For millions of people, Korea arrived first on a screen. A snow covered island in a winter romance. A red scarf on a grey breakwater. A rooftop in Seoul where two people finally understood each other. K-dramas and K-pop have carried the country to the world, and the quiet secret is that so many of those scenes were filmed in places you can actually visit. The island is real. The breakwater is real. You can stand exactly where your favorite moment happened.
This is a guide to ten of the most rewarding filming locations in and around Seoul, what was shot there, and how to see each one without the disappointment that sometimes follows a famous spot. Some sit inside the city. Some are a day trip into the mountains or out to the east coast. We build private K-drama days around exactly these places, and we have learned which ones reward the journey and how to time them. Bring the soundtrack. The rest takes care of itself.
1. Nami Island, the Winter Sonata Island
No location is more tied to the first wave of Korean drama than Nami Island. The tree lined lanes here, especially the famous avenue of tall metasequoia, became iconic through Winter Sonata, the series that introduced much of Asia to K-drama in the early 2000s. The small river island remains beautiful in every season, the same straight rows of trees turning green, then gold, then bare and quiet under snow.
Nami sits northeast of Seoul near Gapyeong and Chuncheon, reached by a short ferry. It is busiest in the middle of the day, so we time our visits for the early ferry, when the lanes are calm and the light is soft. It pairs naturally with the other Gapyeong locations below into a single, gentle day out of the city.
2. The Goblin Breakwater, Gangneung
On the east coast in Gangneung, a simple stone breakwater became one of the most photographed spots in Korea after Goblin. It is the place where the goblin first appears to the heroine, and fans arrive to recreate the scene, sometimes with a bouquet in hand. The setting is plain and windswept, which is exactly its charm. The drama did not dress it up, and neither should you.
Gangneung is a few hours from Seoul, best reached by the fast KTX train, and it makes a rewarding overnight rather than a rushed day trip. The coast here is wide and bright, the seafood excellent, and the breakwater is only the beginning of what the city offers. For a serious fan, standing on that spot is worth the journey east on its own.
3. N Seoul Tower and the Love Locks, Namsan
Rising on Namsan mountain at the center of the city, N Seoul Tower has appeared in more dramas than almost anywhere else, from Boys Over Flowers onward. The terraces below it are covered in thousands of love locks left by couples, a tradition that drama after drama has only deepened. The view over Seoul at dusk, as the city lights come on beneath you, is the reason it keeps being filmed.
You can ride a cable car up Namsan or walk the wooded paths to the base, which we often prefer for the quiet. Come in the late afternoon and stay for the lights. It is the most accessible location on this list, right in the heart of the city, and one of the loveliest at the right hour.
4. Petite France, Gapyeong
A small French themed village in the Gapyeong hills, Petite France is bright, storybook, and instantly recognizable from My Love from the Star and Secret Garden, among others. The pastel buildings and open squares make it a favorite of location scouts looking for something that does not look like anywhere else in Korea.
It sits close to Nami Island and the Garden of Morning Calm, which is why the three together make such a natural Gapyeong day. On a private day we link them by car so the time between is easy, and you arrive at each with energy to spare rather than a tight schedule to chase.
5. The Garden of Morning Calm, Gapyeong
This large arboretum in Gapyeong is beautiful year round, but it is most famous in winter, when the grounds are lit with millions of lights for a seasonal festival that has appeared as a backdrop in many dramas and variety shows. By day it is a calm landscape of themed gardens. By night in winter it becomes something close to a dream.
Pair it with Nami and Petite France for a full Gapyeong loop, and if you can, stay until the lights come on in the colder months. It is the kind of place that photographs beautifully but feels even better in person, walking the lantern lit paths in the cold.
6. Ihwa Mural Village, Naksan
On the slopes of Naksan in central Seoul, Ihwa Mural Village is a hillside neighborhood decorated with murals and small artworks, used as a backdrop in dramas including Rooftop Prince. The climb up the painted stairways is rewarded with sweeping views over the old city, and the lanes have a handmade, lived in charm.
