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Seoul has hundreds of gay bars spread around a handful of neighborhoods, but most tourists become familiar with Itaewon, a foreigner-friendly enclave that seems to have people from every country on the planet wandering around, along with many American and Korean soldiers. The gay heart of Itaewon, nicknamed "Homo Hill", has seen an explosion of foreigner-friendly, upscale gay bars, in a convenient location. English and other foreign languages are spoken by most of the bar staff and customers in Itaewon.
A cozy modern bar next to Queen and across from Soho and Why Not?. From the Itaewon Subway Station Exit 3, walk straight ahead one block and make a right, then take the 2nd left. You'll see a sign for Always Homme on the left side of this uphill lane about half a block up. A popular pre/post club meeting place. Staff speak English and some German and Japanese. Barman Sean and waiter Moon can provide helpful info on the local scene. Owner, Paul, also runs Why Not?. Exceptional selection of fine wines, spirits, fresh juices, and quality coffees. Crowd is a combination of expats, tourists, and young locals. Open nightly from 8pm-ish until dawn, and afternoons on Sat and Sun.
A gay chill-out bar in the heart of Itaewon's nightlife zone. From Hamilton Hotel, cross the street and walk straight down the hill and take the first right turn. Wunderbar is half a block down this lane, on the right side. This comfortable and welcoming bar is a casual, cool space to hang out with friends, old and new.
Gay-owned cozy lounge bar with panoramic view in the heart of Itaewon's gay scene.
Lesbian bar at the top of Homo Hill. Discreet and nice.
From the Itaewon Subway Station Exit 3, walk straight ahead one block and make a right. OWOO is in the building on the corner, across from the fire station. Press the gold button in the elevator to go to 4/F. Gay-owned OWOO is a northern European styled Nordic lounge bar. A cozy and comfortable place for everybody including gays, lesbians and straights. Management said as of Apr 2012 the crowd was 80% G&L and busiest on weekends.
Located next to Always Homme and across the street from Soho. Quite small with half of the space occupied by a bar with bar seating. Against the wall opposite the bar is a long wall shelf with more stools. It is nicely decorated, with friendly bartenders. A good place for a drink for singles or couples, but not great for groups since there is no table seating.
From the Itaewon Subway Station Exit 3, walk straight ahead one block and make a right, then take the 2nd left. You'll see a sign for Queen on the left side of this uphill lane about half a block up. Queen emphasizes cool, funky pizzazz and the decor is exactly that. Large windows look out over Homo Hill and a strip of glittery bubble chairs line the patio for good weather front row seating. Bar and lounge seating inside. Not a lot of room to talk or sit and have a drink, but if you want to dance all night it's a good place to go. Crowd is mainly younger locals (in their 20s) with a few westerners mixed in. Gets busy after 10pm and crazy packed on weekends.
Adjacent to Why Not? and opposite Always Homme. From the Itaewon Subway Station Exit 3, walk straight ahead one block and make a right, then take the 2nd left. You'll see a sign for Soho on the right side of this uphill lane about half a block up. one of the main dance areas on Homo Hill, complete with a stage and stripper poles. The VJ plays the latest (mainly American) dance hits/remixes with video showing on numerous monitors around the club. The clientele is VERY mixed both as to orientation (gay, lez, bi, straight, other) as well as ethnicity, with it being the one of the most popular LGBTQ night spots for foreigners in Korea. English speaking staff.
Fun gay bar. Pop music. Nice people. Cheap drinks. Hang out spot in Itaewon.
From the Itaewon Subway Station Exit 3, walk straight ahead one block and make a right, then take the 2nd left. You'll see a sign for Why Not? on the right side of this uphill lane about half a block up. House music draws the dance crowd after midnight until dawn. Upscale local/foreign crowd with higher ranking soldiers, embassy workers, foreign English and educated, well-dressed Koreans. Very nice staff who make conversation with everyone and seem to be having a genuinely good time. The club plays American pop remixes, techno and some house. Open late. Busiest between 12:30-2:30am. Highly recommended for visitors. Some lesbian patrons as well.
From Hamilton Hotel, cross the street and walk straight down the hill and take the first right turn. Wunderbar is half a block down this lane, on the left side. Take the stairway at the back of the parking garage down to Wunderbar. Modern, white and clean decor. Mostly Korean, Japanese and Chinese customers in groups, but everyone is welcome here. It's a nice, lounge ambience with cocktails, beer, wine and snacks. Open nightly from 9pm until the early morning hours.
Jongno is Seoul's biggest gay enclave, with more than a hundred clubs and venues located in the center of Seoul in the Nagwon Dong neighborhood to the north and east of Topkol Park (Independence Park). The majority are quite small and serve a traditional Korean clientele, now mostly mature. But, Jongno is changing with the times and newer additions to the gay neighborhood tend to be larger, more open and more international in outlook. During the day the neighborhood is known for musical instrument shops, traditional arts and crafts stores, tea houses, and the nearby Insadong shopping road. In the evening, the lanes and alleys of this densely packed, low-rise area, become filled with food tents, tipsy salarymen, and thousands of gay men going to and from their favorite havens. If you have a Korean friend along to translate, you might like to visit one of the traditional soju bang, serving snacks and Korean and Chinese-style liquer. But if you're alone, try some of the bars listed below where you'll be at ease with a more international gay bar system and friendly, English-speaking staff to welcome you.
