Squid Game Filming Locations in Seoul
The three Squid Game locations Seoul Tourism Organization publishes, set out by scene, by what stands there now, and by nearest station. None is somewhere you travel to; each is somewhere you recognise, and they sit at three opposite ends of the city.
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Seoul Tourism Organization names three places in Seoul where Squid Game was filmed: one subway platform, one intercity bus terminal, one convenience store.
None of them is somewhere you travel to — each is somewhere you recognise. There is no attraction among them, no signage, and all three are still doing the job they did before filming. So this list is arranged by where you already have reason to be, rather than by what there is to see.
They do not make a route
One is in Seocho-gu, one in Jungnang-gu, one in Dobong-gu. The southern edge of the city, the eastern edge, the northern edge.
No subway line serves any two of them: Yangjae Citizens' Forest is on the Sinbundang Line, the Sangbong terminal is reached from Mangu Station on the Gyeongui-Jungang and Gyeongchun lines, and the CU branch from 4·19 Democracy Cemetery Station on the Ui-Sinseol Line.
So treat these as three separate entries rather than a day out. Add one when you are already going that way; string all three together deliberately and the day is mostly travel.
Who this suits, and how to choose
This list suits someone who has watched the show and already has a reason to be in that part of Seoul. If you are thinking of clearing a day just for the locations, all three are likely to fall short.
Each of the three answers a different reason for going.
If recognising the scene is the point, Yangjae Citizens' Forest Station. The platform itself is the scene, and Yangjae Citizens' Forest is right outside the station if you want a walk as well.
If you are heading out of Seoul, Sangbong Intercity Bus Terminal. Seoul Tourism Organization notes that nearby Mangu Station is on the Gyeongchun Line, which makes the terminal an easy stop on the way to Chuncheon, Gapyeong or Cheongpyeong.
If you want a neighbourhood to walk as well, CU Ssangmun Uicheon. Seoul Tourism Organization suggests pairing the store with a look around Ssangmun-dong rather than coming for the shop alone.
Opening times, and when you cannot get in
Seoul Tourism Organization does not give opening hours as such: for the platform and the terminal it points to service information, and for the store it says 24 hours. So what to check is not an opening time but when the trains and buses run.
Yangjae Citizens' Forest Station — you can only stand on the platform while trains are running, so for a very early or very late visit, check service hours in a subway app. The scene is on the Gangnam-bound platform, so check the direction before you go down and end up on the opposite side.
Sangbong Intercity Bus Terminal — bus service is effectively its opening hours. Check on the terminal's website that services are running, and if you are not catching a bus, look from outside the building, out of the passengers' way.
CU Ssangmun Uicheon — open 24 hours, so finding it closed is unlikely. The scene is in front of the shop, though, so the first thing is not to block the entrance customers are using.
The one that is actually recognisable
If you only do one, do Yangjae Citizens' Forest Station.
It is the only one of the three where the scene and the place still coincide. The ddakji game was shot on the platform, and standing on that platform shows you what the screen showed. Seoul Tourism Organization credits the location itself for the scene's force — a station 「like a white spaceship」, giving an old children's game a strangeness it would not have had elsewhere.
The other two do not work that way. The terminal scene is outside the building and the convenience store scene is in front of the shop; recognising either means knowing in advance what you are looking for.
Drinking outside the convenience store is illegal
The scene invites it, and Seoul Tourism Organization heads the invitation off on that very entry: unlike the drama, drinking inside or outside a convenience store is against the law in Korea. Have the food and the soft drinks instead.
All three are places people are using
There are passengers waiting on the platform, passengers boarding at the terminal, and customers and staff at the shop. Do not block the way to take a photograph, and the platform is easier on everyone outside commuting hours.
Search by address, not by name
None of the three is signposted, and two of them — a chain convenience store and an intercity terminal — have names that do not point at this one location. Save the addresses and exit numbers Seoul Tourism Organization publishes beside each entry into your map app before you go.
In this list
- Seoul
Yangjae Citizens' Forest Station
The platform where Seong Gi-hun meets the man played by Gong Yoo and plays ddakji with him. Seoul Tourism Organization puts the force of that scene down to the place itself — a station 「like a white spaceship」, it writes, lending a strangeness to an old schoolyard game. It is the easiest of the three to recognise, and Yangjae Citizens' Forest is right outside.
- The scene
- Gi-hun's ddakji game, on the Gangnam-bound platform
- What is there now
- An ordinary subway platform, unmarked
- Nearest station
- Sinbundang Line, Yangjae Citizens' Forest Station
- Add it when
- You have a reason to be south of Gangnam
- Seoul
Sangbong Intercity Bus Terminal
Where Gi-hun, flush with his winnings from the races and then chased by loan sharks, first meets Kang Sae-byeok. Seoul Tourism Organization describes the terminal as having faded after Express Bus Terminal opened — 「a small local terminal, old and a little shabby now」. Buses still run, and it is mostly people who live nearby who use it.
- The scene
- Where Gi-hun, being chased, first meets Sae-byeok
- What is there now
- A small intercity terminal, still running
- Nearest station
- Mangu Station Exit 1 (Gyeongui-Jungang / Gyeongchun), 6 min walk
- Add it when
- You are heading out to Chuncheon, Gapyeong or Cheongpyeong
- Seoul
CU Ssangmun Uicheon Branch
Where Gi-hun, drinking soju outside a convenience store, runs into Oh Il-nam. Seoul Tourism Organization reads the scene as Korean convenience store culture and then adds one thing immediately: unlike the drama, drinking inside or outside a convenience store is illegal in Korea. It is an ordinary 24-hour branch, in Ssangmun-dong.
- The scene
- Gi-hun drinking soju outside, meeting Il-nam
- What is there now
- An ordinary 24-hour convenience store
- Nearest station
- Ui-Sinseol Line, 4·19 Democracy Cemetery Station Exit 1, 689 m
- Add it when
- You are walking Dobong or Ssangmun-dong
Frequently asked questions
Can I do all three in one day?
You can, but it is not worth doing. Seocho, Jungnang and Dobong are three opposite ends of Seoul, and no subway line connects any two of them. This is a list rather than a route — add one when you already have a reason to be in that district.
Is there a set or an exhibition at any of them?
No. All three are working facilities being used exactly as they were before filming: the platform is a platform, the terminal runs buses, the shop sells things. None carries a sign saying anything was filmed there.
Can I see the arena where the games are played?
No. The game spaces were built sets and none is on this list. The three above are the places Seoul Tourism Organization names as Seoul filming locations, and all three are scenes from outside the games rather than in them. The same page also features a dalgona shop near Hyehwa Station, but that shop supplied the show's dalgona rather than being filmed, so it is not on this list.
Can I drink soju outside the convenience store like the show?
No — and Seoul Tourism Organization says so itself on that entry: unlike the drama, drinking inside or outside a convenience store is illegal in Korea. Have the food and soft drinks instead.
Why does a convenience store and a bus terminal count as a filming location?
Because that is how Seoul Tourism Organization groups them; its page opens by saying it introduces the Seoul places where the drama's main scenes were shot. None of the three is a destination in its own right, and this article does not treat them as one.
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