What to buy in Korea and where to buy it? We’ve got you covered with some serious Seoul-searching for souvenirs.
From marvelous malls and museum gift shops to flea markets or K-pop shops, you can find Korean gifts to suit all tastes and budgets across Seoul’s capital.
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Featuring Seoul markets, well-known chain stores like Daiso or HBAF (which is just ‘nuts’), your only question after reading this Korean / Seoul gift guide is – where can I buy a bigger suitcase for all my presents?!
Whether you call them keepsakes, momentos or Korean ‘pasalubong’, check out our list of Seoul souvenir shops and districts for the best Korean buying and gifts to take home.
South Korea Hallyu Tip – remember to bring your passport to selected stores if you want a tax refund! Travellers to South Korea can get up to 10% off / cashback when you spend between 30,000 Won to 500,000 Won.
South Korea checklist
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All set for South Korea? Do one final check with our Seoul first timers guide and our South Korea packing list
Where to buy souvenirs in Seoul
Insadong including Ssamzigil mall
Where to buy Korean gifts in Seoul? We start this souvenir guide with Insadong, which is likely the BEST place for tourist souvenirs at reasonable prices (and yes, we will mention Myeongdong and Hongae later too).
But why Insasong? Mainly because Insadong Cultural Street is teeming with all kinds of gift shops, selling everything from Korean traditional crafts, hanboks and tea sets through to more more modern merchandise like wapenpaechi’ 와펜패치 (embroidery patches) and K-Pop Demon Hunters keepsakes.
And it has branches of popular gift shops like Wappen House, Korea Mart, Ktown4u and many more.
The best place for unique Korean crafts in Seoul is Insadong’s Ssamzigil craft mall, one of the capital’s best shopping centers given how quaint and quirky it is, with mainly small and independent stalls. There are DIY craft stalls, cartoon character shops, homeware and jewellery vendors plus much more at Ssamzigil complex.
From the bright courtyard at its centre to the six floors of quirky character and craft based shops and stores, visiting Ssamzigil is quite the experience.
You might like our best things to do in Insadong guide >
Lotte Mart ZETTAPLEX – Seoul Station and Jamsil
Want to get all your Korean buys, foods and souvenirs in one go? Head along to Lotte Mart Zettaplex Seoul Station 롯데마트 제타플렉스 서울역점, a supermarket social media sensation where Seoul travellers stock up on everything from K-Beauty products to South Korean snacks like HBAF and banana milk.
Popular on Instagram and TikTok, this recently renovated hypermarket has thousands of Korean products and is designed to attract travellers from all over the world with its specialised sections and deep discounting.
Lotte’s flagship supermarket in downtown Seoul, this Lotte Mart Zettaplex is handily connected to Seoul Station meaning you can buy lots of items before getting the AREX to Seoul Incheon Airport.
Better still, if you want to buy lots of South Korea souvenirs to take back home, Lotte Mart Zettaplex Seoul Station has a huge luggage section you can buy big bags and backpacks from!
From what to buy to prices and opening hours, here is our ultimate guide to Lotte Mart Zettaplex Seoul Station >
National Museum of Korea souvenirs (MU:DS)
We discovered how amazing the National Museum of Korea gift shop was when we took part in the “Kakao Friends x The National Museum of Korea Treasure Hunt in May 2026, plus stocked up on lots of exclusive Kakao Friends goodies.
Sadly that particular collab has now ended but there is still a rich treasure trove of goods to buy inspired by museum exhibits.
Referred to as MU:DS, this museum gift-shop has some of the most exquisite souvenirs in Seoul, from scarves to cup sets, phone cases to tote bags. The ceramics section is charming but costly; cheaper gifts include sticker sets and stationery.
Myeongdong K-Pop and K-Beauty
Hello to ‘Hallyu’! Korean popular music has gone global. If you are visiting Seoul soon and want to buy K-Pop music or merchandise, the highest concentration of Seoul K Pop stores is in Myeongdong.
From BTS to Blackpink, Seventeen to Stray Kids, there are thousands of K-Pop souvenirs to buy in Korea.
We even have a dedicated article to 15 of the best K-Pop Myeongdong shops, like the OG Buruttrak through to All That K, Korea Music, POCA and Withmuu.