Because people live here, it asks to be walked gently and quietly, much like Bukchon. Go in the morning or late afternoon, wear good shoes for the slopes, and treat it as a slow wander rather than a checklist of murals. The views alone are worth the hill.
7. Deoksugung Stonewall Walk, Jeongdong
The tree lined path along the old stone wall of Deoksugung palace is one of the most romantic streets in Seoul, and drama scouts have loved it for decades. In autumn the ginkgo turns the whole walk gold, and the mix of palace wall, embassies, and old churches gives the lane a quiet, cinematic atmosphere unlike anywhere else downtown.
It is an easy, free addition to any day in the city center, close to City Hall and the palace itself. We often use it as a gentle connector between bigger stops, a short walk that feels like a scene whether or not you can name the drama it appeared in.
8. Itaewon, the Itaewon Class Hill
The hillside streets of Itaewon became a destination for a new generation of fans after Itaewon Class, the series that turned the neighborhood's bars and slopes into a story about ambition and second chances. The area has always been Seoul's most international quarter, and walking it with the drama in mind adds a layer to an already lively part of the city.
Itaewon is best in the evening, when the hillside lights up and the global food and small bars come alive. It pairs well with the views from neighboring Haebangchon, and makes a natural close to a day that began with quieter, older locations.
9. The Palaces, Home of the Sageuk
For lovers of historical drama, the great palaces of Seoul, Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung above all, are the true filming locations, the backdrop to countless period series set in the Joseon court. Walking the throne halls and courtyards in person, especially in rented hanbok, is the closest you can come to stepping inside the world of a sageuk.
Come early to beat the crowds, and consider timing your visit with the changing of the guard ceremony at Gyeongbokgung. The palaces sit beside Bukchon and the old quarter, so a morning here flows easily into the rest of historic Seoul.
10. Film Your Own Scene
Many K-pop music videos are shot not in public landmarks but in studios and private sets, which is why chasing exact MV spots can sometimes disappoint. So we built a different answer. On our K-pop MV filming experience, guests step in front of the camera themselves, with styling, choreography, and a finished video to take home. It is the one location on this list you cannot simply visit, because you become the scene.
For fans, it is often the highlight of the whole trip. The drama locations let you stand where a story happened. The MV experience lets you make one of your own. Together they turn a love of Korean content into a few days you will replay long after you are home.
The island is real. The breakwater is real. You can stand exactly where your favorite scene happened.
How to See Them
Three of these, Nami Island, Petite France, and the Garden of Morning Calm, cluster in Gapyeong and make one easy day out of Seoul. The Goblin breakwater in Gangneung deserves its own trip to the east coast, ideally with a night by the sea. The rest, from Namsan to the palaces to Itaewon, sit inside the city and can be threaded together over a day or two of walking and short drives.
On a private K-drama day with one of our young licensed guides, the logistics disappear. We handle the ferries, the timing, and the order, so your attention stays on the places themselves. The point is never to tick off scenes. It is to feel, for a moment, like you have stepped inside the stories that brought you to Korea.
A Few Practical Notes
- Cluster the Gapyeong trio (Nami, Petite France, Morning Calm) into one day to save hours of travel.
- Take the KTX for Gangneung, and stay overnight rather than rushing the east coast in a day.
- Visit Namsan and the palaces early or near sunset for the best light and the smallest crowds.
- Rent hanbok for the palaces. It deepens the experience and, at some sites, includes free entry.
- Bring the soundtrack. Half the magic of a filming location is hearing the scene as you stand in it.
The Quiet Kind of Luxury
Anyone can find these places on a map. The difference a private day makes is not access but ease, the right order, the right hour, and someone who knows when a famous spot is worth the crowd and when it is not. We have walked these locations in every season, and we plan each day so the travel is effortless and the moments are yours.
That is the quiet kind of luxury we build at New Generation Travel. Not a rushed tour of landmarks, but a slow, well timed journey through the Korea you already fell in love with on screen. Bring the stories. We will take care of the rest.
