Seoul City Private Full-Day Tour Including Lunch

Excellent Tour

Suni was jus fabulous. She is so knowledgeable and friendly. She accommodated our needs and schedule. Will highly recommend.

Thorough full day tour of Seoul

This was an amazing full day tour of Seoul! Taylor was a great guide. He is very knowledgeable and took us to so many sites. A very thorough tour and I highly recommend it!!

Great trip

Amazing experience and trip , our tour guide sofia was the best and we had a wonderful time, in between the trip we got to have lunch at this great local Korean restaurant which we absolutely loved

Seoul Family Tour 2024

Had a great time w a broad spectrum of family members spanning young and old. If you can request, Brian comes highly recommended as he was very accommodating and informative. Having the personalized touch of a local made all the difference. The offbeat cafe stops and lunch made all the difference. Highly recommend!

Great and flexible private tour

We had a great time with Sophia. She was flexible and allowed us to add and change plans as we went along the day. It was a fabulous experience.

An outstanding tour of Seoul!

We very much enjoyed this tour and Billy was an outstanding guide, as he went above and beyond the call of duty. He helped us get traditional costumes for the palace tour and demonstrated an excellent knowledge of Seoul and Korea. We particularly enjoyed the changing of the guard at the palace and the tour of Bukchon Hanok Village.

Amazing day with Brian!

There were so many memorable points in our day with Brian! We saw so much and never felt rushed. The music hall was one of the most memorable spots for my son.

Wonderful day in Seoul

Brian was thoughtful, kind, accommodating, informative and timely. He made our one day in Seoul incredibly memorable and a wonderful experience. I would highly recommend him and this company.

Great Day - Informative Guide and Good Itinerary

We had a great day with Billy our guide. The itinerary was well timed and not rushed. The visibility was perfect and we took the opportunity to go up the TV tower too.

Fantastic Day Trip with Fantastic Guide!

We had an amazing day with our guide, Brian. His knowledge and insight brought every stop to life. We learned so much about Korean history both distant and more recent along with what every day life in Korea looks like today. Brian is so engaging. We enjoyed our time with him so much and laughed a lot. I highly recommend this tour.

Brian was the best!

We had a full day tour with Brian Jeong. He was absolutely fantastic! He picked us up in his very nice vehicle. His English is very good! Brian has a way to make his guests feel comfortable and engaged. He has very high EQ, and a great conversationalist. By the end of our 8 hour tour, we didn’t want to leave him. He designed our tour specific to our needs. Our last stop was suppose to be Namsan tower, but since he knew we already went to Seoul Sky, he suggested that we go to War Memorial Museum instead—and that he would accompany us. Side note: if he took us to Namsan Tower, he would’ve had to drop us off in the front— that was what the tour package was. But he went above and beyond and took us on a private tour of War Memorial Museum, because we mentioned that we were going to go the next day. He was so knowledgable about history, politics. He’s also very curious about our lives and where we are from. He’s just all around a great guy, great family man, and handsome too! Can’t say enough great things about Brian. He was definitely one of the high lights of our trip to Seoul. I hope everyone is lucky enough to get him as a tour guide.

Korea Layover

Brian was a great tour guide! We had an 8 hr layover in Korea and he made sure we took advantage of the time we had. He was timely picking us up and dropping us back off.

Perfect day

The whole day was great, even though packed with objectives and lots of sights to see, our host Billy has kept our spirits up with his amazing personality, humor, friendliness and last but not least, an incredibly wide array of knowledge not only on Korean history, legends and its geo political position, but the world as a whole. Thanks again Billy, your companion and guidance were incredibly appreciated!

Seoul in a Day

Johathan was a wonderful guide. He was able to assess our family needs and wants in regards to information on our tour. He was able to accommodate my breaking my toe a day previous and tailor the tour to our pace. I would highly recommend Jonathon on full day tour of Seoul!

Amazing tour around Seoul

FANTASTIC!!! Taylor was very nice, professional and courteous. He was very knowledgeable and made our outing very successful. Worth every penny. We loved it. A must repeat thank you so much Taylor😊❤️

Amazing

Yoon was the kindest, knowledgable, patient and hard working guide EVER. If I ever come to Seoul again, I would love to see him again. Thank you Yoon, for everything !! Kindly, Luca and Fernanda

We had a great day in Seoul

Thanks to Billy we had a great day in Seoul, he did everything for us and showed all the most important sights in the Korean capital. I highly recommend this trip 🙌

Full day tour of Seoul

Taylor was a friendly and funny tour guide who took us around Seoul. We learned a lot of history and culture of Korea, would highly recommend.

