In 2012 the whole world had danced to Psy’s global megahit “Gangnam Style.” Thanks to the song, people worldwide became interested in Korea, particularly the Gangnam district, the song’s namesake neighborhood. As if to reflect the growing curiosity about the youthful and trendy area, 51% of all tourists visiting Seoul in 2013 or about 5.1 million visitors had toured Gangnam-gu. In an attempt to meet the rising demands for more diverse and interesting tour packages, the Gangnam-gu District Office has provided a wide range of tour programs.

Gangnam came to be known as a special, internationalized part of Seoul through such important events held in Seoul as the G20 Summit or the Nuclear Security Summit. Then came Psy’s global sensation “Gangnam Style” to fuel the global interest in this particular area south of the Han River. We thought long and hard about how to get Gangnam to appeal to foreign tourists and came up with a tour program featuring trolley buses.



That was Park Hee-soo from the Gangnam District Office explaining how Gangnam came to launch a new sightseeing program. According to the Institute for Industrial Policy Studies, the brand value of Gangnam stood at nearly 140 billion U.S. dollars. It was only natural for the district government to make the most of the area’s popularity and provide foreign tourists with more inventive ways to enjoy the area. So, a trolley bus tour program was launched last December.

A trolley bus is an electrically operated bus and currently two trolley buses are in operation in Gangnam-gu. Here’s Park Hee-soo from the Gangnam District Office for more.

The city tour bus is designed in a very conspicuous, European fashion. The bus roof is lit so you can tell it’s a trolley bus from afar even at night. Inside the bus is made to accommodate tourists with luggage. In ordinary buses they have to put their luggage on the floor, but 1/3 of the trolley bus is seat-less to allow more storage space. Also, the windows are larger than conventional buses to provide riders with a more expansive view.

The bus exterior is painted in red with peach-colored window trimmings. Arch-style windows, instead of rectangular ones, are installed on the bus for a whimsical look. Even the front windshield is arched to make the front of the bus resembles a face with two eyes. Tourists also have access to tablet computers provided inside the bus to get information on their destinations in four different languages.

The first departure time for the Gangnam City Tour is 10 AM and the bus runs about once every hour. Gangnam City Tour guide Park Jin-sook says that there’s a distinct difference in the preference of foreigners and locals over destinations.

There are 21 different stops on the trolley bus route. Even with locals, there are differences among those who live in Gangnam-gu, those from other areas in Seoul, and those from other parts of the country. I recommend that locals see the Yangjae Stream Bongeunsa Temple, Dosan Park, Horim Art Center, and the Coreana Art & Culture Complex. Foreigners differ in preference, depending on where they’re from. If they’re from Southeast Asia, they like the hallyu fashion streets in Cheongdam-dong and Apgujeong-dong, and Garosu-gil. But I always suggest that they visit Bongeunsa Temple or Seolleung선릉 and Jeongneung정능 to really appreciate the cultural and historical heritages of Korea.

There are two types of bus tickets – a daily pass and a one-stop ticket – so you can pick the one that suits your schedule.

A one-stop ticket costs 4,000 won, about 3 dollars and 75 cents. If you purchase a daily pass, you can get on and off the bus whenever you want throughout the day. It costs 12 thousand won, or a little over 11 dollars. Many parents take their children aboard to just ride the bus and see the sights. You can stay on the bus for the whole route with a one-stop ticket, but once you get off at a stop, you cannot board the bus again. With a daily pass you can get off at a stop and see the nearby attractions for a while and get on another bus that comes later. The downside to our trolley bus operation is Gangnam’s notorious traffic congestion. We can’t predict when there will be a traffic jam, so if you’re stuck waiting for a bus, just call the district information desk or a tour guide. We’ll let you know what the traffic situation is like.

There are various ways to purchase bus tickets – through the Gangnam City Tour webpage, at the Gangnam information booth, or at each bus stop. The most convenient part about this bus tour program is that tourists don’t have to pay in local currency, since four different currencies are accepted. Here’s Mr. Park Hee-soo from the Gangnam District Office to explain more.

Foreign tourists don’t have to pay in Korean won, because the buses are equipped with payment devices that accept credit cards from 20 different countries. There is also the Gangnam Tourist Information Center, which is conveniently located in a brand new building next to Hyundai Department Store in Apgujeong-dong. A staff of 19 employees provides interpretation services in just about every major language. You will experience no language barrier at all. Also, the center provides information on not only Gangnam but also other parts of Seoul and Korea, and even provides one-stop service for medical tourists.