Plus Myeondgong is also home to the highest concentration of K-Beauty stores, including several Olive Young Global stores (aimed at international tourists), Innisdail and Nature Republic.We’d also recommend the new branch of Berry New pharmacy.
Dongdaemun
Alongside Hongdae and Insadong, Dongdaemun is one of our recommended places for Seoul retail therapy.
There are several big malls like DOOTA, DunDun and the famous Migliore mall, which has featured in countless TikTok videos due to its row upon row of nail beauty products, customisable clothes and fashion items, all of which are open until very late in the evening (sometimes until 4.30am).
You can enjoy outlet shopping too at Hyundai Outlet Mall or find bargains galore at various markets including cheap fabrics and homewares at Dongdaemun Market and Bangsan mall.
The DDP also has lots of independent craft stalls and the rather brilliant DDP Design Store – more on this later.
You might like these Seoul neighbourhood guides:
Dongdaemun
Euljiro
Gangnam
Hannam-dong
Hongdae
Ikseon-dong
Insadong
Itaewon
Myeong-dong
Seongsu-dong
Sindang
Or check out our best neighbourhoods in Seoul Guide >
Namdaemun Market
Located just a few hundred metres from the main Myeongdong action, Namdaemun Market 남대문시장 is a sprawling shopping area frequented by locals and tourists alike in search of bargains.
There are thousands of market stalls and shops in Namdaemun Market, spread across several blocks so navigating it can seem quite tricky when you first arrive.
Handily, Namdaemun Market is handily broken down into several sections where the same types of shops and products are grouped together – for instance, Hardware Street or Children’s Wear Street.
Also located in the same market Kalguksu Alley is an atmospheric alleyway of inexpensive noodle stalls – read our Kalguksu Alley guide >
Daiso Korea – the ultimate bargain hunters destination
A popular topic of shopping conversation in our South Korea Travel Tips and Planning Facebook group because of all the bargains to be had, Daiso is a Japanese discount store that has around 6,000 locations worldwide.
The Japanese chain Daiso is huge in South Korea – there are over 1,100 stores all over South Korea including the 12 storey one in Myeongdong, and a large store in Gangnam Express Bus Terminal.
Daiso in South Korea sells a mix of Japanese, South Korean and overseas goods including Disney merchandise, K-beauty products plus stationery galore – K-Beauty fans also love buying the 1,000 Won Vaseline face masks.
Most Daisos in South Korea are open until quite late in the evening (usually 10pm).
Korea Mart
One of the best places in Myeongdong for cheap souvenirs, tasty sweets and all manner of Seoul and South Korean goodies, Korea Mart has a few branches in high tourist footfall areas like Insadong and Hongdae.
Compared to the likes of 7-Eleven and the CU stores that Seoul is famous for, we found Korea Mart a lot cheaper (e.g. 600 Korean Won for a Lotte Iced coffee can compared to 1,000 Won in 7-Eleven) plus had some quite cute and quirky gifts like cartoon socks, fridge magnets plus chocolate galore!
If you like Korean snacks then check out some of the Korean snack variety boxes you can purchase on Amazon like this one >
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Line Friends Square
For those wondering where to buy K-Pop Demon Hunters merchandise in Seoul, there is lots of range at Line Friends Square 라인프렌즈 스퀘어 명동 in Myeongdong.
Line Friends characters are ever so popular in South Korea and in most parts of Asia (these are cute cartoon characters that help promote the Line messaging service).
Opened in 2024, this is one of the best Line Friends stores in Seoul with two floors of cute collectibles and plushies – the upstairs section usually has epic pop-ups.
Don’t forget to check out the reproduction BTS hand-prints in store too (last two photos).
Line Friends characters are ever so popular in South Korea and in most parts of Asia (these are cute cartoon characters that help promote the Line messaging service).
Dongdaemun Toy & Stationery Street
Located a stone’s throw from Dongdaemun Metro, this is the best place to get toys and stationery goods in Seoul cheap but there is a catch. Many of these stores are wholesalers so you might need to buy more than one item to secure a discount.
