All around Seoul, you will find markets and street venders galore. They are lots of fun to explore and have been some of my favorite places to visit. Some of these include Pet Alley, Toy Alley, Shoe Alley, Dongdaemun (Pet Alley, Toy Alley, and Shoe Alley are at Dongdaemun, but it's most famous for its fabric stores), Myeongdong, and Namdaemun. These are all street (or alley) markets located throughout Seoul. Actually, they're all on subway line 4, making them very easy to get to from Yongsan. Just park at the Dog Park by the Visitor Gate and hop on the subway and you can explore Seoul without any of the driving/parking stress. I'll probably write more about these places in other posts, but here's a quick overview of my favorites:
Toy Alley
Toys! Toys! Toys for sale! All the toys you could ever dream of! All for a great price! Alleys and crisscrossing streets full of toys. And it's huge! You want Legos? Radio Control cars? Water Guns? Dress Ups? Hats? Swords? Rocket Ships? Probably pretty much any toy you can dream up, you'll find here. Inside the shops is usually kind of expensive, but on the street is cheap and you can try your bargaining skills.
To Get to Toy Alley
I like to hop on the subway at Ichon Station, Line 4, heading toward Danggogae. Go 9 stops (about 16 minutes) and exit at Dongdaemun (not Dongdaemun Culture & History!!! Trust me, we made that mistake once. That's one stop too early, but there is a cool museum there and a Russian district with some pretty good food). Go out exit 4 and turn south. Walk for a couple blocks and you'll see Toy and Stationary Alley, AKA "Kid Heaven." (If it's more convenient, you can ride line 1 to Dongmyo station, but since I live by line 4, I'll stick to that.)
Pet Alley
Pets! Pets! Pets! Exotic, barnyard, birds, fish, snakes, snails, frogs, beetles, and more. They have different things at different times of year. I (being crazy in love with this kind of stuff) loved Pet Alley at first sight! I'm sure you will too.
Same as before, just a different exit. Head out exit 7 from Dongdaemun station (line 4), and turn left before you get to the stream (called Cheonggye Stream--it's worth a stop too since it's down below street level and pretty cool). You'll pass lots and lots and lots of shoes (if you need some, it's worth looking. There are some great deals, as long as you don't have big feet. This is called Shoe Alley). If you keep going, further than you think you should be going, you'll hit the pets. There are lots of shops on the main street, but you can head into the alleys for some more options. In fact, if you head in on one of the alleys, you'll eventually run into Toy Alley, which runs parallel to Pet Alley.
Myeongdong
Myeongdong is a huge shopping area made up of lots of alleys linked together. You can find street venders selling anything and everything from fried potato on a stick to jewelry! If you're a shopper, you'll love all the stores (clothes, including H&M and Forever21; shoes, even a Payless Shoes store if you have American-sized feet; make-up; bags; etc.), but even if you're not, you'll have fun with the party atmosphere---music, people, street vendors. This was one of the first places my dad took us here in Seoul and it's still one of my favorites. To get there, just take exit 5 on the Myeongdong subway stop.
Toy Alley
To Get to Toy Alley
I like to hop on the subway at Ichon Station, Line 4, heading toward Danggogae. Go 9 stops (about 16 minutes) and exit at Dongdaemun (not Dongdaemun Culture & History!!! Trust me, we made that mistake once. That's one stop too early, but there is a cool museum there and a Russian district with some pretty good food). Go out exit 4 and turn south. Walk for a couple blocks and you'll see Toy and Stationary Alley, AKA "Kid Heaven." (If it's more convenient, you can ride line 1 to Dongmyo station, but since I live by line 4, I'll stick to that.)
Pet Alley
Pets! Pets! Pets! Exotic, barnyard, birds, fish, snakes, snails, frogs, beetles, and more. They have different things at different times of year. I (being crazy in love with this kind of stuff) loved Pet Alley at first sight! I'm sure you will too.
To Get to Pet Alley
Myeongdong is a huge shopping area made up of lots of alleys linked together. You can find street venders selling anything and everything from fried potato on a stick to jewelry! If you're a shopper, you'll love all the stores (clothes, including H&M and Forever21; shoes, even a Payless Shoes store if you have American-sized feet; make-up; bags; etc.), but even if you're not, you'll have fun with the party atmosphere---music, people, street vendors. This was one of the first places my dad took us here in Seoul and it's still one of my favorites. To get there, just take exit 5 on the Myeongdong subway stop.
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