maze. The concept is somewhat similar to escape rooms in other parts of the world, but this one takes place inside a real maze. The challenges you and the kids will encounter while making your way out of the maze will try both your physical and mental skills. You’ll need to find clues, solve some puzzles, crawl under the obstacles, and do everything it takes to finish the missions. The Dynamic Maze in Seoul is open daily, from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. A team must be composed of at least 2 players, so this is a family activity to jumpstart your adventures in Seoul. Admission ticket costs $10.
After a mind-boggling adventure at the Dynamic Maze, you can head towards the Alive Museum which is just a few meters away. The Alive Museum in Seoul is South Korea’s largest 3D exhibition. Inside the museum, your whole family will have an amusing time checking out and posing with 3D paintings and optical illusions. You can pose as if you’re pulling a giant, going to outer space as an astronaut, falling from a tower, or any other creative shot you can think of. The Alive Museum has more than 100 3D artworks, including sculptures, paintings, and illustrations. Surely the kids will be in a great mood after your hilarious photo shoot inside this museum. Admission for the Alive Museum costs $10. It is open daily, from 9:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Cost: $12 to $45
Your kids will be happy to know that you’re taking them to a theme park in Seoul. At Lotte World, kids will have endless fun all day trying out the 45 attractions inside the park. You can join in their fun, too, since most rides are open for both adults and children. Inside Lotte World, the kids can try bungee jumping, ride the Aeronauts Balloon Ride and the Drunken Basket, scream and feel their intestines leave their tummies (not literally, of course) in thrilling rides like the Gyro Drop, Gyro Swing, and Gyro Spin, watch laser shows and parades, munch on kiddie snacks, admire the sea animals at the aquarium, do ice skating in the park’s ice rink, scare themselves at the haunted house, chill and cool off in the swimming pools, and play in the kiddie fare. There’s also a separate theme park for younger children, the Undersea Kingdom Theme Park, where the toddlers and little ones can play in merry go rounds, ball pits, climbing halls, and other safer attractions. The number of visitors at Lotte World can be quite overwhelming, so queues will probably frustrate your kids. If this is the case, we recommend that you avail of Magic Passes which are like express entry for all rides. And of course, there are restaurants and hotels around the area should the kids not want to leave the fun at Lotte World. You can take the kids to Lotte World every day, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Mondays until Thursdays, and from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Fridays until Saturdays. Admission costs $12 per baby, $38 per child, $40 per teen, and $45 per adult.
Cost: $10 to $13
If your kids didn’t think their creative photos from the Alive Museum aren’t enough or if they want to explore a similar creative activity, you can take them to the Trick Eye 3D Museum in Seoul. Using the French painting style called Trompe-l’oeil, this gallery is filled with 3D paintings, installations, and sculptures that use optical illusion to trick your eyes. It houses different zones according to the artworks’ themes, i.e. Water World, Best of Trick Eye, Synchro Zone, Horror Nights, and Fantasy. Inside the Trick Eye 3D museum, kids’ weirdest and wildest imaginations can be a reality through the art pieces. The kids can strike a creative pose and be part of the artworks to create illusions such as a dragon is about to eat them or that their body is cut into two. The Trick Eye 3D Museum is also connected to the Winter Wonderland Ice Museum with real ice sculptures the kids will love and the Carnival Street for kids to play mini games. Moreover, they can participate in workshops like mask making and toy making. The Trick Eye 3D Museum in Seoul is open daily, from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Admission tickets cost $10 per child (up to age 18) and $13 per adult.
Cost: $7 to $12
Every kid grows soft when cuddling a fluffy and cute teddy bear. In Seoul, kids will especially love if you take them to the TESEUM Teddy Bear Museum, which has a stunning display of teddy bears. Inside the theme park, kids will learn the origin and history of teddy bears and see the world’s most expensive teddy bear that is made of exotic jewels and crystals, a Louis Vuitton Bear valued at more than $2.1 million, a Mona Lisa teddy bear, Last Supper teddy bears, bears from different countries, antique teddy bears, and all kinds of bears which have been loved by generations around the world. The kids can also enjoy watching teddy bear shows featured by the museum. Lastly, you can buy cute bears at the souvenir shop inside. Trust us, the kids won’t be able to resist pinching and cuddling the bears on display at this museum. You can visit the TESEUM daily, from 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Admission tickets range from $7 to $12 for children and adults. Young children who are 5 years old and below can enter for free.
