K-Pop Stan’s Guide to South Korea: 5 Must-Do Activities While Studying Abroad

By: Jacqueline Lee

South Korea is the place to be as a kpop stan, so here are 5 activity ideas that you must do during your time abroad! 

1. Collect exclusive photocards from promotions

Instead of buying kpop albums to collect photocards, why not get them for free? Many kpop idols and kdrama actors will have special promotions and sponsorships with particular stores, restaurants, or cafes. These promotions are also called “events.” For example, the coffee chain EDIYA had a collaboration with the popular kdrama actor Byeon Woo Seok, where their event was that every purchase above 13,000 won would receive 4 special photocards. Similarly, I received photocards of LE SSERAFIM by purchasing a fried chicken set from Mom’s Touch and photocards of Jang Wonyoung for purchasing a skin care product from Innisfree.These events are only held in Korea and only last for a short time period, which makes the photocards even more special!

2. Take a dance class at the famous 1MILLION dance studio

1MILLION is known for being a dance studio where professional choreographers teach classes and film dance projects. There were also many k-pop artists who filmed their dance practices in their iconic, gray-walled studio, such as ITZY with “Born to Be” and Stray Kids with “LALALALA.” The studio has many classes available in different levels (Step by 1M (beginner), Learner (intermediate) and Master (professional) for 28,000 won per class (23,000 for your first class)). The songs used for each class is not posted on the website, so I found it helpful to check out the choreographer’s Instagram story to see if they posted what song they will be using for their class. I found the place very foreigner friendly and a great experience overall, so I highly recommend going if you are interested in dancing! 

3. Visit the “BTS bus stop” in Gangneung

There are many attractions outside of Seoul where it would be too time consuming or inconvenient for a typical short vacation in Korea, which is why I suggest doing some 1 or 2 day trips in different cities throughout the semester! If you are an OG BTS stan, you may recognize this bus stop as the cover of their “Spring Day” album released in 2017. This bus stop is located in Jumunjin Beach in Gangneung, which is about 3 hours away from Seoul. You can take a bus or the train to Gangneung Station. Besides the bus stop, the beach has many great photo spots and was not crowded at all, making it a relaxing weekend getaway spot. 

4. Attend a kpop festival

In addition to kpop concerts, Korea also has many kpop festivals or award shows where you can see multiple artists in one night. Several of the concerts that occurred during Fall 2024 were: Gangnam Festival – Yeongdong Daero K-pop Concert, K-link Festival, KGMA Awards, and KBS Gayo Daechukje Global Festival. There are usually tickets available for these festivals on travel websites for foreigners to purchase. They sometimes provide transportation too! I attended the K-link Festival in October and I was able to see aespa, RIIZE, THE BOYZ, ITZY, and tripleS all in one night! Going to these festivals are definitely worth it because they are only hosted in Korea!

5. Visit a pop up store for a kpop group’s comeback

Another kpop thing that is exclusive to Korea is a pop up store for a kpop group, usually when they have a comeback. You can usually find out about them through the group’s Instagram or Twitter, and they are frequently set up in a mall or its own shop in shopping streets such as Seongsu. These pop up stores will sell merchandise that is exclusive to the store, but is usually in high demand for popular groups which means that sometimes you have to wait in line or reserve a spot in advance. I didn’t know about this, so when I tried to go to the IVE pop up, I wasn’t allowed to go in the store because the reservations were already full. However, one time I was passing by a P1Harmony pop up in the Uplex mall right next to Yonsei, and was surprised to see that the actual group members were there signing the walls and interacting with fans! Even though I was not familiar with the group, I was still starstruck with how close they were. This is when I found out that sometimes the kpop groups would attend their popups unannounced, and lucky fans who happened to be there would be able to see them. Going to these pop ups are always so cool because of the special displays they put up, and these stores are only open for 1-2 weeks, so make sure to be updated with the groups’ social media so you don’t miss it!

EXPLORE SOUTH KOREA