Book another company or at least another guide

I booked this tour for our group of 4 based on the reviews and specifically asked for Brain because he came highly recommended in some of the comment. Well, during our trip to South Korea, we took 3 tours: this one, a group DMZ tour (highly recommend) and another private tour in Busan (5 stars!). I was going to rate this 3 stars but after experiencing the much better service and experience in the other tours, I had to downgrade my rating. When I booked this tour, I asked for Brian and if we could move up the starting time by an hour. A day prior to our tour, I received an email stating that we would have Brian as our guide but no explicit mention about a change in time accommodation. As a result, our driver was an hour early and we were not at the pickup location (still getting breakfast). We were late starting as a result of this communication lapse. Our guide Brian seemed irritated at this issue which was not our fault. As for the actual tour experience, Brian was was essentially just a driver. He had very little information about 4 of the 5 sites we toured. He spoke very little unless we directly asked questions and could not (or would not?) not answer basic questions about Seoul and the sites we visited. We googled some things and had to give him answers. Our first stop was Seoul tower and he dropped us off at the cable car at the bottom of the hill and told us to come back to the van in an hour. We had to buy our own tickets, visit the location ourselves and come back down where he was waiting for us. What kind of private tour is that? No information, background. He did not even come with us to point out landmarks. He was informative really only during the visit to the Palace. The other sites was essentially to take us to shopping districts. I will say Brian was a safe driver, and if he was friendlier, I might rate him higher, but he rarely smiled and seemed even arrogant or condescending at times. On at least 3 occasions, he flat out ignored my questions. Maybe there are 2 Brian’s with this tour company? Or his name wasn’t even Brian and simply a fill-in? Anyway, for the price, we could have easily just hailed a cab to take us to the places we visited and saved a lot of money based on the experience we had. I will say that he was nice enough to return an umbrella that a member of my group left in the van. For that we are grateful (I note that we all left a decent tip prior to this so maybe that helped?). I’ve been on enough tours to know that the best tour guides are friendly and extremely knowledgeable about the sites your visit. They volunteer information and give you interesting true facts and point out things that you would not know yourself or cants easily look up. If they are really good, then they are also funny and entertaining at the same time. We had a discussion amongst our group during the tour if a regular local would have been a better guide.) Overall, although I have nothing against Brian, I would not recommend him as a professional tour guide based on our experience, especially for the price we paid. There are so many others on TripAdvisor that seem available, why take the chance? Book at your own risk. My daughter read this review and thinks I should put one star. You can decide for yourself.

Great Custom Day Tour of Seoul

OneDayKorea Tours worked with us to customize the tour to fit our tastes. This included an English speaking tour guide (Brian) who picked us up from our hotel and dropped us off. Brian optimized our itinerary in order to fit in all the places that we wanted to visit. Our day: 1. Bukchon Hanok Village 2. Changdeokgung Palace (UNESCO site) 3. Section of Seoul City Wall with view of Namsan tower. 4. Lunch at Insadong 5. Gyeongbokgung Palace and Changing of Guards ceremony 6. Coffee break with Shaved Ice 7. Brief stop at Cheonggyecheon Stream 8. Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) Thanks to Brian and the good weather, it was a great visit.

Seoul in a day

This was a 4 1/2 star rating as Sam was great, he is a 5 star guide! The time it takes to get around the city makes it less than 5 stars. I think if we had known about the traffic we would have asked for a shorter castle tour. We had to be back to our hotel by 5:30 and it can take 1 1/2 hours to travel across the city. If you like walking there is plenty on this tour so wear comfortable shoes. The lunch choice was excellent as were the highlights of the city we saw. Ending with the gondola and a view of Seoul from all sides was fantastic. If you are visiting for a short time I would highly recommend this tour and Sam.

Perfect introduction to Seoul!

This is our first time in Seoul, and we are so glad we signed up for this tour with Janet! She took us to so many great spots-including Gyeongbukgung Palace, Bukchon village, Insadong, and Gwangjang market. We had a delicious lunch of bibimbap at a restaurant in Insadong that we never would have found ourselves. Janet is a terrific tour guide! She helped us navigate through the crowds to find the perfect places to take photos.

Seoul rainy day tour

Very wet Seoul day, Brian looked after us and adapted our tour to visit unique and interesting places undercover. He was very informative and knowledgeable and spoke perfect English.

Brian was an awesome...

Brian was an awesome guide. Best tour we've had so far. You 100% need to take this tour for an efficient one day tour of Seoul.

Sam is THE MAN! What an exceptional tour guide!

If we had more time in Seoul, I would hire Sam again in a heartbeat! If you want a warm, friendly, knowledgeable tour guide, Sam is your man! He also drives a very nice and comfortable luxury sedan. I highly recommend him.