The trolley bus route has 21 stops, starting at the Gangnam Tourist Information Center in Apgujeong-dong and stopping at places such as Rodeo Street in Apgujeong, the Cheongdam-dong high fashion district, Bongeunsa Temple, COEX, the Yangjae Stream, the royal tombs at Seolleung and Jeongneung, Gangnam subway station, Dosan Park, and the trendy Garosu-gil. Mr. Park Hee-soo of the Gangnam District Office says several simulations were carried out before settling on the current route.

Once every quarter we surveyed foreign tourists departing from the Incheon International Airport or the Gimpo Airport about which part of Gangnam-gu they visited the most. The most frequently visited places were Garosu-gil in Sinsa-dong and Hallyu Star Avenue. Bongeunsa Temple, COEX, and Gangnam Station were next in their choices. So we designed a circulating bus route that started at Garosu-gil and passed through Hallyu Star Avenue, COEX, and Gangnam Station near the city’s financial district.

I’m Stewart from Australia. My co-workers recommended this place to me. I have always wanted to see Gangnam and I’m excited to see various places in Gangnam.

The trolley bus takes you to all the hot destinations in Gangnam, so it’s a perfect way for foreign tourists to spend a day. A tour guide boards each bus to provide detailed information on all the stops and nearby attractions.

The more you know about a place, the more interesting and enjoyable the experience becomes. So the role of these bus tour guides is crucial to making this Gangnam tour a very special outing for foreign and local tourists.

Tourists can see the Hyundai apartment complex in Apgujeong-dong as they board the bus at the Gangnam Tourist Information Center. These apartment buildings appear no different from others in Seoul, but trolley riders realize their significance once they listen to a tour guide’s explanation.

There was lots of controversy surrounding the construction of this apartment complex. It was built on reclaimed land, which used to be a small island in the Han River. All the buildings face south, because Koreans like south-facing homes. It’s been over 40 years since the complex was built, but it is still considered a high-end residential area.

The tour guides even consider the various nationalities, ages, and characteristics of tourists before recommending attractions that might interest them. For instance, let’s find out what would be the best place for Korean-Filipino Sarah Eom?

(Female) I suggested that she get off at Dosan Park, because she is ethnic Korean. She will learn a lot about independent activist and scholar An Chang-ho. There is also the Coreana Art and Culture Complex next to the park, where she can see the makeup products and methods from ancient times.
(Female tourist) It’s nice to hear the guide explaining the areas. I want to go to Dosan Park to learn more about Korean history and culture.

The tour guide tells a family of Koreans from Pohang about the 1,200-year-old Bongeunsa Temple, where they can get a Buddhist style lunch for under two dollars. The Gangnam area was first developed in the early 1970s, but it contains many historical sites, such as a Shilla-era Buddhist temple and royal tombs from the Joseon Dynasty. Samneung삼능 Park, which houses three royal tombs, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2009. Gangnam is truly a city where past and present coexist.

One of the hot spots for younger tourists is Hallyu Star Avenue. A famous talent agency is situated here and it is quite commonplace to see long lines of fans waiting in front of the agency building to get a glimpse of their favorite stars. Here’s Mr. Park Hee-soo of the Gangnam District Office to tell us more.



There is a coffee shop on the first floor of the SM Entertainment building. That’s where EXO fans get their drinks and food while waiting for their favorite stars to appear. There are several stores in Gangnam that cater to such hallyu fans.

Korea is also known for its medical services, particularly dental care, traditional Korean medicine, and plastic surgery, and has seen a spike in medical tourism in recent years. Clusters of cosmetic surgery centers populating the Gangnam area indicate how popular medical tourism has become. But Gangnam is best known for its luxury boutiques in Rodeo Street and Cheongdam-dong.

I’m Lee Myung-jin from Cheonan. I’m studying fashion design, so I really wanted to see the Cheongdam-dong high fashion area. I had a great time touring the boutiques. It was also fun to see people, including foreigners, waiting to see celebrities in front of SM Entertainment and other talent management agencies.

Tour guide Park Jin-sook recommends Simone Handbag Museum near Garosu-gil for an aspiring handbag designer. In addition to the museum, Garosu-gil is dotted with great restaurants and cafes, unique accessory shops, and classy boutiques attracting young customers all year round.

The Gangnam City Tour, which starts at the Gangnam Tourist Information Center in Apgujeong-dong, ends at Garosu-gil in Sinsa-dong. Gangnam can be a maze of tall buildings and web-like back alleys, but the trolley bus tour has made sightseeing easy and fun. Foreign tourists will leave with an understanding that underneath the glitzy and modern exterior of Gangnam lies vestiges from ancient dynasties of Korea. Now that the world has become interested in Gangnam with Psy’s “Gangnam Style,” it is poised to emerge as an iconic tourist city where tradition and modernity exist side by side.