Dongseongno & the Old Downtown

Getting here

From Seoul

Take the KTX from Seoul Station to Dongdaegu. DaeguTour and KTO's 2023 guide give about 1 hour 40 minutes; KTO's Korean course page, updated in January 2025, lists 77 KTX runs a day between Seoul and Dongdaegu, 05:10 to 23:00, taking about 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours 25 minutes. From Dongdaegu, metro Line 1 runs to Jungangno and Banwoldang. By road, KTO's 2023 guide gives about 3 hours 40 minutes by express bus from Seoul Express Bus Terminal to Seodaegu Express Bus Terminal.

From Incheon Airport

KTO's 2023 guide gives two routes. The airport limousine runs to Dongdaegu Terminal in about 4 hours; or take AREX to Seoul Station, about an hour, and the KTX on to Dongdaegu, about 1 hour 40 minutes. KTO's airport page, updated in May 2026, puts the AREX express at 43 to 51 minutes to Seoul Station. Either way, finish on metro Line 1 to Jungangno or Banwoldang.

From Daegu International Airport

KTO puts Dongdaegu Station about 15 minutes from the airport by city bus 101 or 401; change there to metro Line 1 for Jungangno or Banwoldang. The airport is at 221 Gonghang-ro in Dong-gu, DaeguTour says, and KTO's 2023 guide lists direct international flights to it.

From Dongdaegu Station (KTX)

DaeguTour's metro map puts Dongdaegu, Jungangno, Banwoldang and Daegu Station on Line 1, so the ride downtown needs no change. For Seomun Market, change at Banwoldang to Line 2 and again at Sinnam, where Lines 2 and 3 meet, then take the monorail to Seomun Market Station and leave by exit 2 or 3.

On your doorstep

• Seomun Market One of the three major markets of the Joseon dynasty, in KTO's 2023 words, and one of the largest traditional markets in Korea in its 2024 guide. Both pages close it on the first and third Sunday of each month, and the 2023 page lists the night market on Fridays and Saturdays, 19:00–23:30, and Sundays, 19:00–22:30.
• Kim Kwangseok-gil A mural street near Bangcheon Market: a 350 m wall of statues and murals about the life and music of the singer, who lived in the neighbourhood. KTO lists it as open 24 hours, and a Kim Kwang-seok Singing Contest is held each autumn.
• Dongseong-ro Daegu's main downtown area, KTO writes, home to department stores and small and large shops, by Jungangno and Banwoldang stations. It is one of DaeguTour's 12 Scenic Views of Daegu, and so is Seomun Market.
• February 28th Jungang Memorial Park The last stop on KTO's 6.62 km downtown course: a park in the city that, in KTO's words, commemorates the meaning of modern Korean history.
• Dongsan Cheongna Hill Where the modern culture alley starts, says KTO; its houses were covered in ivy in summer, which gave the hill its name. The course passes Daegu Jeil Church, Gothic and designated a cultural property.
• March 1st Independence Movement Road The 90 stairs that remember the March First Independence Movement, on KTO's alley course. KTO's 2025 Korean course page notes that the stairs are hard going for wheelchairs.
• Gyesan Cathedral Built in 1899 as a hanok church, burned, and rebuilt in 1902 to Father Robert's design (KTO, 2025). KTO's 2026 page describes a blend of Romanesque and Gothic styles, French-made stained glass and the remains of Korean Catholic martyrs; it is about 700 m from exit 14 of Banwoldang Station.
• House of Yi Sang-hwa The poet lived here from 1939 until his death in 1943, KTO writes. It is a stop on the 1.32 km alley course.
• Yangnyeongsi herbal market A specialised market for medicinal herbs with 350 years of history in KTO's 2024 guide, and a 367-year history on the 2026 festival page. KTO counts about 170 herbal shops on the street of the Joseon-era herb market, and the alley course visits the Daegu Yangnyeongsi Museum of Oriental Medicine.
• Korean Medicine Experience Town Yangnyeongsi's hands-on centre at 45 Jungang-daero 77-gil, open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00–17:30, and closed on Mondays (KTO, 2025).

One easy day from here

1. Morning Start at Dongsan Cheongna Hill and walk KTO's 1.32 km modern-history course: the 3·1 Road stairs, Gyesan Cathedral, Yi Sang-hwa's house and Jeil Church, ending by the Yangnyeongsi herbal museum and market.
2. Lunch Braised beef short ribs in the Dongin-dong jjimgalbi alley in Jung-gu, a tip on KTO's downtown course.
3. Afternoon Kim Kwangseok-gil's mural wall, then the shops of Dongseong-ro and February 28th Jungang Memorial Park.
4. Evening From Friday to Sunday, Seomun Night Market: metro Line 3 to Seomun Market Station, exit 2 or 3. KTO's 2023 hours run to 23:30 on Fridays and Saturdays and to 22:30 on Sundays.

Before you book

• If the night market matters, stay over a weekend: KTO's 2023 page lists it on Friday and Saturday to 23:30 and Sunday to 22:30, and the market itself closes on the first and third Sunday of each month.
• Book near Jungangno or Banwoldang. KTO links Dongseong-ro to both stations, Banwoldang is the Line 1 and Line 2 transfer, and Line 1 runs straight to Dongdaegu for the KTX.
• Festivals come to the centre: DaeguTour lists the Dongseongro Festival in April and May, the Daegu International Musical Festival in June and July and the Powerful Daegu Festival on Dongseong-ro in July, and in 2026 the Yangnyeongsi Herbal Medicine Culture Festival ran from 7 to 10 May. Book early for those weeks.
• Save the Korean Medicine Experience Town for Tuesday to Sunday: KTO lists it as closed on Mondays.