Everything about Seoul tourism! Ask us anything!
Save travel information you're interested in according to the region to view in your favorites list later on.
※ The actual region of the content is selected.Today, we walk along with the grain of the city, tracing the path where that music was born. Starting at a museum that holds five thousand years of history, we move through the forest of railways, pass by the heart of the music industry, cross an island on the Hangang, and finally arrive in Yeouido, closest to the water.
This is the largest national museum in South Korea, housing approximately 430,000 artifacts. In 2020, YouTube hosted the online virtual graduation ceremony ‘Dear Class of 2020’ for students around the world who were not able to enjoy their graduation ceremonies due to the pandemic. The event was filmed at the Open Plaza. Markers still remain where the participants once stood.
As you enter the inner section of the second floor of the Permanent Exhibition Hall, you step into a dimly lit room. Inside stand two Gilt-bronze Pensive Maitreya Bodhisattva. Designated as National Treasure No. 78 and National Treasure No. 83, they represent the pinnacle of Buddhist sculpture from the Three Kingdoms period. Though similar at first glance, the two statues reveal subtle differences. Their balance, proportions, and the flow of their lines vary ever so slightly. Placed side by side, the act of observation naturally deepens into contemplation.
As you gaze at the statues for a long while, questions begin to surface. Why was this posture of contemplation sculpted? In what circumstances did this facial expression come into being?
National Treasure No. 78 is estimated to have been created in the late 6th century, while No. 83 is believed to date to the early 7th century. Whether they originated in Baekje, Silla, or Goguryeo remains uncertain, their exact place of discovery is still unknown. It was not until 2021 that the two works were permanently displayed side by side in the same room for the first time.
We have long been beings who contemplate. When was the last time you truly paused to reflect on yourself?
As you step out of the museum, the railway lines of Yongsan spread out before you. Since the Japanese colonial period, the Gyeongbu, Gyeongui, Gyeongwon, and Gyeongin lines have converged here, shaping the very topography of Seoul. With ground-level tracks and elevated rail bridges layered one upon another, walking through this area feels like moving across the city’s accumulated layers of time.
Walk a little farther and you will come upon Yongsan Railroad High School. Founded in 1905 to train railway professionals, the school stands right beside the tracks—a vivid reminder of how deeply the neighborhood of Yongsan grew together with the railroad.
Around 1900, the Gyeongin Line crossed the Hangang and extended to Yongsan, altering the fate of the neighborhood. During the Japanese colonial period, the area was divided into military and railway districts and brought under colonial control. The Railway Bureau, Railway School, and housing for railway officials were established here.In time, the Gyeongbu, Gyeongui, Gyeongwon, and Gyeongin lines all converged at this station.
As you turn the corner into the alley, a small snack restaurant specializing in Tteokbokki (Stir-fried Rice Cake) comes into view, its walls covered with photos of idols. From that point on, the atmosphere of the street begins to shift. Just a few steps farther, a building that stands at the very heart of fan culture reveals itself.
In this building, where glass and concrete meet, music that reached hundreds of millions of listeners around the world was born.
Standing before the logo on its façade, you instinctively take out your merchandise and photo cards. As you hold the name once seen only on a screen against the real backdrop, that distant presence feels suddenly closer, aligned with you at the very same coordinates. In that moment, your fandom feels almost tangible.
Step into the alley behind, and the atmosphere shifts entirely. A café, rented and decorated by fans to celebrate an idol’s birthday, fills the space with photos from wall to wall. Ordering a drink comes with a photocard and a custom cup sleeve. It feels less like a planned event and more like an organic extension of fandom itself. The music may have begun in the building, but the culture is completed in the alley.
Have you ever found comfort in your favorite artist? What was it that helped you keep going during that time?
TIP HYBE Visitors are not permitted to enter the HYBE headquarters building.
The bridge that leads to Nodeulseom, the music island on the Hangang, is Hangangdaegyo Bridge. If you glance down at your feet, you’ll notice a small marker commemorating the Hangang Human Bridge Explosion Incident. In the early days of the Korean War in 1950, the bridge was blown up to delay the northern advance. A route once crossed daily by countless citizens became, in an instant, a line of war.
More than seventy years have passed. In a place where the memory of conflict still lingers, music now drifts across the water—songs sung along to around the world. Where history was once severed, culture has quietly built connection again. The scene reflects how Seoul has endured, adapted, and continued to reshape itself over time.
As you continue walking, the repeating arches begin to set a rhythm overhead. Hangangdaegyo is the only tied-arch bridge on the Hangang, its arch rising above and suspending the roadway below. Crossing it feels less like moving from one bank to the other and more like passing through a vast frame suspended over water. That is what makes this bridge linger differently in memory.
In the middle of Hangangdaegyo Bridge lies a small island, Nodeulseom Island. It began as a sandbank, later became a recreational park, and then stood empty for many years. In 2019, it reopened as a cultural complex. A live music venue, bookstore, café, and exhibition spaces now sit above the river.
From the Grass Field, the 63 City and the Hangang Railway Bridge come into view. There isn’t much to do here, so let yourself linger. As the sun slips below the horizon, the sky slowly blushes red. For about twenty minutes after sunset, in that fleeting interval when day and night brush against each other, the colors grow deepest and most vivid.
Descend beneath the island, and you’ll find a bridge famously used as a filming location for global idol music videos. However, construction for the Global Art Island project has been underway since in October 2025. This landscape belongs to this moment.
This is the path leading to Yeouido Hangang Park. You can rent a Ttareungi bike or simply walk. Put on your favorite playlist and follow the river along the glistening ripples.
One by one, the docks come into view, with pathways extending out over the river, side by side. When you find yourself standing before a pier where you can board the Hangang Bus, take a moment to pause. This is the place where the water and the city come closest, where they almost seem to touch.
Upon reaching Yeouido Hangang Park, the river opens up before you. Sit on a bench, or pick up a bowl of instant noodles from a nearby convenience store and settle in wherever you like. No special plans are necessary. Simply watching the water flow becomes the final scene of this course.
As you leave the pier and walk through the park, a small forest comes into view. This forest also bears traces of community-led green projects. For example, through programs such as the Seoul My Tree, Your Own Tree Campaign, individuals have helped expand the urban forest by planting trees or making donations.
Some fandom communities have also embraced these forest-creation projects, encouraging fans to take part. Scan the QR code beside a tree, and music begins to play. Benches are inscribed with messages from visitors and participants, inviting passersby to pause in a place where devotion has quietly become part of the landscape.
As you walked today, was there something you tried not to think about yet that kept returning to your mind?
#Nodeulseom Island #hangang #Yeouido Hangang Park #National Museum of Korea #HYBE Headquarters