Dress Up in Hanbok

Hello dear readers!

Coming to Korea and not getting to experience dressing up in Hanbok would be a shame. I’ve been on the lookout for place where to try it and after some good research found the best one.

But before telling you how to get there I am going all the way back to the times of Joseon dynasty which lasted for approximately five centuries, from July 1392 to October 1897. This was the last dynasty of Korean history and the longest-ruling one in terms of Confucianism. History is a very subjective field despite claiming to be based on “facts” so I can’t be sure that everything I will write is 100% true but this is what I know.

Like any other period, the Joseon one had its ups and downs but what is important in terms of my today’s post is the fact this period had left a substantial legacy to modern Korea.

Many of the modern cultural norms, social attitudes towards current issues, much of the modern Korean etiquette and the modern Korean language derive from the traditions and culture of Joseon.

Those were times, when the Korean trade, science, literature, technology and of course culture, saw its highest peak of prosperity.

Well, now you may ask why am I telling you all of this? Simply because I want to introduce to your attention the traditional Korean clothing, known as Hanbok (한복).

It is believed that nowadays Hanbok is a direct descendant of the hanbok worn during the Joseon Dynasty period, specifically in the late 19th century. It had gone through various changes and “fashion fads” during all those five hundred years under the reign of Joseon kings and eventually “evolved” to what is mostly referred as a typical Hanbok these days.

The place I went to – Bukchon Hanokstay (Hanok homestay).

How to get there?

Take the subway to Anguk station (안국역) on Line # 3 and get Exit 2 on your way out.

As you climb up the stairs you will be facing a road so keep following it, until you see those signs in front of you.

After 200m of just walking straight you will see a big poster indicating the way to the place. Here is what it looks like.

Turn right and you will find yourself on a tiny road through Hanoks (Korean traditional houses). A few meters after you’ve turned right, take a left turn and you will see the place. It is a one way road with no exit on the other side so you shouldn’t miss it.

Why go? It is one of the places, where for the money you will pay 8,000W or 7,000W discount will be offered to those who like their homepage on Facebook, you will get good quality Hanboks to try.

The staff members are very friendly and speak good English, too.

So for that amount of money you will get a chance to dress up in Hanbok and get a small Polaroid size picture, taken by the staff included in the price.

Of course, after that you will be able to take as many photos as you want with your own camera. There is no limit of time either, unless there is a queue of people waiting after you. We spent more than 1h 30min and the total of photos we had in the end were around 200.