One Seoul cluster

Calls of 12 hours (10 at the very least) — the palace and Bukchon, nothing else. Timed from the gangway and back.

7 hr 30 min door to door7 stopsNeeds a 9.5-hour call

Open the route in Google Maps, in 5 parts

Photo: Basile Morin / CC BY-SA 4.0

Door to door

7 hr 30 min

From the gangway and back

Best for

A 9.5-hour call or longer

Room to spare

None

What it costs

₩8,000–10,000 for the first fare

Booking

None found

Check each place’s own page before you sail

Best for: Calls of 12 hours (10 at the very least) — the palace and Bukchon, nothing else
Room to spare: Fits a 9.5-hour stop with nothing to add (off the ship 30 minutes after arrival, back at the gangway an hour before all-aboard). A longer call gives you the extra time; on this one, do not add a stop.
What it costs: Taxi ₩8,000–10,000 + rail ~₩2,500 each way, or ~₩50,000–70,000 by taxi each way. Palace ₩3,000 (free for foreigners 65+ — bring the passport).

Checked 15 November 2026 · Researched, not yet visited · times from official timetables and our estimates · Takumi Yamada

Numbers follow the route below. Pins are the places themselves; walking lines are not drawn because the best way between two stops can change with the tram, the tide or the weather.

Open in Google Maps, in 5 parts

1Your ship → IBD station, Line 1by taxiGoogle Maps gives no walking or driving directions in Korea: Kakao Map · Naver Map app
2IBD station, Line 1 → Seoul Stationtrain or busKakao Map · Naver Map app
3Seoul Station → Gyeongbokgungby taxiKakao Map · Naver Map app
4Gyeongbokgung → Bukchon Hanok Villageon footKakao Map · Naver Map app
5Bukchon Hanok Village → Back to the shiptrain or busKakao Map · Naver Map app · 인천항 크루즈터미널 · 인천광역시 연수구 국제항만대로 438

Google Maps on a phone takes three stops between start and end, and none on a train or bus route, so the day opens in parts. Each step below also has its own directions.

The route

How the day runs

Times are from the moment you step off, not from the scheduled arrival. Everything shifts if your ship is late; the order does not.

+0:00
Taxi to International Business District station (~15 min)
Buy a T-money card at the kiosk; foreign cards cannot tap the gates
Directions from the ship (by taxi)Kakao Map · Naver Map app
+0:20
Incheon Line 1 to Gyeyang, then the AREX all-stop train to Seoul Station
About 1h30 on the rails
What you will see here Directions from the previous stop (train or bus)Kakao Map · Naver Map app
+2:00
Subway or taxi to Gyeongbokgung
Closed Tuesdays; the guard changes at 10:00 and 14:00
What you will see here Directions from the previous stop (by taxi)Kakao Map · Naver Map app
+2:15
Gyeongbokgung, unhurried
₩3,000; free if you are 65+ (show your passport)
Photo: Basile Morin / CC BY-SA 4.0
+3:45
Walk up to Bukchon
Core lanes open to visitors 10:00–17:00 only
Directions from the previous stop (on foot)Kakao Map · Naver Map app
Photo: Basile Morin / CC BY-SA 4.0
+4:45
Taxi or rail back to the terminal
Leave Seoul by 14:30 on a 07:00–19:00 call — the taxi back can take up to ~110 minutes (estimate)
Directions back to the ship (by taxi)Kakao Map · Naver Map app · 인천항 크루즈터미널 · 인천광역시 연수구 국제항만대로 438
+6:45
Back at the gangway
The commonest Incheon call is 12 hours (e.g. 07:00–19:00); no 9-hour calls are scheduled for Oct–Dec 2026