Tongin Market
통인시장
Plan around the lunchbox cafe rather than the market: it closes on Tuesdays and stops selling tokens well before the market itself shuts.
Language
Place information
- Korean name
- 통인시장
- Address
- 18 Jahamun-ro 15-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
- Nearest station
- Gyeongbokgung Station (경복궁역, Line 3) (Exit 2)
- Opening hours
- Otherwise 07:00–21:00 Tongin Market Dosirak Cafe Mon·Wed~Fri 11:00–15:00 Tongin Market Dosirak Cafe Sat·Sun 11:00–16:00 varies by shop
- Closed
- 3rd Sun of the month · Tongin Market Dosirak Cafe Every Tue
- Hours notes
- It is the cafe, not the market, that most visitors come for.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Admission
- No entry fee — you pay each vendor
Nearby
Frequently asked questions
How does the Tongin Market lunchbox work?
You buy brass yeopjeon tokens at the Dosirak Cafe, take an empty tray around the lane, and pay participating stalls with tokens instead of cash, then eat the assembled tray at the cafe.
Do all stalls accept the tokens?
No. Visit Seoul notes the token system applies in participating stores only, so check the signage before spending one.
Stories about this place
- Three Days in Seoul, One District a Day: Jongno, the West and the Southeast
A three-day Seoul itinerary built around one district per day: palaces and museums in Jongno, Hongdae and the Han River in the west, then Bongeunsa and Jamsil in the southeast.
- Six Seoul Traditional Markets, Compared: Food, Opening Days and Tips
Gwangjang, Noryangjin, Namdaemun, Tongin, Gyeongdong and Mangwon compared on what to eat and buy, who each suits, Sunday opening, opening hours and which station to use. The six do not stand in for one another, so choose by day and hour rather than by what they sell.
