Private City Kickstart Tour: Seoul

Jason was a nice guide. Very accommodating. Friendly. Showed us some interesting, off the beaten track locations. Highly recommend as a quick way to kick off a visit to Seoul.

We ended up with a flight delay and "stuck" in South Korea for about a day. We decided to make the most of it and try and see a bit of Seoul. The airport is quite far from the city, about an hour each way so we needed something short. This tour was perfect, loved having a personal tour guide to ask questions to. We were kind of just along for the ride but if you have specific things you want to do, see, eat or shop for it can be catered for you. We enjoyed seeing and learning about the city. Our tour guide was very kind, great tour!

Jason made it a great experience, with flight delays and closers the plans changed and he put together an itinerary that was perfect! He also had a ton of great recommendations!

Great way to get our feet wet after first arriving in Seoul. Our tour guide was super knowledgeable and very fun to hang out with an we got more acquainted with the city.

I only had a couple of hours so the tour was brief but very enjoyable. Cristina was very accommodating with regards to our meeting place and adapted the tour accordingly.

We had a great experience with our guide Cristina. She covered a broad range of topics on our tour and answered all of our various questions, including about food, shopping, architecture, history, Korean social life, Korean work life, and cultural trends. She was able to make the tour interesting for both our teenage daughter as well as us parents.

I booked a 3 hour walking tour to hit the highlights on my first visit to Seoul....I especially appreciated some "secret" spots that I would have never found on my own, including some nice views of the city and the palace. He has a lot of knowledge to share and it was good to learn more about the history and culture!

Christina tailored our tour to our interests. We learned lots about the culture, about which we knew little. She was patient when someone wondered off but kept us moving along. She was delightful.

My wife and I had an excellent experience with Cristina. The Kickstart tour was a perfect way to start our five days in Seoul and our first time in South Korea. Cristina is a wealth of knowledge and she answered all of our questions. We highly recommend Cristina and this tour.

Guide was on time and very kind. However, we felt like we were trying to extract information from him. At no point did he seem forthcoming with anything. I do acknowledge he knew what he was talking about, but it just felt like we were bugging him to get it.

Cristina personalised the tour to cover hints and tips based on my trip itinerary and was very easy to chat to and knowledgeable on local history and social/cultural background of Seoul/South Korea in general.

Great introduction to Seoul while experiencing the key points of the city at night. Guide was personable & easy to talk to, plus tour went at a great pace. End of the tour gave us some great tips & ideas for our holiday.

Quick great experience with great highlights of amazingly city! Ho Jin is fantastic! Highly recommend!

Ho Jin was a fantastic tour guide and highly recommended. We only had about 1 hour to see Seoul. We did not realize the city center is approximately 1 hour away from Incheon Airport. Although we were about 15 minutes late to the start of the tour, Ho Jin waited for us to arrive. We saw more than we expected in just one hour. We’re excited to go back to Seoul and we will absolutely sign up with Ho Jin for another amazing tour.

My daughter-in-law and I arrived in Seoul in the evening after a long flight from London. After checking into our hotel, we walked around for a couple of hours to stretch our legs and get our bearings. The next day, we walked around in the morning, then met up with Ho Jin at 1:00 for our tour. Ho Jin is very knowledgeable about the past and present of Seoul, so the tour involved learning as well as looking. And even though we covered some ground that we’d already viewed, we gained perspective and a better orientation that proved very helpful during our stay. I highly recommend this tour and Ho Jin as a guide!

Our tour with Ho Jin was very relaxed, we learned so much about the city and country. We really enjoyed it. It couldn’t have been better and it was way more we expected. Thank you so much Ho Jin, Tanja & Linus

My MIL and I spent the afternoon walking around City Hall and Insadong areas with Ho Jin. It was a good introduction to Seoul and South Korea. Ho Jin was very friendly and answered all of our questions. It was great to spend time with a local in a new city. Thank you, Ho Jin!

We had a really nice introduction to Seoul City with Dario. We walked around some of main downtown attractions and Dario gave us input on history and current issues of the city and the country. Dario is a polite, nice person to hang around with.

