Korean Subway Information

 

Hello. Guys.

 

Today, I I'm going to introduce the Korean Subway.

Korean Subway

 

Let's start!

목차

1. In which city is the subway located?
2. How much is the subway fare?
3. How to buy ticket?
4. How to use?
5. Subway Map
6. Lastly

 

1. In which city is the subway located?

In Korea, the subway serves as a convenient means of transportation, and it may be the most preferred means of public transportation for both Koreans and foreign visitors.

 

The subway is currently available in five major cities in the Seoul metropolitan area, including Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon. Busan, Daejeon, Daegu, Gwangju.

 

 

2. How much is the subway fare?

The subway fare varies from region to region and is as follows.

 

1) Seoul metropolitan area

 - Transportation Card User : Adult ￦1,250 / Teenager ￦720 / Child ￦450
 - Single Travel Ticket User : (Basic fare applies to travel distances of less than 10km)Adult and Teenager ￦1,350 / Child ￦450

  * Additional charge: ￦100 per 5km within a distance of 10 to 50km / ￦100 per 8km over a distance of 50km

 ※ The fare is scheduled to change from June.

 

2) Busan

 - Transportation Card User

  * Section 1 – Adult ￦1,300 / Teenager ￦1,050 / Child ￦650

  * Section 2 – Adult ￦1,500 / Teenager ￦1,200 / Child ￦750

 - One-way Ticket User

  * Section 1 – Adult ￦1,400 / Teenager ￦1,150 / Child ￦700

  * Section 2 – Adult ￦1,600 / Teenager ￦1,300 / Child ￦800

 

   ※ Rate structure: 1 section (within 10 km) / 2 section (within 10 km)

 

3) Daejon

 - Transportation Card User

  * Section 1 – Adult ￦1,250 / Teenager ￦880 / Child ￦550

  * Section 2 – Adult ￦1,350 / Teenager ￦960 / Child ￦600

 - One-way Ticket User

  * Section 1 – Adult and Teenager ￦1,400 / Child ￦600

  * Section 2 – Adult and Teenager ￦1,500 / Child ￦650

 

   ※ Fare structure: Section 1 (within 10 km) / Section 2 (over 10 km)

 

4) Daegu

 - Transportation Card User : Adult ￦1,250 / Teenager ￦850 / Child ￦400

 - One-way Ticket User : Adult and Teenager ￦1,400 / Child ￦500

 

5) Gwangju

 - Transportation Card User : Adult ￦1,250 / Teenager ￦900 / Child ￦500

 - One-way Ticket User : Adult and Teenager ￦1,400 / Child ￦500

  * Adults (19-64 years old) / Adolescents (13-18 years old) / Children (6-12 years old)
  * Free for children under 6 years of age with adults regardless of residence

 

 

3. How to buy ticket?

To use the subway, the first step is to purchase the right transportation card or ticket for your needs. Passengers can use a single travel ticket or rechargeable cards such as Tmoney, Cashbee or MPASS multiple times. One-way ticket cards are available at the automatic ticket machine and require an additional 500 won deposit. The deposit can be refunded when the card is returned through the deposit refund machine after use.

Ticket Vending and Card Reload Device

 

1) Tmoney and Cashbee

Tmoney and Cashbee are transportation cards that can be used on public buses and subways in several different metropolitan cities and locations throughout the nation. With this transportation card, travelers can save the hassle of purchasing single journey subway tickets for every ride and enjoy discounts on rides during transfers from one bus to another, one subway line to another, or from bus to subway or vice versa (within a transfer time limit).

Tmoney cards can be divided into a basic Tmoney card, integrated cards, foreigner exclusive cards, customized card, and mobile Tmoney. Tmoney cards can be used as a transportation card as well as a method of payment at affiliated stores. Cashbee card also functions as a transportation card and a method of payment at affiliated shopping centers and convenience stores.

 

Tmoney and Cashbee card price is from ￦2,500.

You can buy convenience stores (GS25, CU, 7-Eleven, Ministop, etc.) bearing the Tmoney or Cashbee logo in areas of use listed above.
 * Tmoney card can also be purchased from ticket vending and card reload devices inside subway stations within the Seoul metropolitan area.

 

Also, you can refund all retail locations. but, card price and service fee of 500 won are not refundable. Travelers are advised to load their card in small amounts as the refund process for over 50,000 won can be complicated and time-consuming.

 

2) Korea Tour Card

Korea Tour Card is a useful transportation and travel card exclusive to international tourists. The card provides convenient access to public transportation anywhere in Korea. Korea Tour Card also provides discount benefits at popular attractions such as National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, Everland, and Lotte World. The card can be purchased online or at offline stores. A mobile app version of the card is also available and can be used on devices that support NFC function to pay for services and purchase goods. The mobile app allows convenient access to all the benefits of the KOREA TOUR CARD without the hassle of carrying a physical card in your wallet.

