Solo-Parenting Trips to Korea with a 0-Year-Old and 1-Year-Old | Plans, Packing, Flights, Food | All Summarized

This note is about traveling to Korea with children.

I have visited Korea over 10 times in the past, but
through two solo-parenting trips to Korea,I was surprised to find that Korea is actually such a child-friendly country!In this note, I will summarize key points for traveling to Korea with children, such as
optimal plan examples, flights, packing lists, and accommodation locations.I hope you find this information helpful!

Travel Members

1st time (2023)
With my 1-year-2-month-old eldest daughter. Early March.
Transition period from late-stage baby food to toddler meals. An age where sitting still is difficult.
Characteristic: Falls asleep whenever she is in the baby carrier.

2nd time (2025)
With my 9-month-old second daughter. Mid-March.
Two meals a day, baby food plus milk.
A period where behavior can be roughly controlled with a baby carrier.
Characteristic: Gets sleepy about 1 hour after a meal or milk.

Rough Schedule

Travel Plan Section

[Itinerary]
I traveled for 3 nights and 4 days both times.
As I will explain in detail in the flight section below, 3 nights and 4 days is optimal for those who want to set a relaxed pace for travel days (*which are tiring for both parent and child).

[How to spend time]
Since both were at an age where they couldn't walk yet, the trip was basically centered around cafes and shops I wanted to visit.
Seoul has many slopes and steps, so except for airport travel days, I wasusing a baby carrier the whole time(*requires strong shoulders and lower back).
There were scenes where a stroller could have been used if another adult was present, and I also used a stroller when going from the accommodation to a nearby supermarket.
*Common Korean baby stroller traps
・There is almost always a single step when entering a store
・Stylish shops are often on the 2nd floor
・There is no elevator at the nearest subway station exit

I am a super 'J' (planner), so I always mark the shops I want to visit on NAVER MAP in advance. You can also check for the presence of high chairs on NAVER MAP.
Also, since the child (and my shoulders) get tired from being in the baby carrier, I made sure to create time to return to the accommodation once a day to rest.

[Accommodation/Area]
Staying in anAirbnbis overwhelmingly easier when traveling with a crawling baby!
There are many benefits, such as being able to crawl freely and having cooking utensils available, making it easy to feed milk and baby food.
In my child's case, just being able to crawl around before leaving in the morning makes her nap better and puts her in a better mood later on.
This is what the stay looks like. There are many stylish Airbnbs in Seoul.

For the area, I stayed in Gongdeok, which has good airport access, for the first time, and Konkuk University Entrance (commonly known as Kon-dae), which has good access to Seongsu, for the second time.

▼ I introduce recommended Airbnbs in detail here.

Packing Section

Baby food, diapers, snacks, baby cream, etc., needed for the child can basically beprocured locally.Personally, I feel there is no big difference in quality or price compared to buying them in Japan, so you can adjust according to the child's preferences and the amount of luggage.
This is what the supermarket shelves look like.

I will introduce a detailed packing list for traveling with children in a separate article, but here I will introduce things that were surprisingly useful and things that were unnecessary.

[Useful]
1. Banana case
Worried about whether there will be anything they can eat when traveling abroad... Will they get enough nutrition...
In such cases, in my child's case,she will definitely eat a bananaso I sneak one into my bag.
For me, it makes me feelwell, she ate a banana, so it's fineand puts my mind at ease.
They are easily available at supermarkets and convenience stores, just like in Japan.

2. Wet wipes
You likely carry these around when traveling with children, but since restaurants in Korea often don't provide wet towels, you willuse them like water.

3. Retort toddler food
If you have retort curry or Chinese-style rice bowls for kids, you don't have to worry about choosing restaurants as long as you can get white rice. These are very useful when eating out.
It's also somehow nice to be able to eat freshly cooked rice together.

[Things I didn't need]
1. Barley tea
Just like in Japan, you can easily get this at convenience stores.
Both parent and child drank it like crazy.

2. Chair belt
Most restaurants had high chairs, so I didn't need this.
As mentioned before, you can also research their availability in advance using NAVER MAP.

Flights

When solo-parenting a 0-year-old and 1-year-old, for the sake of (my) peace of mind on the plane, I stake my life ongetting them to nap on the plane for even one second longer. Therefore, I always choose a flight before noon.

The flow is to arrive at the airport early, feed them lunch, let them play a bit in the kids' area, and then get them into sleep mode.
I often prioritize choosing an appropriate departure time over whether it's an LCC or which airline it is.

Since the first and last days effectively become travel days, this is why a 3-night, 4-day trip is better if you have the flexibility.

I plan to summarize recommended airplane seats, age-specific essentials, and how to spend time on the plane in a separate article.

Food

Korean food has an image of being spicy, but there are alsoplenty of non-spicy kids' meals!

I shared things like this with my 1-year-old eldest daughter.
・Bagels and mushroom soup from London Bagel Museum (← exquisite)
・Kimbap (removing the heavily seasoned meat)
・Gyeranjjim (fluffy steamed eggs)
・Kalguksu (light udon noodles)
・Greek yogurt

There is a high probability that they have baby chairs.
Even when I went into a very local-feeling restaurant, they brought out a baby chair from the back.
And at that restaurant, while I was eating meat, the lady there held my daughter for me. lol

Here is a trick for checking the availability of baby chairs in advance.
▼ Baby chair search trick

Also, here is a detailed report on the restaurants I have visited so far.
▼ Summary of restaurants I've visited with a baby

In Korea, I rarely feel“I wonder if this restaurant is okay for kids...”.
This is because people at the next table and the staff are much more likely to entertain or talk to the kids compared to Japan, and there is a strange sense of security thatit's natural to have children around. It's nice for those traveling with kids, isn't it?

Conclusion

It became long for a simple digest version, but does it convey the atmosphere of traveling to Korea with children?
In Korea, I feel that there are many people who like children and talk to them easily!
(I think there are many in Japan too, but I personally hesitate to talk to people suddenly...)

For example, when riding the subway, elderly people, office workers, high school girls, anyone will say, “Would you like to sit?” or “The baby is cute.”

When I was lining up for an elevator at the airport holding a stroller in one hand and a suitcase in the other, an unknown lady told the people in line, “Hey, the baby and mom are coming through! Move, move! Clear the way!” and even did traffic control, which surprised me.

I feel that customer service in Japan is often more polite and attentive, but I really love the atmosphere in Korea where
it is completely natural for children to be there and thehuman kindness.

By the way, if you see a baby not wearing socks, there is a 90% chance that an elderly person passing by will say, “Where did you put the socks?!” Is it similar in Japan? lol

Korea has a familiar food culture, Japanese is relatively easy to understand, and the flight is short.
It is highly recommended for your first trip with children!

It has been a long read, but thank you for sticking with me until the end.
From the next post onwards, I plan to write in more detail about each theme, such as flights, packing lists, and recommended restaurants for families with children.