A scene from the replica of  a ceremony held by men in old palace guards uniforms in 

front of the Gwangwhamun Gate in Seoul during the Jeoson Dynasty(1392-1910). 

Seoul Metropolitan City plans to beef up its tourism promotion programs this year, focused on the ancient city’s famous tourist attractions including ancient palaces with tailor-made programs for families with children attending primary and middle schools around the country.

The tour programs for renowned sites in the capital city, such as ancient palaces and other historic sites, will be led by tour guides who can explain the stories associated with the historic sites, which are part of modern Korean history.

The tour routes will include Deoksu Palace, Seoul Municipal Art Museum, Paejae Academy Historic Museum, Jungmyung-jon, and the old Russian Consulate, all located in the heart of Seoul. (Reservations for the tour can be made on the walking tour homepage: http://dobo.visitseoul.net.)

The second course is designed for those in their 40s and 50s who want to recall the old Seoul.

Tourists guides  give tourist guide brochures to foreign tourists in downtown Seoul.

The main subject of the tour program will be to tour the bookstores that handle rare, old, and interesting books located in the not-so-busy sections of Seoul. The bookstores include Alladin Old Book Store in Gangnam-gu; the Beautiful Store in Itaewon; Mr. Kong’s Bookstore; the Humor Mind Bookstore; the Hidden Bookstore; the Dae-o Bookstore cafe; and the Gagarin Bookstore, among others.

Harunadeuri Travel Agency handles the tour program, called “The exploration of a mythical culture inside Seoul.”

The third tour course is for those in their 50s who miss the 1970s and 1980s when they were in their twenties. The tour course is made of alleys in various old sections of Seoul linked like a spider’s web to remind of them of the younger years in their lives. They include The White Pine Lot in Dongui-dong; a hanok village of Korean-style traditional houses in Tongui-dong; the Tong-in Open Air Market in Tong-in-dong; the Yoon Family Residence in Okin-dong; and the Paewha Girls’ High School and Sajik Park. Hananadeuri Travel Agency will handle the tour called “An explorative tour of old alleys in Seoul.”

Seoul City also has walking tour courses with guides who will also explain the special historic and social background stories for the places included in the tours. They include a number of old palaces in Seoul, including Gyeongbok Palace, Changkyung Palace, Deoksu Palace, Jeong-dong, Kyunghee Palace, Seodaemun, Seongbuk-dong, Bukchon, Seochon (Sejong Village), Sunnung, the Bongeun Temple, Mongcheon Sand Castle, Changkyung Palace, Changdok Palace, and Sungkyunkwan. For a tour of the recovery of the ecological system, Seoul City included Cheongyecheon, the Castle on Nam-san, the Castle on Nak-san, the Han River, and Jeoldu-san. The tour also will include the traditional open markets in Seoul, including the Insa-dong Open Market, Woonhyun Palace, and Dongdaemun Open Market. Guides will speak in a number of languages: Korean, English, Chinese, and Japanese.

Seoul City has a number of fascinating events for tourists, the most famous one being, the “Hi, Seoul Festival 2014” from Oct.1-5, which can be enjoyed at a number of plazas in the capital including Seoul Plaza, Gwangwhamun Plaza, Cheonggye Plaza, Seoul City Plaza, and large boulevards such as Cheongyecheon Road, Seochon Road, Bukchon Road, among others.

A nightly view of  the Banpo Grand Bridge connecting northern and southern Seoul.

The tours begin at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m., 2 p.m., and 3 p.m. on weekends all year round with guides speaking in English, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean available. Tours are free, but the tourists have to pay admission fees at old palaces and cultural events. Reservations should be made at least three days in advance at dobo.visitseoul.net or by calling 02-6925-0777.

Major programs include 10 foreign performance teams and 15 domestic performance teams. They also include a program for citizens to participate and an exhibition of installation art, space storytelling, and more.

Seoul City also plans to hold “Welcome Foreign Tourist Days” from Sept. 25-Oct. 5 in seven special tourist areas in Seoul: Myeongdong, Itaewon, Dongdaemun, Namdaemun, Jongro, Cheonggyecheon, Dadong, Mukyo-dong, and Bukchang-dong. Placards, posters, banners, and pennants welcoming foreign tourists will be hung in those locations. The tourist booths in those places will hand out maps of Seoul and postcards. There will also be performances and experience events like wearing Korean traditional clothes for men and women and performances of pungmulnori, a traditional Korean dances with drums. No reservations are required. Phone 02-757-7482 for further information.

Seoul City has a special plan to lure more Chinese tourists to Korea as their numbers have increased rapidly for the past five years, thus becoming a crucial segment of foreign tourists visiting Korea.

A huge crowd mills Myeong-dong in the heart of downtown Seoul.

Chinese tourists spend a lot of money for shopping and dining while in Korea, with around 80 percent of them visiting Seoul, with Dongdaemun (East Gate) being the top spot for their visits. Their average spending per person amounted to 3.31 million won while in Korea, the largest among foreign tourists, followed by Japanese tourists with average spending per person amounting to 1.1 million won, while those from southeast Asian countries spend an average of 1.89 million won per person.

The city plans to crackdown on shops demanding higher prices for their goods than for local customers, and if foreign tourist staying in hotels or other lodgings in Seoul and complains to the Korea Tourist Association and the District Tourism Councils, they will be reimbursed within 30 days.

The city also plans to build more hotels with average room charges a more modest 100,000 won to 150,000 won per night. The city plans to turn inns and motel facilities (66 percent) into tourism lodging facilities.

The city will also focus on discovering new and fresh tourist destinations around Seoul, along with village tours around Seoul where they can feel, taste, and touche the lives of old traditional Korean ways.

The city will also develop new tourist sites, especially for Chinese visitors. The city will tailor-make courses according to the nationalities of tourists. The city plans to develop 25 such tourist sites in and around Seoul.

For foreign tourists from the Chinese sphere, the tailor-made travel courses include famous shopping centers and other shopping areas such as open-air markets; for Japanese tourists, the recommended courses include places where they can experience Korean culture and Hallyu, Korean-style entertainment performances. For tourists from Southeast Asia, the courses will include Hallyu or Korean-style entertainment performances, and snowy locations where they can go skiing. For tourists from North America and Europe, the courses will include places where they can experience mythical Oriental culture and places where they can experience traditional Korean culture and modern and diverse ways of Korean life.