 

Korea Tour Card price is ￦4,000.(Card is not loaded upon purchase / Cash only)

You can buy Korea Tour Card as below.

 - For online purchase, check the Korea Tour Card website for detailed information.

www.koreatourcard.kr

코리아투어카드

 

 - Card vending machines at major Seoul subway stations from Line 1 to 4 and at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 Station, Gimpo International Airport Station, and Seoul Station on Airport Railroad Line
 - Convenience stores: 7-Eleven, emart24 (card may not be available in all stores)
 -  In-flight purchase: Jeju Airlines (40 international flights stopping at Incheon or Busan)
 - Affiliated banks within airports: Shinhan Bank (Incheon International Airport branch (Transportation Center B1), Jeju International Airport) / Woori Bank exchange booths (Incheon International Airport near Arrival Gates A-F (between exits 9 & 10) in Terminal 1 1F & Arrival Gates A-F (exit 4) in Terminal 2 1F, Gimpo Airport in Domestics Terminal 1F, Jeju International Airport near Gate 5 1F, Gimhae International Airport)

 - Other locations: Shinhan Bank (Myeong-dong Branch, Hongik Univ. Branch), Seoul Myeong-dong guesthouse Como

 

Also, you can refund convenience stores and Tmoney service desks at subway stations (Seoul Subway Lines 1-8, Incheon Subway Lines 1-2)
 * Cards can also be reloaded using the card reloading devices inside subway stations.
 * Upon refund, travelers can receive the remaining balance loaded in the card with a service charge of 500 won; card purchase payment will not be refunded. Cardholders are advised to load their card in small amounts as refund process for over 50,000 won can be complicated and time-consuming.

 

3) MPASS Card

MPASS Card is a transportation card exclusively for international tourists traveling in the Seoul metropolitan area. The pass offers 20 rides a day for the duration of the pass. Additional funds can be loaded to MPASS to be used as a Tmoney card.
* Please note that MPASS cannot be used to pay for taxis and may not be accepted at convenience stores.

 

MPASS comes in five different durations: 1-day, 2-day, 3-day, 5-day, and 7-day passes. MPASS will be registered as day one upon its first use and will be valid until midnight of the last day. MPASS can be purchased with Korean won only.

Card Duration	Price	Discounted price(after 17:00)
1-day pass	￦15,000	￦12,000
2-day pass	￦23,000	￦20,000
3-day pass	￦30,500	￦27,500
5-day pass	￦47,500	￦44,500
7-day pass	￦64,500	￦61,500

 

You can use Subway lines, airport railroad all-stop train, Seoul city buses (mainline buses, branch buses, circulation buses, city buses, night buses)

 

You can buy and refund travelers can purchase or receive card refunds from the areas listed below. Refund applies to the card fee and remaining balance loaded in the card; 500 won will be charged for the refund service.
* MPASS prices include a 5,000 won deposit. When the card is returned, users will receive a 4,500 won refund.

 - Incheon international airport : Tourist Information Center, 1F, Passenger Terminal 1 in front of Gates 5 & 10 / 07:00-22:00
* Refunds at the airport can only be made at the Tourist Information Center.

 - Seoul : Seoul Station Tmoney Town, 1F, Seoul City Tower near Seoul Station (Seoul Subway Line 1, 4, AREX), Exit 10 / Weekdays 09:00-18:00 or Myeong-dong Tourist Information Center, In front of Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station (Seoul Subway Line 2), Exit 5 / 09:00-20:00, Closed on the day of Seollal (Lunar New Year's Day) & Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving Day)

 

 

4. How to use?

To use the card for public transportation, you must tap your card when boarding and getting off buses or entering and exiting subway stations. Transfer discounts are also available, limited to four times a day, within a transfer time limit of 30 minutes (up to 1 hour from 21:00 to 07:00 next day). However, the transfer discount will not apply if you are transferring to the same numbered bus even if it’s within 30 minutes or re-entering the same subway station after exiting.

 

 

5. Subway Map

You can download and use this subway map or get information through the link below.

Seoul metropolitan subway map_English.pdf

6.16MB

Cyber Station in Seoul Metro

Cyber Station in Seoul Metro

 

Busan Metro Line Map_Korean and English.pdf

2.01MB

Cyber Station (humetro.busan.kr)

Cyber Station

 

Daejeon Metro Line Map_Korean and English

Daejeon Transportation Corporation (djtc.kr)

Daejeon Transportation Corporation

 

Daegu Metro Line Map_Korean and English

DAEGU METROPOLITAN TRANSIT CORPORATION Cyber Station (dtro.or.kr)

Daegu Concert House

 

Gwangju Metro Line Map_English

광주도시철도공사 > 사이버스테이션 (grtc.co.kr)

광주도시철도공사 > 사이버스테이션

 

 

6. Lastly

Today, we learned about the subway in Korea.

I hope it was helpful for your trip to Korea.

 

See you next time.

 

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Thank you for reading and Happy New Year. :)