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Cost: $13 to $15.8
Next activity on our list is a visit to a wax museum in Seoul. Just like Madame Tussaud’s in other parts of the world, the Grevin Living Waxwork Museum features a variety of wax statues of famous people, including celebrities, painters, politicians, and other personalities. The Grevin Living Waxwork Museum in Seoul is actually the fourth Grevin Museum in the world and the very first in Asia. It is actually a European concept which was formulated by a journalist called Arthur Meyer. To make his idea of showing 3D representations of celebrities in his newspaper, Meyer commissioned the work of cartoonist, designer, and sculptor Alfred Grevin. Today, the name is famous all over the world when it comes to wax figures. In the same way, the Grevin Museum in Seoul houses 80 wax statues, most of which are those of Korean celebrities known around the world. The museum is divided into different galleries for easier scanning of themes, such as Hollywood Stars, International Stars, History and Great Men, Artists at Work, Hall of Fame, Our World, Discovery Atelier, and The Great Champions. The kids can snap a photo with their favorite K-Pop artists, Albert Einstein, Queen Elizabeth II, Barack Obama, Lady Gaga, and other celebrities. The Grevin Living Waxwork Museum is open daily, from 9:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Admission tickets cost $13 per child and $15.8 per adult.
Cost: $3.5 to $15
If you have Hello Kitty fans in the family, you have to go to a Hello Kitty Cafe in Seoul. Actually, there are two Hello Kitty-themed cafes in Seoul, one in Hongdae and one in Myeongdong, although we recommend the Hongdae cafe. Anyway, this coffee shop is like a combination of a cafe and souvenir shop. Inside, you will especially love the cute Hello Kitty decorations, food, and tiny details which give the impression that you are in a Hello Kitty fairytale scene. With 3 levels of Hello Kitty adornments, you can see a light pink house covered with trees, Hello Kitty lawn ornaments, a picture machine, a pink balcony, and Hello Kitty’s bedroom. Of course, you can meet Hello Kitty herself, too. Indeed, your little girls will have the most fun when you take them to this cafe. It is open daily, from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.
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Cost: $13 to $15.8
Another unique activity you can have the kids do while in Seoul is deer feeding in the Seoul Forest. This forest is actually a park which is open to the public. It is best to visit the park in the late afternoon so your kids will have a great time wandering around and checking out the animals in the forest-cum-park. For instance, they can explore the insect and butterfly gardens as well as the rabbit cage. One of the park’s highlights is its huge deer park wherein kids are allowed to feed the deer with food from the park’s vending machine. Deer food only costs less than a dollar. The Seoul Forest is open daily, from 9:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Adult admission tickets to the park cost $15.8 while child tickets cost $13.
Cost: $7 to $8.79
An important landmark in Seoul, the Namsan Tower is guaranteed to give you the best views of the city. Situated atop the Namsan mountain, the Seoul Tower may be reached either by bus or by cable car. Once you and the kids are on top, you can explore the Hello Kitty Island and the Ssentoy Museum. There are also various restaurants you can dine in while admiring the picturesque view of Seoul. The Namsan Tower is open daily, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.
Cost: $13
Probably one of the most popular mysteries around the world today is the existence of mermaids. We have dreamed of becoming one, for sure, and our little girls are sure to have the same fantasies. Their graceful swimming and lovely voices are what attract us to watching these fictional creatures. In Seoul, your kids will get the chance to see a mermaid show. Of course, they will only see fictional ones in mermaid costumes (because who knows if mermaids are real anyway). The Hanwha 63 Aquarium is open daily, from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Mermaid shows happen at specific times of the day. Admission tickets cost $13 for adults and children aged 5 and above. Little kids aged 4 and below can go in free.
Cost: $9.7 to $13
A practical suggestion we have for your Seoul trip with the kiddos is the Seoul City Bus Tour. Availing of this tour will take you and the kids to important landmarks and popular attractions in Seoul without having to worry about transportation and schedule. The Seoul City Tour Bus runs daily from Tuesday until Sunday. You can hop on in one of these buses anytime as they go at 30-minute intervals. The bus tour features three different types of tours, although we strongly recommend the Historic Tour for the kids to see the palaces and learn more about South Korean history. Included in the tour are palaces and historical highlights of Seoul, such as the War Memorial of Korea, Deoksugung Palace, National Museum of Korea, Namsangol Hanok Folk Village, Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Changgyeonggung Palace, Changdeokgung Palace, and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. Each ticket for the tour costs $9.7 per child (aged 5 to 12) and $13 for adults. Children with ages 4 and below are free to ride the bus when accompanied by an adult.
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