Coffee, beer, whisky, cocktails and other beverages. They can help you find other gay bars, saunas, gay cinema, and jjimjilbang (cruising spaces) in the neighborhood.
Opposite side of street from Jongo 3-ga Subway station Exit 4, in the same building as Tomato karaoke. Modern, warm and cozy gay cocktail lounge. Very friendly and comfortable venue with a neighborhood feel. Korean, English and Chinese languages are spoken here, so, for foreign visitors, it's a good place to get updated information about gay culture in Korea. Calm and dim lighting, pop music mixed with chill-out tunes for a chance to converse with friends. Crowd is late 20s - 40s. Busiest weeknights before midnight and late on weekends. Open nightly from 8pm until early morning.
Take Ankuk Subway Station Exit 4 (orange line). Behind exit, turn right and you will find Changduk Palace. COZY bar is opposite the palace. This gay-friendly bar welcomes visitors from around the world. A friendly, western style bar with a modern, masculine interior. They have tables and bar seating. The gentle and cute owner and his staff speak English well and are pleased to fill you in on the gay scene. Reasonable prices on many kinds of wine, whisky, beer, and Korean drinks (soju) served with food. Patrons tend to be white collar, bearish and manly types, mostly in their 30-40s and are happy to mingle with foreigners and exchange stories and laughs. Even if you come in alone, you may find friends here.
Charming staff. Mature gay Korean men.
Coming out of Jongno 3-ga Subway Station Exit 5, look at the opposite side of the street for a small lit sign of a white silouette of a stag head. Sister of the main branch in Itaewon, this club became instantly popular with Jongno's Gen-Y crowd (20 and 30-somethings) who mostly congregate at the tables in groups. A cocktail lounge with snacks, the environment is modern, incorporating wood textures, and feels more like a restaurant than a lounge. Pop and K-Pop beats keep the pace uptempo. Once-a-month party exclusively for OWOO's Facebook friends. Open nightly until early morning. Most crowded on weekends.
Big, nice interior with terrace. Crowd is bears for bears.
Take Jongno 3-ga Subway Station Exit 3 and make a U-turn when you come out onto the street. At the corner building at the intersection and you can easily spot the Shortbus sign on 3/F. Take the stairway up to 3/F. This gay cocktail and wine bar has beautiful, contemporary architectural design. Music is a mix of lounge and house. Friendly staff speak English, French, German, Japanese and Korean. Crowd is in their 20-40s. Open nightly from 7:30pm until the wee hours.
Not far from Bar W. A small local Korean-style bar. Friendly and welcoming for women.
About 325m west from Exit 8 of the lime-green line Sinhon Station (there are two Sinchon stations in Seoul). Turn left off Sinchon-ro at Crocodile Club and walk two blocks downhill on the wide alley (you will see the Just Do It neon sign after the first block). Welcoming world for those exploring or intrigued by transgenders. The upstairs main bar looks swank (open bar with view of the street from 2/F and three screened booths for privacy). Soft music allows for conversation. Wood panel bar and business-like/conservative atmosphere. There is a hostess (Cindy) and bartender (Mina) and ever-present manager, Zina, who manages both Just Do It and Ladies Club. The upstairs bar is expensive, but standard bar snacks (nuts, pretzels, chips) are complimentary. The upstairs attracts the after hours business man, who gets a chance to sit with a "lady" and buy her drinks. Foreign transgenders should expect to be very popular. Any men who buy drinks for you will pay down your own bar tab. In the basement is a ladies-only bar with plenty of seating and a small dance floor. The downstairs bar offers cheaper drinks. They also serve fruit platters and hot appitizers for a price). They do charge to use their ladies-only changing room (with racks of clothes, wigs, and make-up that you can use to transform). Once you change, you may head upstairs to mingle with men or stay downstairs and chill with other transgenders and transvestites. The hostesses/bartenders/manager are full time CD/TVs or pre/post-op TGs.
Reported to be popular with locals and expats. Latin music and snacks.
Look for a sign with a cat on it.
Lesbian-owned and operated. Take Exit #2 from the Shinchon Station and walk towards Yonsei -- turn left at the last alley before the bridge (there's a big church across the street). Go down the alley about 50 meters and you will see a sign that says "Bar Indigo". Turn left in front of that sign -- there's a building set back from the alley, with a sign written in Hanja (no Korean or English). That's Mongwhan. Busiest on Sat night.
A cosy western style bar. There is a nice looking bartender who can speak English well.
Check their website to get directions and see the bar's logo, because there's no sign: just the violet logo to guide visitors. It's a nicely decorated basement space with friendly, English-speaking staff. Drink prices are fairly reasonable. Some basic snack dishes are also available. It's a small space, but it includes a central stage where they have performances at their monthly party.
Upscale gay bar and lounge. The menu is fairly large including whole bottle sales of white and red wine and champagne, plus the usual cocktails, bottled beers and a good coffee and juice selection. The music is hard, deep, electro-house with some Korean pop and gay club music mixed in. Busiest between 3-5am.
Famous karaoke. Busy late evenings.
Near exit #5 of the Jongo 3-Ga subway station.
Famous for karaoke. Busy late.
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