Seoul Metropolitan Subway
Line 1 launched in 1974 tracing Tokyo's blueprint; today 24 lines stretch over 100 km beyond the capital into rural Chungnam and Gangwon provinces.
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Built from 1971 using cut-and-cover construction and Japanese technology, the network now covers 331.5 km on lines 1–9 alone, weaving through Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi satellite cities. Three separate operators — Seoul Metro, Korail, and Incheon Metro — run most of it as one coherent system, a scale that makes it a destination in itself.
What to look for
- Hyundai Rotem rolling stock — Korea's own train manufacturer now builds most of the fleet
- Line 1 through-services where city subway merges with Korail suburban rail, the original Tokyo-influenced design from 1974
- Three distinct operator liveries (Seoul Metro, Korail, Incheon Metro) sharing a single network on any cross-city ride
Korail regional lines run over 100 km from the city center — check whether your stop is on Korail rather than Seoul Metro before boarding.
Seoul Metropolitan Subway is one of 28 sights worth the detour in Seoul, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the Seoul pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in Seoul
- ChangdeokgungThe kings kept skipping the official palace to live here instead — and they had centuries to prove the point.
- JongmyoSpirit tablets of Joseon kings still receive ritual offerings here, exactly as they have since 1394.
- Blue House (Cheong Wa Dae)South Korea's seat of presidential power since 1948 — a 62-acre compound so secure it was once called one of Asia's most protected official residences, until the gates briefly opened to everyone.
- Namdaemun (Sungnyemun)Built in 1398, burned by an arsonist in 2008, and painstakingly restored by 2013 — Seoul's southern gate has a complicated relationship with fire.
- National Museum of KoreaDuring the Korean War, staff packed 20,000 objects and moved them to Busan — that collection now fills the flagship museum of Korean history and art in South Korea.
- Lotte World TowerYou step onto the Sky Bridge at 541 m — the exact altitude of New York's tallest building, but you're looking down on Seoul.