Good way to see Seoul

Janet our guide was good . She communicated well . Although a lot of walking was involved she made it light by talking well . Thanks Janet

Tour and guide - Beyond expectations

Our group of 6 had the amazing experience of having Brian as our guide / driver in April 2024. I did my research on the various tours and booked this private tour based on the reviews and Brian . And we were very lucky that Brian was assigned to our group that day. Simply put, Brian deserves all the accolades on this site. He was the epitome of a professional guide --- personable, warm , knowledgeable and accommodating. He was very knowledgeable with Korean history. and was accommodating with the schedule tweaks that was created because we wanted to rent hanboks. With 5 ladies in tow who love shopping, Brian was so patient with us in Insadong. He took us to this restaurant with authentic Korean food and went back for lunch 2 days later as the food was so good with side excuse to do more shopping in Insadong. With Brian's expertise and insight, we covered a lot of Seoul's must sees without the hassle of a large bus tour . It was a totally satisfying and wonderful day. Highly recommend this tour company OnedayKorea Tours and Brian is indeed a great asset to this company.

Excellent guide and seamless logistics

Our layover sightseeing trip with Brian was amazing for several reasons. First, Brian is an excellent guide. He picked us up at the airport and led us through several sights. Due to the length of our layover, he adjusted our itinerary so that we could make the most of our time in Seoul. He was interested in answering all our questions about the sites, the city history and life in Seoul. He is one of the most engaging guides we’ve encountered and it was very fun, even in our jet lagged state, to spend the day with him. The logistics also worked seamlessly, so if you have a significant layover in Seoul (ours was 12 hours), I highly recommend that you see the city with Brian.

Excellent tour

Brian was an excellent tour guide. He adjusted the pace of the tour to suit us and had flexibility to take us to locations and even shops that we were interested in along the way. His historical knowledge was very good. We had a great day

Great trip

Billy was a great tour guy, he's very attentive to us. Took us to see all of the places in our iteniary and more. Such a great person very nice man. He made our experiences very special. If it wasn't raining it would be a perfect day, but the experiences were great. Thank you Billy

Great Day

This was a great tour with our guide Billy. He was informative and we were able to understand his English. Seeing the changing of the guard was really cool, and the Hanok village too. The whole tour was a great way to get acquainted with Seoul and some of its highlights. Definitely recommend.

Great insider introduction of Seoul

Jonathan was a good tour guide with much korean history knowledge in his belt. He explained very clearly on Korean history during the palace tour. Took us around for the remainder Seoul tour knowing exactly where are good spots for photos etc. Added an extra nearby place for us to explore too.

Can't go wrong with this tour!

Brian Jeong was hands down one of the best tour guides we have ever had, and we travel quite a bit. Our day in Seoul was punctuated with heavy rain, but Brian still managed to create a memorable experience. In the morning we started at Gyeongbokgung Palace, and Brian showed his encyclopedic knowledge of the palace and the Joseun Dynasty. Little details such as the palace heating system and the king's mother-in-law quarters were described. We then proceeded to Hanok Village to see traditional Korean houses, and Brian took us to see the village vista from a hidden vantage point. We then went to Insadong to see traditional Korean handicrafts and art, and also had a delicious beef and rice stew in a hot stone pot for lunch. After lunch, we went to see the Jogyesa Buddhist Temple. Since it was cloudy with poor visibility, instead of taking us to Seoul Tower (where we wouldn't have seen much), Brian took us to the Gangnam district in the part of Seoul south of the Han River, where we took great photos at the huge Starfield Library in the COEX Mall and the amazing statue of Gangnam style. Throughout the tour, Brian provided commentary not only on the sights we were seeing, but on the current Korean sociopolitical situation. He was fluent in English and was a very considerate tour guide who provided ample breaks. His van was immaculate and comfortable, and we felt safe with his driving. Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed the tour and felt we got a great overview of Seoul in one day.

Awesome tour guide, highly recommended

Brian was our tour guide. He speaks fluent English, is a nice guy, very knowledgeable, punctual, and accommodating. It was our first time in Seoul and felt lucky that we got Brian as our guide. We were able to visit all the places listed in the itinerary and had delicious authentic Korean food for lunch. We are satisfied customers and this tour is highly recommended especially if you get Brian as your guide.

Awesome Seoul Tour

This tour is fantastic. My family had so much fun. We learned so many new things about the places we visited. Our tour guy Brian is amazing. He is friendly, fun, knowledgeable, and flexible. It felt no different than travel with a friend of our. He made our trip more enjoyable. I will recommend this tour to my any of my friends..

