I just got back from… Seoul
Three Qantas travellers share highlights from their trips to the buzzing South Korean capital.
Alex Choros
FREQUENT FLYER STATUS .................................................................................................................. Platinum
“It was my partner’s birthday and there were seats available on the inaugural Qantas flight to Seoul. I said, ‘Happy birthday! Want to go to Seoul?’ and she said, ‘Yeah, let’s go!’ We flew there on points alone so it cost us nothing. We were there for just three days and went on a 72-hour food bender. Make sure you pack stretchy pants – the food is so good! Go to the Myeongdong Night Market and order ‘street toast’ – a sandwich that has cabbage omelette, a meat of your choice, a couple of sauces and a lot of cheese. It’s the perfect snack after an 11-hour flight.”
Ada May
FREQUENT FLYER STATUS ...................... Bronze
“I’m half-Korean and my partner is, too, so visiting Seoul was a homecoming of sorts. Flying Qantas, there’s a level of comfort and service that you simply don’t get from other airlines. When you’re there, you must try the seafood. Tents out on the streets called pojangmacha are all over the city. You order seafood fresh from the ocean and an icycold bottle of soju and just sit there for hours. I also loved the shopping. Gentle Monster at Haus Dosan (gentlemonster.com) is a glasses and cosmetics flagship store over six floors with an underground dessert café that I spent ages in. You must visit!”
Wendy Nguyen
FREQUENT FLYER STATUS ...................... Bronze
“I’d say there are three main things to do in Seoul: eat a lot, have beauty treatments and go shopping. I had some amazing facials at Muse Clinic (gangnam.museclinic.co.kr) and Toxnfill (toxnfill.com). They also have these scalp-care clinics where they examine and exfoliate your scalp – it’s very high-tech! We stayed in Hongdae, a university area with cool vintage stores and street markets. It was interesting to see what was trending. The beauty products are next-level. Tamburins (tamburins.com) is a fragrance brand only found in South Korea – it was a real highlight. And of course, there’s Olive Young (global. oliveyoung.com) – it’s like Korean Priceline.”