Seoul Palaces: Gyeongbokgung Palace 경복궁

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Tour
English : 1100H, 1330H, 1530H (1 - 1.5hrs)
Start in front of Gyeongbokgung Info Counter inside Heungnyemun Gate    


Information :
Closed on Tuesday
November to February : Closed at 1700H
March to May, September to October : Closed at 1800H
June to August : Closed at 1830H
Final admission is 1 hour before it closed
Admission cost: ₩3,000 (recommended to get the Integrated Palace Tickets if you're going to visit most of the palaces)

Website: http://www.royalpalace.go.kr/html/eng/main/main.jsp

Direction: Gyeongbokgung Palace Station, Exit 5
Go up the stairs and you will be in between National Palace Museum of Korea and Gyeongbokgung Palace.

Being the main royal palaces of the Joseon dynasty and the largest and grandest of all the main palaces, Gyeongbokgung seems to be the best choice if you can only choose one out of the many palaces in Korea to go to.

Built in 1394 by King Taejo, founder of Joseon Dynasty, the palace was named Gyeongbokgung which also means "Palace Greatly Blessed by Heaven". Sadly, due to war, the original buildings were demolished. The buildings you see now are mainly the the efforts to reconstruct Gyeongbokgung Palace since 1990.

Guards can be seen standing outside the main gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace, like those you see at Buckingham Palace, except that those at Gyeongbokgung will be in Korean traditional royal guard uniform. (duh!)

Royal guards outside Gyeongbokgung

Main gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace

rank stones 품계석

Inside of Geunjeongjeon Hall

The first building that greets you when you enter is Geunjeongjeon Hall, where important state functions were held.

Plenty of photo opportunities available over here, so remember to carry a camera with you when you come! If you're a solo traveller like me, don't worry! Just ask anyone for help, so far I have never been rejected before.
Those above were taken during Spring. Sadly, snow level wasn't high yet when I went during winter so the scenery didn't excite me. However, the weather was nice to me by giving me a clear blue sky that made my photo picture perfect even without filter.

Expectation

Reality

Expectation

Reality

I was lucky to saw locals doing their wedding shoots too! I will definitely have mine taken in one of the palaces too!
On-going events:

Sumunjang Changing Ceremony 
Time: 1000H, 1400H (20 mins)

Gwanghwamun Gate Guard-on-duty Performance 
Time: 1100H, 1300H (10 mins)

Sumungun Military Training 
Time: 0930H, 1330H (15 mins)

I happened to come across one of the performance during my Winter trip.

The ceremony started outside Gyeongbokgung Palace and both groups will proceed into Gyeongbokgung Palace (still outside the paying area). For a quicker escape after the ceremony has ended, it is recommended to stand on the right side (facing the palace), as the left side will be blocked till the ceremony has fully ended.




If you're interested in Korea's culture, you might wanna visit the National Folk Museum of Korea and National Palace Museum of Korea, which are nearby Gyeongbokgung Palace and both are free entry (National Folk Museum of Korea is free is you've purchased Gyeongbokgung entry)! So just drop by if you have some time to spare, or just need a warm place to shake off the cold from outside during winter.

National Palace Museum of Korea
Located on the left side of Gyeongbokgung Palace, the exhibits here display relics from the Joseon Dynasty.

Found on top of the buildings in the palaces. These cravings are the same characters as Journey to the West. The more characters on the building, the more important the building was.

This museum was interesting to me as I have always like the vibrant colors used by Korean Royals in their clothing, food and buildings. This museum grew another interest in Korea culture for me - Korean knots. Love how they combined all those colors and tying skills that creates a totally different knots.

National Folk Museum of Korea
Within Gyeongbokgung Palace sits the National Folk Museum of Korea, which displays the artefacts used by ordinary korean folks in their everyday life.