Gangnam

Gangnam simply means "south of the river", but the image the name now conjures is best seen at the Gangnam Station crossroads. Office towers line the broad Gangnam-daero boulevard, while the side streets behind them glow with the signs of restaurants, bars and cafés until late at night. Half a day on foot is enough to see how farmland of some fifty years ago became one of the busiest neighbourhoods in Seoul.

From rice fields to Seoul's new centre

Until 1962, today's Gangnam District was rural land belonging to Gwangju County in Gyeonggi Province. It was absorbed into Seoul in 1963, built up with roads and apartment blocks during the 1970s "Yeongdong development", and became a district of its own in 1975, when it was split off from Seongdong District. Once Line 2 reached Gangnam Station in December 1982, the crossroads turned into southern Seoul's favourite meeting point.

Strictly speaking, Gangnam Station sits on the boundary between two districts: Gangnam-daero runs between Yeoksam-dong in Gangnam District to the east and Seocho-dong in Seocho District to the west. The Shinbundang Line arrived in 2011, and since its extension north to Sinsa in 2022 you can ride straight to Garosu-gil.

What to see on foot

• Gangnam-daero: the liveliest stretch runs from Gangnam Station to Sinnonhyeon Station. The pavement between Exit 2 of Gangnam Station and Exit 5 of Sinnonhyeon Station (Line 9) is a designated no-smoking street.
• The side streets north of the station: behind the boulevard, especially on the Yeoksam-dong side, the alleys are packed with Korean barbecue restaurants, bars, karaoke rooms and PC cafés. It is the easiest place to see how young people in Seoul spend their evenings.
• Teheran-ro: a business avenue running about 3.5 km east from Gangnam Station to Samseong Station and COEX. So many tech companies have settled here that it is nicknamed "Teheran Valley".
• Kukkiwon: the World Taekwondo Headquarters sits on a hill between Gangnam and Yeoksam stations. It took its current name in 1973, and that May it co-hosted the first World Taekwondo Championships.
• Underground arcade: shops line the passageways beneath Gangnam Station, handy on rainy days or in the summer heat.

Good to know

Teheran-ro is named after the Iranian capital. When the mayor of Tehran visited Seoul in 1977, the two cities agreed to swap street names, and the following year Samneung-ro became Teheran-ro. Tehran still has its own Seoul Street.

Psy's 2012 hit "Gangnam Style" poked fun at the area's affluent lifestyle. On 21 December that year its video became the first on YouTube to pass one billion views, and Gangnam became a name travellers all over the world recognise.

At Gangnam Station, Line 2 and the Shinbundang Line run on opposite sides: Line 2 trains keep to the right-hand track, while the Shinbundang Line, built to mainline railway standards, keeps to the left. Double-check the direction when you change trains.

Tripto tips

• When to go: weekday evenings and weekends are the busiest. Come on a Friday or Saturday evening for the full buzz, or on a weekday afternoon for a calmer stroll.
• Time needed: 1–2 hours for the boulevard and the side streets; add dinner and it becomes a half-day outing.
• Getting there: take Line 2 or the Shinbundang Line to Gangnam Station. The area around Exits 10 and 11 is the busiest; you can also get off at Sinnonhyeon Station (Line 9) and walk south. Gangnam Station is also a major hub for buses to southern Seoul and southern Gyeonggi Province.
• Combine with: three stops east on Line 2 is Samseong (COEX and Bongeunsa Temple), and three stops north on the Shinbundang Line is Sinsa (Garosu-gil). The Joseon royal tombs of Seonjeongneung are two stops from Sinnonhyeon on Line 9, so you can spend the day at the tombs and the evening around Gangnam Station.
• Worth knowing: the pavements get very crowded in the evening, so travel light. Smoking on the no-smoking street can earn you a fine.