Seoul

• Best use: Choose palace architecture on a first visit, a market meal when appetite leads, or two focused museum collections on a return visit. Check the journey from your accommodation before choosing.
• Starting point: Myeongdong and Jongno are useful city destinations; set your own accommodation as origin.
• Big mistake: Relying on Google Maps only. Use Naver Map or KakaoMap for local navigation.
• What to skip: DMZ, far hikes, and multi-district shopping crawls on a 24-hour layover.

Getting back before pickup

Set your accommodation as the start and end of the outing. Check both journeys, waiting and any connections before leaving. Set a leave-by alarm that gets you back with time for rest and preparation before your required crew pickup. Cut the extra stop if the return becomes uncertain.

• Maps: Set up Naver Map or KakaoMap, save your destination in Korean as well as English, and keep the return address offline.

• Payment: Carry cash for stalls and physical-card top-ups; ask about payment before ordering. A shop accepting your bank card does not establish that a transit machine will accept it.

• Tmoney: A physical card is a useful fallback. International iPhone visitors with a supported Mastercard can use the Mobile Tmoney app and Apple Pay to top up; this is a specific app/card route, not a promise that any foreign card added directly in Wallet will work. Check device support and fees, and test a small top-up before relying on it.