Namhansanseong - Seoul Photo Location

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Seoul is a fascinating city to see. However, most rarely get a good look of the vastness. As part of an ongoing series of blog posts. I am documenting all of the great locations to photograph a good cityscape of Seoul. In these posts, there should be enough information to know what to expect and if it is worth the journey.

This is one of the more difficult locations to get to before sunset if you get off at 6, like I do. I have taken two paths to the top. The first is to go to Macheon station and head towards Seongbulsa temple. From there, you have an hour-long hike for 2km that includes 370 meters of elevation gain. While it takes a bit of effort, it did make the view from the top all the better. The easier and faster way is to take the subway to Sanseong Station and then catch bus number 9-1 to Sanseong-ri. From there, it's about a 20-minute walk to the gate but there is still around 100m of elevation gain.

The reason I love this location so much is that you get Lotte Tower, Namsan Tower, and Bukhansan in one easy shot. In July, the sun sets between Lotte Tower and Namsan Tower for a few days.

There is a road that goes right up to the gate. Due to the ease of access with a car, do not expect to be alone. On a mediocre day, there were still 10 people but on a nice night when I went there were closer to 50, so many that there wasn't enough room for everyone to set up where there is a clear view.