Bukchon, Gyeongbokgung and Insadong, Seoul: free self-guided walking tour
Quick answer. A free self-guided walking tour from Bukchon Hanok Village to Insadong in Seoul: 3 stops, about 2.9 km, about 40 minutes of walking plus about 20 minutes of listening. Start among the curved tiled roofs of Bukchon Hanok Village, a living neighbourhood of more than six thousand residents where the city asks visitors to keep quiet. Walk to Gyeongbokgung Palace, the Palace Greatly Blessed by Heaven, burned in the Japanese invasion of 1592 and left in ruins for more than 270 years, and finish in Insadong, where the Joseon court’s Painting Bureau once worked. Entry to the palace is ticketed.
- Stops:
- 3
- Distance:
- about 2.9 km
- Walking:
- about 40 min
- Listening:
- about 20 min
Bukchon, Gyeongbokgung and Insadong, Seoul: how long does the walk take?
About 60 minutes in all: about 40 minutes on foot over about 2.9 km, plus about 20 minutes of audio at the 3 stops. Time inside the sites is extra.
Bukchon, Gyeongbokgung and Insadong, Seoul: in what order should you visit the stops?
Follow the stops in this order: Bukchon Hanok Village, Gyeongbokgung Palace, and Insadong. The longest stretch between two stops is about 1.5 km, about 20 min on foot.
Route and map
Navigate with Google Maps, listen with Mappu: the stories keep playing while you follow the route.
Opens Google Maps with walking directions through every stop.
Stop 1
Much of it rose in the 1920s as an act of resistance, when traditional Korean neighbourhoods were being demolished for Japanese-style homes.
about 7 min of audio
Next stop: Gyeongbokgung Palace · about 1.5 km, about 20 min on foot
Stop 2
Gyeonghoeru Pavilion, National Treasure No. 224, seems to float on its pond, where kings hosted banquets for foreign envoys.
about 7 min of audio
Next stop: Insadong · about 1.4 km, about 19 min on foot
Stop 3
Ssamziegil, opened in 2004, replaced the stairs of a shopping mall with a vertical street that spirals upward.
about 7 min of audio
How does this self-guided walking tour work?
The audio guides on this page stay free: open any stop to listen in your browser.
Walk Mode uses your location to narrate places as you walk. It opens in the Mappu app at the first stop, Bukchon Hanok Village. Your first walk is free for three stops with a free Mappu account.
Walk Mode: 2 hours for 50 credits (€4.99 Starter pack)
Before you go
- Check opening hours, tickets and access on each site’s official page before you go.
- Distances and times are estimates: the walking route between stops, from OpenStreetMap, at 4.5 km/h. Your route on the street may differ.
Route checked by Mappu on October 20, 2026. Stop descriptions come from each place’s published Mappu audio guide. Mappu is a Fenutech product.