The one destination that I have only seen in Korean Dramas, now I have seen it with my own eyes, The Great Gyeongbok Palace.
Don’t forget to research the opening hours
Before I told you about this great tourist destination, I probably should warned you to always, ALWAYS, do some research or find the information about the opening hours of this place. So you won’t end up like me.
When I first visited Gyeongbok Palace on June 2018, I did not do my research and ended up not being able to visit it because it was closed on Tuesday. So don’t go there on Tuesday!
Anyway you can visit Gyeongbok Palace all year every Wednesday-Monday from 09.00 AM to 6 PM.
According to the Royal Palace website, the ticket priced is 10,000 won for adults and 5,000 won for children. It is free for children (ages 6 and under) and the elder (ages 65 and above).
This admission is included to visit the five different Palaces within three month. So not only visit Gyeongbok Palace, you can also visit Changdeok Palace – the Secret Garden included, Changgyeong Palace, Deoksu Palace and Jongmyo Shrine.
As for me, I was not able to visit the other palaces because of the time travel.
Palace Royal Guard Changing Ceremony (수문장 교대의식)
If you visit the place on the right time, you will be able to see the parade that they prepared for the tourist to see which is The Royal Guard Changing Ceremony.
This parade was so great and it involved a lot of people. Therefore I have no clue about this parade after the pandemic. In 2018, the parade was carried from inside the palace to the front gate.
Once the Royal Guard reached the gate, the parade stop so tourist could take a picture with the guard, but you must hurry because once the time run out, they just go.
Don’t be like me, I was busy taking other people’s picture but myself, so when it was my time to take a picture, the guard already had to leave LOL.
It was literally a palace, it was huge
Well we do have a palace as well in Indonesia, I visited one in Yogyakarta which is Keraton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat or Yogyakarta Palace. It was huge too, but Gyeongbok Palace is enormous!
I was doing my solo travel so circling the palace by myself was so tiring. It was begin when you are about to enter the palace, you need to choose whether to enter the palace from the right side or the left side. Once you enter from one of the side, you can just follow the path to reach the other side.
The National Palace Museum of Korea
I chose to enter from the left side and my tour begin with my visit to the National Palace Museum of Korea.
I should told you that museum in South Korea are wonderful. The facilities are the best! Started from the entrance you will faced a cleaning system for your body and this was before the pandemic. I guess it would be more strict right now.
I was amazed by how they keep the museum so clean and well presented. The diorama was so beautifully presented and well informed. I don’t think I need a guide because the information was well written.
There were also a video room with a cozy chair so tourist could watch the history of the national palace so comfortably.
One thing that reminded me the most was the stamps book. They provided a stamps book for the tourist to earn stamps after visiting each room. It was fun!
The huge and beautiful palace
After visiting the museum, I began my tour in the palace. I saw so many beautiful things that I have only seen in Korean Dramas before, like the bridge, the hall, the small gate, the throne of the king, and also the beautiful pavilion over the pond, Gyeonghoeru which is my favorite place on this palace.
Built in 1394, Gyeongbok Palace has so much great destination point which are:
The Main Gate
- The great Gwanghwamun gate (광화문, The Main and South Gate)
- Sinmumun (신무문, The North Gate)
- Geonchunmun (건춘문, The East Gate)
- Yeongchumun (영추문, The West Gate)
The Royal Quarters
- Gangnyeongjeon (강녕전, The King’s Quarters)
- Gyotaejeon (교태전, The Queen’s Quarters)
- Jagyeongjeon (자경전, The Queen Dowager’s Quarters)
- Donggung (동궁, Palace of the Crown Prince)
- Jibokjae (집옥재, The Private Library)
- Geoncheonggung (건청궁, The private royal residence built)
The Great Hall
- Geunjeongjeon (근정전, The Throne Hall)
- Sajeongjeon (사정전, The Executive Office)
The Pavillion
- Gyeonghoeru (경회루, The Royal Banquet Hall)
- Hyangwonjeong (향원정, The hexagonal pavilion surrounded by a lotus pond)
The Bridges
- Yeongjegyo (영제교, The small bridge)
- Chwihyanggyo (취향교, The longest bride)
The Museum
- The National Palace Museum of Korea
- The National Folk Museum of Korea
Don’t forget to bring your water bottle
I already told you over and over, this palace is HUGE. So you need your water bottle. They do have a cafe and a mart inside the palace, but do you realized how pricey a bottle of water in South Korea?
Well, in South Korea a bottle of water is about 1,500-2,000 won, when in Indonesia it was just about 500-1,000 won. So I always refused to buy a bottle of water when I traveled there.
The good news was there were refill drinking water, so all you need is a water bottle. I remember that I almost fainted because of dehydration in the middle of bright and sunshine day at that time.
Fortunately I can refill my bottle on the facilities in the National Folk Museum, near the exit on the right side of the palace, so I can drink fresh and cold water as much as I wanted.
You also want to use a comfortable outfit and shoes to visit Gyeongbok Palace, so you can enjoy your visit to the max!