Enjoyable time in Seoul

Enjoyed the tour. Only a slight concern in that the traffic from the Incheon port into Seoul was more than expected. Luckily the driver (who was getting concerned on timing as well) managed to get us to the changing of the guard ceremony right on time and went to part while we then went with our actual guide, Tommy. Tommy was able to accomodate a slightly older crowd and reduced the stairs while we still completed the planned itinerary to include giving us different places to stop and explore a bit on our own.

Fun day getting to see so many things!

Highly recommend this tour. Tommy was our guide and driver. He did a fantastic job throughout the day both driving us around Seoul and communicating relevant, interesting information at the various sites we visited. It was our first time in Seoul and we felt like we got a very good feeling for the variety of things available in Seoul including tings we went back to visit later more in-depth.

A wonderful tour of Seoul, a great overview of this amazing city

excellent introduction to the historical and modern city of Seoul. Wonderful lunch in an authentic neighborhood restaurant. Korean cuisine is wonderful! Loved every moment of our tour!

Great introduction to Seoul. Thanks, Taylor!

As a college graduation gift, I took my nephew on a trip to Korea. I arranged for a private tour on our first full day in Seoul. Taylor picked us up in his car at our hotel in the morning and showed us the city. He was very nice and knowledgeable. He has personally traveled the world, so he was so interesting to talk with and his English was great. We started the day at Gyeongbokgung Palace and saw the changing of the guards, followed by a tour of the grounds filled with historical information. The day he planned was a nice mix of old and new sites in Seoul, ending with a cable car ride up to N Seoul Tower. We spent a few more days in Seoul on our own. Taylor was great answering our questions and making suggestions on other things to see and do in Seoul. After our first day, we felt completely comfortable exploring and found people very friendly and helpful.

Take a tour with Brian that is tailored to you!!

Brian is an amazing tour guide! If you want a tour guide with excellent English skills, who is very knowledgeable about Korean history, and who makes a tour that is tailored to exactly who you are, what you like to do, and what you want to experience and learn, take this tour!!! One of our group was interested in learning about the Korean alphabet so he actually spent time teaching it to us!

Amazing tour because of the amazing tour guide, Brian!

Brian was an amazing tour guide in Seoul! Even our teenagers loved him and listened to every word. He was proactive , thoughtful and patient. One of the best tour guides we have ever had. Great English, very knowledgeable and funny! Thank you , Brian!

Highlights

We had an excellent day with Johnathan! He was attentive to our requests, picked us up on time, and got us situated in the best location for the the changing of the guard at the palace. He was thoughtful and knowledgeable. We loved visiting the palace, the village, N tower, the market, and the temple. Excellent day that we would not have wanted to miss!

Our tour guide, Taylor,...

Our tour guide, Taylor, was very friendly and engaging during the tour. He educated us about the highlights of Seoul, while also making sure that we had fun.

Great Tour

This was a terrific tour. Our guide Brian was personable, knowledgeable, patient and pleasant. He shared much information - historical, political, cultural and personal. He was flexible and eager to please. We would highly recommend.

A wonderful day in an exciting city.

We had a wonderful day with Brian. His English is perfect and we saw all parts of the city, city life and a delicious lunch. We couldn’t have had a better experience

A great way to see Seoul

Our full day tour was a great way to see Seoul. It made even more enjoyable with Brian as an excellent guide. His English is superb and his knowledge of the history and the sites of Seoul first class. We visited the Gyeongbokgung Palace where he made sure we were in the best spots to see the changing of the garden ceremony and then took us on a great walking tour of the palace grounds, providing us with details in the buildings and this history. Next was a walk-through of the Bukchon Hanok Village and finally the Insadong markets. If you are being picked up from the cruise terminal it at Inchon, you should be aware that it will cost you an extra hundred dollars US to be picked up and returned to the terminal. I highly recommend that you ask for Brian. If you are planning to take this tour, you won’t be disappointed.

Nice private tour.

Personable guide. Good English, and very knowledgeable. Great day. He provided all kinds of information, cultural, popular, historical, and political. Kept the tour interesting and varied.

Great day in Seoul with Brian

Brian is great! Started out even before our tour since we had to change the number of people coming. Communicated in a timely manner to make these changes. Tour was great. Very knowledgeable and answered all of our questions. Thanks for a great day in Seoul, Brian!

An Awesome day in Seoul.

Brian was a great ambassador for Seoul. He gave us some great history and made sure we saw the major sites. Since we had gone to the N Tower the day before, he pivoted from the planned itinerary and took us to a massive indoor market which was a highlight with countless food and other vendors. We would definitely recommend this tour.

Fabulous day!

We had a wonderful day with Brian. He was very knowledgeable and shared many interesting stories. And lunch was delicious! We highly recommend this tour.