Ho Jin is one of the best guides in Seoul! He speaks good English and was able to gel well with us, showing us hidden gems and interacting with my children. He recommended good spots for food and sight seeing. If I were in Seoul again, and needed a guide to see other things which I've not seen on this trip, Ho Jin would be my first choice!

Ho Jin was super nice, he showed us alleys we would have never found on our own & recommended places to eat, etc. we would definitely do another tour next time maybe a longer one!

Ho was a great guide. I got lost looking for our starting point and he came to me. I saw many highlights, most I will revisit today. Such an enjoyable time. Thank you.

Ho Jin was an amazing tour guide. Even though the meeting place was a little hard to find, he was willing to meet us where we were at. He was very friendly and made us feel comfortable throughout the tour. He brought us to see areas which we had not visited before like the other parts of Namdaemun Market, the stream, and the elevated walkway with many plants. He also brought us to the place in front of Gyeongbokgung Palace and showed us many places to eat. He was also kind enough to teach us how to use t-money and take public transport. Overall I rate him 10/10 for his patience and hospitality. Thank you, Ho Jin! (expect to walk a lot when with him)

Ho Jin was so knowledgeable and engaging. He was very helpful in kickstarting our visit to Seoul. I already recommended him to my friends!

Fantastic way to start our Korea trip. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and tailored the tour based on our conversation. Could not recommend more! Get cash out before the tour of possible to tip the guide. We couldn't find a reputable ATM so we were unable to tip. We feel so much more confident in Korea now that we have had this amazing tour.

The "withlocals"operatour never responded my messages and worst of all nobody showed up at the meeting point to take me to the tour already paid. By the way the meeting point is incorrect since the tour café no longer exists. I managed to find a phone number in the ticket and had to ask someone else to make the call for me. The lady guide on that number said she had cancelled and sent me a message and that she was not available. Gave me directions to their app so I could ask for another guide who also rejected my request. Through whatsapp the lady guide told they will refund me, but I have not seen any action taken in the viator site. For me it was disastrous because wasted most of 1 of the 2 days I only had to visit Seúl. And so far not dure if a refu d will come.

No show! This ended up half a day of a precious short trip with my son. It was a particularly hot day and lots of walking. The coffee shop name as a meeting point is not correct (no such shop exists). Probably not the providers fault but there is another shuttered hotel called Tmark Hotel (vs Tmark grand hotel!). Poorly organised and managed. I messaged the provider several times on Viator and got a response hours later with an apology

What a fabulous tour and experience! This was my first encounter with withlocals and would highly recommend it to anyone. Jin was knowledgeable in showing us around town and you could tell that he was passionate about what he does. A great way to start off our first trip to Seoul. Thank you so much for your information on a memorable and worthwhile tour!

We had a fabulous day in Seoul with Dan . His local knowledge , sense of humour and communication of facts about Korean life were excellent. He gladly answered all my questions and went out of his way to be helpful. Dan made our day out in Seoul a wonderful experience!

It was my first time in Seoul, I am not used to taking train even in my own country. I got super lost trying to meet the guide and she was helping me through WhatsApp. However for the high price I paid I would expect her to meet me in the middle as I was somewhat nearby her and I was very distress and lost. My tips for others - try to get the host to meet you at your hotel instead of trying to navigate your way through the system or take taxi in a new city. For the high price, this is the least they can do. I went for a free tour the next day with another Company and it was so much better, they provided plenty of info and even offered to meet me when I couldn't find the station.

Its was really wonderful to see the main parts of the City with Sohyun, she is a great guide and such a nice person, very enjoyable to see Seoul with her. Just wished it lasted more time

Emmeke was able to tailor a walking tour of different parts of Seoul which gave me a great insight into the city! She's super knowledgeable about the city and it's sights and she really gave me a good overview of so many different parts of the city. She's proficient in Korean which was totally helpful. She even helped me source the best snail face cream, because you know K-beauty is a total thing :) Highly recommend her!

Dario was very flexible with time/place and adjusted the tour around my wants and needs. Very knowledgeable and can help you with literally any question. He’s completely integrated into the korean society and can give you very useful insights. Highly recommended.