- Palace entry
- 3,000 won; free at 65+
- Closed day
- Tuesdays - plan around it
- Guard ceremony
- 10:00 & 14:00 at Gwanghwamun
- Free English tour
- 11:00 / 13:30 / 15:30 daily
- Wheelchairs
- Free rental at the palace
Seoul rewards slow travel. The city is hilly, its best sights sit close together, and almost everything a parent would love - palaces, streams, markets, views - can be done at walking-stick pace if you plan the order right. This three-day plan puts the headline sight first while everyone is fresh, and treats every afternoon as optional.
Day 1: Gyeongbokgung, done gently
Be at Gwanghwamun gate by 9:15. The palace opens at 9:00 (10:00 in winter months is fine too) and the famous Changing of the Royal Guard happens right at the gate at 10:00 and 14:00, free to watch from outside - so you see the ceremony, then walk in with the crowds already thinning. Entry is 3,000 won for adults, and free for anyone 65 and above (official Korea Heritage Service rates; carry a passport as age proof). Inside, join the free English guided tour at 11:00, 13:30 or 15:30 - the storyteller pace suits seniors and answers questions the signboards skip. Wheelchairs are available free at the entrance, and most of the main courtyard route is flat gravel. The palace is closed every Tuesday (2026 rule) - if your Day 1 is a Tuesday, swap with Day 3. After lunch at a ginseng chicken soup (samgyetang) house nearby - mild, soft and senior-friendly - do an hour in Insadong's tea-shop lane and call it a day.
Day 2: N Seoul Tower and Myeongdong, minus the stairs
The classic mistake is walking up Namsan. Take the Namsan cable car from near Myeongdong Station instead - it lifts you almost to the tower base, and the remaining slope has benches. Go before 11:00 or after 16:00 to skip school-group queues, and pair it with an easy Myeongdong afternoon: the cathedral, cosmetics browsing, and street snacks that work for Indian palates (hotteok pancakes, egg bread, roasted chestnuts). Dinner in Myeongdong keeps the taxi home short.
Day 3: stream, market, early night
Cheonggyecheon is a restored stream running 11 km through downtown - flat, step-free access points with elevators at several entrances, and benches every hundred metres. Walk the first kilometre from Cheonggye Plaza, then taxi to Gwangjang Market for a late breakfast of mung-bean pancakes (bindaetteok) - the market is covered, crowded but seated, and genuinely local. If parents still have energy, the War Memorial of Korea is free, mostly flat, and has a restful outdoor exhibit area. End early: the best gift on a family trip is everyone still liking each other on day four. For getting into the city from the airport with luggage, our Incheon to Myeongdong transfer guide covers the taxi fixed fare - worth it after a night flight. Still booking? The Delhi to Seoul flights guide compares the two nonstops.
A Miranda House graduate and lawyer who traded courtrooms for slow travel. Cheshta travels with the batches we host ourselves, with a soft spot for travelling alongside elders.
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