There are 100 stores in close proximity piled high but the biggest and most famous toy shop in Dongdaemun is Seungjin Toy (승진완구). This tower of toys has a plethora of playthings so make sure you save room in your suitcase if you are in Seoul with kids.
Myeongdong Underground Shopping Center
Myeongdong’s subterranean shopping mall network is a much appreciated shopping center in Seoul on a rainy summer or cold winter’s day.
Unlike other Seoul shopping malls, this is a less glitzy and glamorous affair probably best combined with other things to do in Myeongdong – there is so much to see and do in the area, especially the Myeongdong night market.
This underground maze of shops (located around Myeongdong Metro station) are awash with sock shops, K-pop stores plus vinyl LP stores.
In fact, we think this (and possibly Namdaemun Market) has the sweetest selection of shiny sock shops anywhere in Seoul (try saying that after a few craft beers).
Jewellery and accessories from Blingbox, Nyunyu / Mimiline
With locations in busy areas like Hongdae, Dongdaemun and Myeongdong, join the bargain hunters at wholesale fashion, toy and jewellery stores Mimiline and Nyunyu. Another popular chain of jewellery accessory shops all over Seoul is Blingbox.
Enjoyed by adults and kids alike, here you can buy everything from embroidery patches to LEGO keyrings, tote bags to miniature charms and mobile cases.
Often you get a discount if you buy more than one of something and both stores have several storeys of souvenirs, clothes and keepsakes. We found them REALLY busy on the weekends so if your children don’t like queuing or you have a pushchair, it might be best to go on a weekday.
Hongdae
Hanging out in Hongdae is a happy way to spend some shopping time in Seoul. Head to Hongdae Street and Festival Street, the heart and ‘Seoul’ (ahem) of the commercial area where you’ll find lots of fashion shops, K Beauty brands and K-Pop performers galore.
Hipster Hongdae is where all the cool kids hang out and this is reflected in the sheer number of shops and flagship stores here. Hongdae is also one of the best areas in Seoul for second-hand shops and threads like Back to the Vintage, Vintage Santa and Wow Vintage.
Our favourite Korean souvenir and fashion stores in Hongdae include Gentle Monster flagship store, WithMuu, Popmart, Line Friends flagship, Kakao Friends and Wappen House.
KT&G Sangsangmadang Design Square
We also discovered KT&G Sangsangmadang Design Square in Hongdae, totally by chance after wandering over to Festival Street to watch some Hongdae street performers.
This is a super cool, multi-story shop chock full of nicely designed character goods and nifty homeware items – there is none of your standard tourist tat or shocking souvenirs here.
From spring onion phone cases to lobster ceramic wear, this is Hongdae’s home of nice things – inside there is a cultural centre too where various activities, classes and exhibitions take place. A cute cafe can also be found on the upper levels.
KT&G Sangsangmadang Design Square is free to visit and open seven days a week excluding some public holidays.
You might like – Our guide to Korean convenience stores including CU and 7-Eleven
Kakao Friends stores
Like Line Friends, Kakao Friends are the mascots of one of South Korea’s most popular messaging apps and you see their characters on everything, from Kakao Taxis to snacks at Korean convenience stores like CU (Choonsik banana milk anyone?)
There are Kakao Friends stores and concessions all over South Korea, including a flagship store in Hongdae.
You’ll find all the Kakao Friends across mucho merchandise, both in terms of huge cartoon models or rows upon rows of branded products – everything from phone chargers to kids clothes and even super cute humidifiers.
Looking for a ‘purrfect’ souvenir from South Korea? Meet Choonsik the cat (춘식이), the most popular character from Korea’s Kakao Friends >
Wappen House
There are many souvenir shops in Seoul, but for a more unique gift or keepsake, head to one of the many customizable DIY gift shops.
Perhaps the biggest Seoul customizable gift shops is Wappen House 와펜하우스, which has sprung up recently in key Seoul neighborhoods like Myeongdong, Insadong and Hongdae.
The customizable gift shops in Korea are usually easy to spot (especially Wappen House) – they have very colourful rainbow exteriors, neon lights and windows full of the types of gifts you can make. It is also a great Seoul activity with kids especially when it is raining.
Recently, K-Pop Demon Hunters patches have been added to the character list plus you can customize your own LED fidget keyboard, the current hottest craze.
