Romantic Korea: Namsam’s Love Lock Trees

Korea is really big on romance. There are some notoriously romantic places in Korea, one of those being the love lock trees in Namsam at the base of the Namsam Tower. The idea is that you and your significant other buy or bring a lock, write a message on it, and then attach it to one of the “trees” or the fence, in essence, locking in your love. It sounds cheesy, but they actually look pretty cool. I’ve heard something similar is done on the Great Wall of China in Beijing.

Since I went there with my co-worker and her two sons, I can’t really attest to how “romantic” it is. Maybe I’ll have to come back with Matt and add a lock so we can make sure our love is locked down, in case our marriage didn’t secure that enough already…

To get to Namsam Tower and the Namsam Love Lock Trees, take the Seoul subway Line 4 to Myeongdong Station, and take exit 3. Go south along Toegye-ro 18-gil street to the Pacific Hotel and turn left. Walk along Toegye-ro 20 gil street until you see the Ministop, and then turn right and walk along Toegye-ro 20-na-gil street. At the end of the street, you will see the stairway to the cable car. Once at the top, walk towards the tower, the lock trees and fences are on both sides of the tower.