Deoksugung Palace

Deoksugung is the smallest of the main palaces and the one most closely tied to the end of the Joseon dynasty and the short-lived Korean Empire. It began as a royal residence and became the main palace after Emperor Gojong moved here in 1897 and expanded it. Its mixture of traditional wooden halls and early 20th-century Western buildings, set right in the business district opposite City Hall, makes it unlike any other palace in Seoul.

The main gate is Daehanmun, on the east side facing Seoul Plaza, where the royal guard changing ceremony is staged on most days and draws a crowd. Inside, Junghwajeon is the throne hall, rebuilt as a single-storey building after a fire in 1904. Nearby, Jeonggwanheon is a pavilion with a wooden veranda and slender columns where Gojong is said to have taken coffee. The most striking contrast is Seokjojeon, a neoclassical stone building completed in 1910, now home to the Daehan Empire History Museum, while its west wing forms the Deoksugung branch of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, which holds changing exhibitions.

Because it is compact, Deoksugung is easy to fit into a day of sightseeing, and an hour is usually enough. It is also one of the few palaces open into the evening, from 09:00 to 21:00 with last entry at 20:00, which makes it a good choice after work or after dinner, when the halls are lit. It is closed on Mondays. Admission is inexpensive, and visitors with disabilities and a companion can enter free. Guided walking tours for wheelchair users and a sign-language tour can be booked in advance.

Afterwards, walk the Deoksugung Doldam-gil, the tree-lined road that follows the palace's stone wall towards Jeong-dong. It is one of the most pleasant short strolls in central Seoul, especially in autumn, and leads past historic churches and the Jeongdong Theatre.

City Hall Station, on Lines 1 and 2, is right next to the gate, and Gwanghwamun Square, Cheonggyecheon Stream and the shops of Myeongdong are all within walking distance. The Seoul Museum of Art is at the end of the stone wall road.