A Seoul day from Bukchon's hanoks to a Hongdae night market

Slip through Bukchon while most residents are still getting ready for work. Eight hundred traditional hanok houses wedged between the Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung palaces. Walk the marked photo spots if you must, but the quieter alleys three streets over are the better prize.

Arrive at nine for the changing of the guard at ten — Korean royal guards in hanbok crossing the Gwanghwamun gate in formation. Wear a rented hanbok and entry is free. Walk the main avenue to the throne hall, then the quieter back gardens.

The main street is touristy but the alleyways off it are where the tea houses, galleries, and paper shops hide. Look for the Ssamzie-gil spiral building and walk up through its small shops. Order a cup of pine-needle tea somewhere with low floor seating.

The oldest covered market in Seoul, opened in 1905. Bindaetteok (mung-bean pancakes), mayak gimbap (small seaweed rolls), live octopus if you're brave. Sit at whichever stall has the longest line of Korean office workers and order what they're ordering.

Climb the stone steps behind Ihwa Mural Village to the top of the ramparts, where the 14th-century city wall still runs. The view covers the old palace city and Namsan Tower. Go just before sunset for the best light across the tiled roofs.

A working-class neighbourhood on the slopes of Naksan, painted in murals by artists in the 2000s to slow gentrification. Wander the lanes, find the angel-wings stairs and the carp stairs. Residents still live here — keep your voice down.

The university district. Street food stalls set up around Hongdae Playground as dusk falls — gimbap, tteokbokki (rice cakes in chilli sauce), fish cakes. Walk three blocks in any direction to find a Korean BBQ spot; order samgyeopsal (pork belly) and a bottle of soju for the table.