Mt. Nam Tops List of Foreign Tourists' Favorites

Published on 2011/11/28 | Source

Mt. Nam and Myeongdong are the most popular sites in Seoul among foreign visitors. The Seoul Metropolitan Government polled 1,849 foreign tourists, and 295 or 16 percent named hanging keys as a symbol of love along the N-Seoul Tower fence at Mt. Nam and looking over Seoul as their favorite activity in the capital.

Shopping for cosmetics in Myeongdong was a close second with 247 respondents or 13.4 percent. It was followed by watching the change of guards at Gyeongbok Palace and trying on guards' costumes, and exploring the narrow streets of traditional houses in Bukchon.

Other popular places were the Noryangjin Fisheries Wholesale Market, the National Museum of Korea, and traditional markets.

Foreigners visit Myeongdong, Seoul on Nov. 20. /Yonhap

People from different countries had different favorites. Anglophone tourists chose Gyeongbok Palace, but Chinese-speaking travelers favored Mt. Nam, while Japanese tourists liked Bukchon Hanok Village the most.

The survey covered 534 English-speaking, 1,080 Chinese-speaking, and 235 Japanese-speaking foreigners who visited the Seoul Metropolitan Government website from Nov. 3 to 20. They were given 21 activities to choose from.