When venturing to Seoul, the capital of South Korea, keep one thing in mind: This. City. Is. HUGE.
With a metro population of over 25 million (Miami: just over five million), if you cannot hook up with a guy, you are either never leaving the hotel or there is something seriously wrong with you.
South Korea is Asia’s great Undiscovered Secret. Japan and China swallow the lion’s share of tourist travel collectively, but Seoul is, believe it or not, the most visited city in East Asia. Even better, the Koreans use an actual alphabet, called Hangul, rather than the pictograms so favored in Kyoto or Shanghai. Each “character” is actually a syllable of the work, and given enough time you can figure out the subway maps.
After flying into Inchon Airport (itself a showcase), visitors to may notice that unlike a lot of ancient cities, Seoul seems awfully “new.” The short answer for this is that the city got bombed flat during the Korean War, so a lot of the original architecture is toast. That being said, some of the city’s heritage managed to squeak through.
For most of its history, Korea was a monarchy, and a fairly glorious one at that. While China was an ever-present influence, the cultures and kingdoms of the Korean peninsula managed to retain a large degree of individuality, and the royal abodes and temples exemplify such. Gyeongbokgung Palace appeared around 1395, and they’ve been restoring or adding on to the grounds ever since. The highlight is Geunjeongjeon, the throne hall (this was one monarchy that knew how to decorate), but several pavilions, Gyeonghoeru and Hyangwonjeong among them, are also worth a look-see.
When it comes to getting your gay on, like a lot of mammoth Asian cities, Seoul is a patchwork of neighborhoods that function as virtual towns. Itaewon (aka “Homo Hill”), Sinchae, and Jongno are the capital’s gay enclaves, and have about 100 clubs to cruise among them— but keep in mind that a lot of them are tiny karaoke bars that can fit about 10 people are so. When you are talking about a city where the real estate is priced through the roof, cozy environs come with the territory.
Which only means you can get that much closer to your hosts. But if an actual “bar” or “club” is a must, Almaz, Always Homme, Barcode, Trance, and Bar Friends, and Queen-Bar are the recommendations. iShap, the local gay rag, has a handy map (in Korean, but what can you do), and given the size of the city, getting a hotel in one of the ‘hoods is a good idea. IP Boutique Hotel, while not specifically gay, is very much LGBTQ friendly, and being near Homo Hill, is very convenient.
Go to visitseoul.net for more info. Steele Luxury Travel can assist with all of your travel plans to Korea! Contact us at 646-688-2274 for all of your travel planning needs!