COEX and Bongeunsa Temple Layover, Seoul
Part of the full Seoul Layover: Gyeongbokgung and Namsan, ICN
In Seoul’s Gangnam district, Bongeunsa, a Buddhist temple founded in 794, faces COEX Mall across Bongeunsa-ro, and between the temple, the mall’s 13-metre library bookshelves and its aquarium there is an afternoon’s worth south of the river.
The shark tunnel at the COEX aquarium
The aquarium under COEX Mall, now branded SEA LIFE COEX, opened in 2000 and holds more than 40,000 animals of around 650 species in 90 tanks. The piece to see is the tunnel: a walkway of acrylic running through a 2,000-tonne tank with sharks and sea turtles passing over and alongside. A few rooms on, fish swim in tanks built into bathtubs, a toilet and old computer monitors, and there are touch pools of starfish and shellfish.
Buying aquarium tickets in advance skips the ticket desk.
Starfield Library’s 13-metre bookshelves
In the middle of COEX Mall, Starfield Library fills a 2,800-square-metre atrium with bookshelves that climb the full 13 metres to the glass roof, curving around escalators and reading tables. It opened in 2017 and is free and open to anyone; the collection runs to tens of thousands of books and several hundred magazines, a share of them in foreign languages.
The underground mall that joins the library, the aquarium and Samseong station is packed through the middle of the day, and a wheeled suitcase spends most of that walk stopping for people who have stopped to photograph the shelves.
Bongeunsa, the temple across Bongeunsa-ro from COEX
Bongeunsa stands on the slope of Sudosan across Bongeunsa-ro from COEX Mall. The monk Yeonhoe founded it in 794, in the Silla period, as Gyeonseongsa, and in 1498 Queen Jeonghyeon rebuilt it and gave it its present name, which means honouring the king; her husband, King Seongjong, lies in the royal tombs a short walk west. A fire in 1939 destroyed most of the buildings and the Korean War took more, so most of what stands has been rebuilt since.
The hall to find is the Panjeon, which holds woodblocks of Buddhist scripture carved in 1855; the name board over its door is in the hand of Kim Jeong-hui, the most celebrated calligrapher of late Joseon. The grounds also hold a 23-metre statue of Maitreya, the future Buddha, finished in 1996. The temple is a working Jogye Order monastery, free to walk into, open from early morning into the evening.
Seonjeongneung, the royal tombs among Gangnam’s office towers
Seonjeongneung is a wooded park of Joseon royal burial mounds a short walk from Seolleung station, surrounded on every side by Gangnam’s office blocks. It holds three royals: King Seongjong (1457 to 1494) and Queen Jeonghyeon, the queen who rebuilt Bongeunsa, in the western tomb, and their son King Jungjong (1487 to 1544) in the eastern one. Stone officials and stone horses stand guard on the lawns in front of the grassy mounds, and the site has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 2009 as part of the Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty.
Admission is 1,000 won; it closes on Mondays, and in summer the gates stay open until 9pm.
No airport train from Gangnam, and no check-in desk at COEX
COEX had its own city airport terminal with airline check-in for more than 30 years, until the check-in service closed for good in February 2023; the company that ran it still operates airport buses. By rail there is no direct train to Incheon International Airport (ICN) from here. The usual routes are Metro Line 9 from Bongeunsa station to Gimpo Airport and the AREX all-stop train on from there, or Line 2 across the river and a change for Seoul Station and the AREX express, 43 minutes non-stop to Terminal 1. Either way, allow well over an hour. The in-town check-in desk under Seoul Station is now the only one in the city. With a daytime gap and no reason to be in Gangnam, the Seoul itinerary through Gyeongbokgung and Bukchon sits much closer to the airport trains.
Frequently asked questions
What should I do during a layover near COEX and Bongeunsa Temple in Seoul?
Start with the shark tunnel at the aquarium under COEX Mall, then the free Starfield Library with its 13-metre bookshelves, and cross the road to Bongeunsa, a temple founded in 794 that is free to walk into. With more time, the royal tombs of Seonjeongneung are a short walk or one metro stop west. Three to five hours covers the temple, the library and one of the other two. The aquarium is the only ticket worth buying ahead, and dropping it leaves the rest intact.
What is there to do near COEX when it rains?
Most of this area works under cover. COEX Mall, the Starfield Library and the aquarium are all inside the same underground complex, linked directly to Samseong station, so a wet afternoon here can be spent without an umbrella. Bongeunsa and the royal tombs are outdoors, but both are within a few minutes of the mall's exits.
When are the royal tombs at Seonjeongneung open?
Every day except Monday. From March to October the grounds open 6am to 9pm, from November to January 6:30am to 5:30pm, and in February 6am to 6pm, with the last entry an hour before closing. Admission is 1,000 won for adults. The entrance is a short walk from Seolleung station.
Can I still check in for my flight at COEX?
No. The city airport terminal at COEX, which offered in-town airline check-in for more than 30 years, closed its check-in service permanently in February 2023. The only in-town check-in desk left in Seoul is under Seoul Station, for passengers on the AREX express to Incheon, and it takes bags only for participating airlines and not within 3 hours 20 minutes of departure.