Photo: Seoul-Subway-01.jpg by frakorea / CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Related video: "Don't Buy the Wrong Transport Card in Korea! (2026 Travel Guide)" (via GAMJA IN SEOUL) TL;DR: Seoul's subway charges by distance, and the adult base fare has been ₩1,550 (about $1.10) since the June 28, 2025 hike — any blog quoting ₩1,250 or ₩1,400 is out of date. Most short-stay visitors should pick between a pay-per-ride T-money card and a Climate Card short-term pass (1 day ₩5,000 / 2 days ₩8,000 / 3 days ₩10,000 / 5 days ₩15,000 / 7 days ₩20,000). Since mid-March 2026, you've been able to buy and recharge those short-term passes with a foreign-issued credit or debit card at the newer ticket machines on Lines 1–8, which largely solves the old "bring won in cash" problem. For last trains, look up your specific station in Seoul Metro's English Cyber Station page or the Subway Korea app — there's no single citywide cutoff. If you'll ride more than r...
Photo: checkout lanes at Olive Young in Myeongdong, where signs ask shoppers to have their physical passport ready for the immediate tax refund — Olive Young Myeongdong.jpg by Sgroey / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Related video: "Olive Young Tax Refund: Bring the Passport, Not a Photo" (via EpicKor - Explore Korea Handbook) TL;DR: Olive Young's overseas webshop (Global Mall) and its Korean brick-and-mortar stores are two separate businesses with separate pricing, separate stock, and separate promotions — so there's no single "Olive Young price." If you're physically in Korea, the in-store route usually wins because you can stack the quarterly "Olive Young Sale" with a VAT refund of roughly 10% on purchases of ₩15,000 or more. If you're ordering from abroad, you pay shipping and possibly customs duty instead, and tax refunds don't apply at all. US shoppers got a third option on May 29, 2026, when CJ Olive Young launched a US-on...
Photo: Seoul-station-20181122-072342.jpg by LERK / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Related video: "🚆How to Book KTX(train) Tickets in Korea Without Any Hassle! #traveltips #korealotip" (via Daily Dose Of Korean) TL;DR: There are four realistic ways to buy a KTX ticket without a Korean ID number: Korail's own English booking site/app, a station ticket machine or counter, a Korail Pass, or a third-party reseller like Klook or Trainline. The single thing that decides which one works for you is whether your foreign-issued card clears Korail's payment gateway — that has flipped back and forth over the years, so always have a backup. Two numbers frame the decision: since September 1, 2026, a standard Seoul–Busan KTX ticket costs ₩54,400 after a roughly 10% fare cut, while the cheapest Korail Pass (two days) costs ₩131,000 for an adult. One round trip to Busan doesn't justify a pass. Buying a KTX ticket as a foreign visitor comes down to one question: will you...
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