Happy Hongdaeween!

Happy Hongdaeween!  

This was my first time celebrating Halloween and dressing up with friends officially in Korea, and especially celebrating it in a hotspot like Hongdae. Here’s what I did and some of my recommendations coming from someone who had an amazing first Halloween in Seoul: 

First stop: Fuel! You will be walking around the entire night and on your feet for the majority of the time so make sure to eat. On the night before Halloween, my friends and I met up at Choi Dining in Mapo, which is walking distance from Hongdae’s main street. Their signature Flat Salmon Udon dish was a 10/10. The thinly sliced salmon was like a carpaccio and the wide noodles underneath were so springy and chewy. As you can tell, I’ve not forgotten about it since then and I still want to go back. 

Next, we stopped by the Cambag photobooth which was recommended by one of my friends and the special part of this photobooth is that it records your session with a built-in digicam right next to the main camera so the video comes out retro-looking. This was extra special to me because photobooths aren’t within walking distance for me back home so having a way to save the night’s memories with a physical memoir was so wholesome. For the rest of the night, we walked around the main road in Hongdae and took pictures with people who had costumes we liked. We also got our pictures taken by photographers wandering around too! If you’re worried about whether or not people will actually be out and dressed up for Halloween, rest assured that there are many the night before Halloween. We got ChaBaekDo to end the night, which is one of my favorite milk tea spots and I highly recommend it if you like jasmine milk tea as well. 

On the second night, the day of Halloween, I actually was not in the greatest spirits because of some stress surrounding my family and I’d been told to not stay out too late or go to crowded areas out of safety concerns. Here’s how I still made the most out of the night, especially since Halloween was on a Saturday - this isn’t happening again until 2037!  I met up with my friends at Pasta & Steak BlancNoir in Mapo which was pretty good. I personally wouldn’t recommend it as an amazing option but the ambiance of the restaurant was still warm and cozy. 
 

We went to a BYTP Photobooth in Hongdae and it was one of the coolest interactive photobooths I’ve ever been to… Thankfully it wasn’t too busy but all the other photobooths we attempted to go into were packed full because everyone was trying to get their pictures in for the night. I’d definitely recommend getting your photobooth pictures earlier into the night when it’s less crowded for sure. Honestly, with my knowledge of the Itaewon incident in 2022 I was quite nervous since this was my first time being out in a densely populated area in Korea for Halloween. I’m used to walking around a suburban neighborhood where there’s more than enough space for people to walk around without being back to back. In moments where the sea of people stops walking, it's always good to look for an area off to the side with more room like a store entrance or a less packed sidewalk just in case. And make sure to look out for your friends when you’re all moving through the crowds  too. 

We finished the night by admiring people’s costumes and taking pictures with ones that we liked. What a wonderful Saturween!