From prices to locations, here is our guide to Wappen House 와펜하우스 and how to customise bags, keyrings, pencil-cases and more >
Olive Young
Perhaps the most famous Korean beauty brand, Olive Young has over 1,400 stores across South Korea.
The K-beauty shop Olive Young has become so well known all over the world that many flock to Seoul with empty suitcases just to fill them up with ‘miraculous’ moisturiser or blinged body scrubs.
Such is Olive Young’s popularity with overseas visitors, they now have several dedicated Olive Young Global stores in Seoul. We also love their new retro design Olive Young at Gwangjang Market.
These stores are specifically aimed at overseas tourists with all their best-selling lines in massive volumes, signs in English, plus multilingual staff and lots of duty-free shopping kiosks.
In 2025, a brand new 5-floor Olive Young opened in Seongsu-dong, which might be South Korea’s biggest Olive Young store!
ARTBOX
Take a trip to one of South Korea’s awesome ARTBOX 아트박스 stores. Established in the 1980s, there are almost 150 ART Box stores in Korea plus another 50 overseas.
ARTBOX is a super cute stationery and gift store chain stocking all manner of South Korean and Japanese goodies, from BT21 to building block sets, Tomica to Tomy – and yep, Kakao Friends and Line Friends too!
They also have cute T-Money character cards plus some have Hechi Seoul mascot merchandise. ARTBOX is always great to browse or buy in just make sure you have enough room in your suitcases for all your purchases!
HBAF flavored almond stores
We were H-Baffled at first by the sheer number of the HBAF stores in and around Myeongdong Walking Street.
Very popular with tourists and families, HBAF are flavoured snacks (usually almonds or nuts) that have cute cartoon characters on their packaging and in their HBAF stores.
HBAF is a food / snacking company that sells all manner of nuts, snacks and coated goodies like honey butter almonds, wasabi almonds, mini caramel salted pretzels.
Seoul HBAF store locations in 2026 include Myeongdong (several branches), Gwangjang Market plus new for summer 2026, a huge Seongsu-dong HBAF store. 7-Eleven, GU25, Olive Young and Korea Mart also sell HBAF products.
Read more about HBAF almonds in our guide to HBAF stores >
Check out the HBAF store on Amazon >
Korean Baseball Stadium Merchandise
We’ve been lucky to go to several baseball games in Seoul over the years, catching games at both Jamsil Stadium and Seoul Gocheok Sky Dome.
Korea baseball souvenirs can be bought at the stadiums on match days (although you may have to queue up).
We’ve bought everything from Doosan Bears clapper hands to Kiwoom Heroes baseballs – and even a Kakao Friends Choonsik Korean baseball themed plush.
Make a home-run to our Seoul baseball ticket guide >
PS You can also buy K-League soccer merchandise on match-days at Seoul World Cup Stadium. Read our K-League guide >
Dongmyo – for Flea Market Fans
A short walk from the DDP, the Dongmyo Flea Market 동묘벼룩시장 is open daily and fascinating to see local Seoul citizens at work and at play.
This small corner of Seoul is like stepping back in time and the best place for vintage items and Koreaphiles looking to buy unusual second-hand items.
Here you can buy everything from broom handles to hotteoks, second hand watches to winches. A vintage treasure trove of vintage goods, it is fascinating to walk around and watch locals hunt for bargains.
Starbucks Korea
Starbucks Korea is a popular place for travellers and locals to enjoy a cup of coffee or sweet treat – with around 1,900 coffee shops in Korea, Starbucks South Korea is ranked fourth in the world in terms of number of cafes, after the USA, China and Japan.
From exclusive Korean Starbucks mugs to cute collectibles and plushies, there are lots to collect and bring home as souvenirs from South Korea.
There is the special Korea Starbucks collection (‘Been There’) which includes different designs representing cities like Busan, Seoul, Jeonju, Gyeongju and Jeju plus limited edition / seasonal mugs for special occasions.
The price of a Korean Starbucks mug is 34,000 Won or Starbucks tumblers are 42,000 Won.
We also like the Starbucks Korea Bearista range which are cute bear figures in traditional Korean outfits or uniforms to represent each of the regions.
