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Depending on where you’re coming from, Seoul might not be the cheapest city in the world. But there are tons of free things to make your visit to Seoul easier. From free tours of Seoul tourist attractions to free shuttle buses to Jeonju, read this uber helpful list of free things that’ll make you say “woot!”
1. Free Phone Calls in Seoul
If you’re not sure about the Korea phone rental system, it’s easy. You can always rent a cellphone when you land in Incheon Airport. But if you just need to make a few calls while you’re visiting Seoul, you might want to know that you can make calls for free at many of Seoul’s major subway stations! We already have a post on how to make free phone calls while in Seoul, but here’s the basic gist: head over to a major subway station, find the digital station, pick up the phone, and call. Seriously, that’s it. And it’s all for free! 
How to make free phone calls while in Seoul.
2. Free Korean Lessons in Korea
Maybe you just moved to Korea and are looking to learn Korean. Of course you can always learn Korean online for free from our super good pals at TalktoMeinKorean.com (try them, they’re good!). Some people are more into meeting people and selfstudy. If you are, you can always find free language exchange partners by posting on craigslist. And finally, if you’re into learning in traditional classroom settings, there’s a number of free Korean classes in Seoul run by volunteers and sometimes professional teachers. We can list them here, but 10Mag does a much better job with their list of Korean language classes in Korea (free/paid, and not just in Seoul ). 열심히 공부하세요! (Study hard!).
3. Free Concierge Service in Korea (via phone)
The Korea Tourism Organization offers an amazing service that anyone visiting Seoul should know about. Simply call 1330 from any phone and you have the option of calling operators that will look up anything for you. You can use this to ask for restaurant recommendations, bus schedules, things to do in Korea, or maybe even where to buy Big Bang underwear. Whatever you’re wondering about Korea, just call this number and someone will help you out. And if they can’t tell you, they’ll look it up on the (Korean) internet while you wait. Nice!
Tip 1: Although this is geared towards tourists, foreign residents of Korea can also use this service as well.
Tip 2: Not only for Seoul, also for cities across Korea.
See KTO’s official page for more info.
4. Free Shuttle Buses from Seoul to Jeonju
Seoul is the number 1 city for visitors to Korea, but Korea has a number of great destinations that visitors should also consider visiting while in Korea. That’s why the Visit Korea Committee offers free shuttle buses to Jeonju for foreigners in Korea. They have pick ups at Gwanghwamun that will take you to Korea’s most famous city for delicious food. You have to have your passport (no alien registration card) as well as make a reservation at least 10 days in advance. But for free, you would do it 11 days advance, right?!
Check out the free shuttle bus here!
Edit: Service ended in 2012 Thanks Ben!
Update: There will be free buses to Jeonju until December 31st.
5. Free Tours of Seoul Tourist Attractions with Pros
If you’re coming to Seoul and haven’t had any time to make preparations, don’t sweat it. The city of Seoul offers free walking tours of some of Seoul’s best tourist attractions. The tour operators are professional and well knowledged about these tourist attractions. And they offer tours in Korean, English, Japanese, and Chinese. Professional, free tours of some of the best tourist attractions Seoul has to offer will make you want to do a Gangnam style parody with your mommy.
Click here to make reservations.
photo from dustincolephotos.com
6. Free Tours of Seoul Tourist Attractions from Students
There are a number of free Seoul tour services, mostly from Korean college students that volunteer their time to show you a good time. Typically, they just want to introduce Korean culture and some of Seoul’s best tourist attractions. And a lot of times, they just want to hang make some foreign friends. They’re not professionals tour guides, but you can consider them professional hang out buddies. Make some Korean friends as you hang out with non-professional, but really cool Korean college kids at Seoul’s tourist attractions! FUN!
Check out free tours by Meteor Youth, FreeTourSeoul, and SeoulMate.
7. Free Makeup Samples in Myeongdong
Our next two free tips come from a previous post, but they’re both worth mentioning again. Free make up samples are part of the experience when shopping in Myeongdong. Even if you’re not going to be buying anything while shopping in Myeongdong, if you walk into the makeup stores, they will give you free samples just for looking. If you’re just want the free stuff, simply walk in, take your free sample, walk around a little bit, and head back out. No questions asked!
Tip: Even if you’re not in Myeongdong, you can get free samples after purchase if you buy cosmetics or skin care products in Korea. Just ask, they’ll give it to you!
Click here to see our original post.
8. Free Food Samples in Supermarkets
People love free food, and large Korean supermarkets offer free samples for people to try. You won’t usually find this at small supermarkets, but you will definitely get a chance to sample delicious Korean dumplings, japchae, bulgogi, galbi, haemultang and anything else they’re trying to sell. Even if you’re not going to buy anything, you can still get full for free by just walking around and sampling! Super delicious Korean food for free? Sold!
Click here to see our original post.
9. Free Clothes & Household Goods (Craigslist)
If you’re moving to Korea, you might pack light and have only essential clothes. And you definitely won’t be bringing any furniture with you. If that’s the case, you might want to head over to craigslist to scour for foreigners leaving Korea. There’s always someone leaving Korea, and some really nice people will give away things for free just before they leave. It’s not often, and you have to be lucky to come across such posts, but if you’re new to Korea, broke and sleeping on the floor, and you find a free bed, you might just go crazy at a noraebang like a Korean schoolgirl!
Click here for the free stuff section on craigslist.
10. Free Wifi in Seoul
Wifi tips are some of Seoulistic’s most popular posts, but they’re so good, we have to let you know just in case you didn’t. Wifi comes from devices called routers, and Korea has a number of popular routers that most people buy. The thing most people don’t know is that these routers have default passwords that many people don’t change. So if you’re lucky, you might be able to piggyback off of some of these unchanged wifi passwords. If you’re not comfortable with this pseudo-illegal way of scoring free wifi, you could always go to a cafe that will offer their wifi passwords on their receipts.
See our post on free wifi via default passwords and free wifi in cafes via receipts.
Also, if you’re wandering outside and in need of some free wifi just for a second, the city of Seoul offers 10,000 wifi hotspots completely free! No annoying sign ups or logins. Keep calm and just connect.
Bonus! For those that love to drink, here’s an previous post on free alcohol refill bars in Seoul!
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