Find out more in our Starbucks Korea mugs, collectibles and stores guide – or check out the 5 most beautiful Starbucks stores in Seoul >
Customisable Clothing – NIKE / UNIQLO
Myeongdong, Hongdae and Dongdaemun are home to popular Nike custom stores, where you can design your own personalized Nike merchandise.
Here, pick your own Nike transfers and graphics from thousands on display in-store to create your very own unique Nike wear – nice! To customize your own Nike merch, you need to get a ticket early in the morning as this usually sells out most days.
Newly opened in spring 2026, Myeongdong’s unique Uniqlo store has several storeys plus a Uniqlo flower shop on the first floor as you enter – we think this is one of coolest UNIQLOs in Korea.
The new Myeongdong UNIQLO also has a special UT section with a personalized clothing section (‘UTme!) where you can create your own designs (including the HBAF characters) and see them printed.
Given the cost, this might be best as a (VERY) special Seoul souvenir treat to take back and show off to friends back at home.
Butter Korea
As BTS would say, Smooth like Butter! With around a dozen Butter 버터샵 stores in Seoul including at least two in Myeondong, Korea’s Butter brand is a cute chain store selling cartoon goods and stationery.
The plushies here are particularly popular and if you don’t have a soft spot for the Milk Cat 밀크캣 character, you must be dead inside!
From picnic hampers to pencil sharpeners, notepads to stickers, Butter Myeongdong is one pretty in pink store. Most stores have fun cartoon models so be sure to strike a pose with a supersized Milk Cat mascot.
Korean Photo Booths
What to buy in Korea? Time to get ‘snap happy’ at a Korean photo booth – whether you are looking for a superb selfie or gorgeous group shot with your friends or fellow travellers to take home, Korean photo booths are easy to use and an inexpensive souvenir from South Korea.
Better yet, half the fun is in the taking of the pictures, with a wide variety of props or backdrops to choose from – you can even be pictured with your favorite K-Pop band or cartoon character; one of the more unique South Korea souvenirs to take home for sure.
Literally located on every street corner, from pricing to poses, here is our ultimate guide to using photo booths in Korea >
Seoul Tourism Organization Shops
For the coolest Korean collectibles and character merchandise, head to one of the several Seoul Tourism Organizations shops dotted around the city.
There are branches at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Seoul City Hall and Seoul Tourism Plaza store by Cheonggyecheon Stream 청계천 and near to the cool HiKr Ground.
These official tourist office shops are the best places to buy Hechi and Seoul Friends merchandise, who are the official (and furry) tourism mascots of the city.
We think the best STO store is the DDP Design Store – it has lots of nice arts and crafts by Seoul designers plus the biggest collection of Hechi merchandise in Seoul, everything from blind boxes to neck pillows and even a Hechi plush.
The DDP Design store has a big furry Hechi model inside to pose with plus a really great range of unique gifts. It is one of the best gift shops in Seoul in our opinion.
Find out more about Hechi, Seoul’s Pink Tourism Mascot >
Shinsegae Department Store Food Halls
Looking for gourmet Korean foods to buy or bring back home?* Shinsegae’s Food Halls are some of the best places to procure premium Korean foods in nicely designed packages.
From premium Korean teas to ginseng, artisan snacks to alcoholic drinks, Shinsegae’s department stores are your one stop food shop in Seoul.
There are several Seoul locations including Myeondong and the flagship Gangnam which is the largest department store food hall in the whole of South Korea!
*Don’t forget to check your home country customs to see what products you can bring back safely.
Our final Korean souvenir / Seoul gift shop
Incheon Airport stores and duty free stores
Talk about last minute shopping – if you still need Korean gifts for people back home, there are lots of dedicated Incheon airport duty free stores, plus even some other Korean brand stores like a new Kakao Friends shop.
There are dozens of duty free stores at Seoul Incheon airport plus special stores like LOTTE Duty Free, Shilla Duty Free and Hyundai Duty Free.
Or just keep it simple and buy a Seoul Starbucks mug from the airport Starbucks or give the gift of HBAF.
Here is a list of all the duty free shops at Incheon T1, T2 and on the main concourse >
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