Why the exit number helps you find a destination
Korean street addresses are real and legally binding — the Road Name Address Act (도로명주소법) makes the road name address (도로명주소) the address in all public dealings — and a station exit number can provide an additional landmark. What people give each other is the station and the exit. Shop signage, event posters, restaurant listings, hotel confirmations and "where shall we meet" messages all use the same grammar: station name + number + exit (번 출구).
That works because the exits are numbered in order around the station, and because every exit is labelled with the same number above ground, below ground and on the map. Two people who have never met can stand at Hongik University Station exit 9 (홍대입구역 9번 출구) and find each other.
It matters more in Seoul than in most cities for an unglamorous reason: the stations are enormous, and they sit under wide roads you cannot casually cross. Seoul's network runs 338 stations over 359.86 km, and the big interchanges were built as long underground concourses beneath arterial roads. Choose the exit closest to your destination before leaving the concourse.
The stations that catch people
Exit counts at the busiest interchanges, per Korean Wikipedia's station articles:
| Station | Exits | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Seoul Station (서울역) | 15, including a 9-1 | Four rail systems, a bus interchange and the airport line all under one roof |
| Gangnam (강남역) | 12 | Strung along Gangnam-daero, an eight-lane road; exits 1–6 and 7–12 are on opposite sides |
| Hongik University (홍대입구역) | 9 | Exit 9 is the nightlife side, exit 1 is the Yeonnam side, and they are different neighbourhoods |
| Express Bus Terminal (고속터미널역) | sub-numbered (8-1, 8-2) | Three lines, two bus terminals and a 620-shop arcade; many passages have no exit number at all |
| Jamsil (잠실역) | linked directly to Lotte World | The useful routes are internal passages rather than street exits |
Express Bus Terminal is the worst case. Its Line 9 additions were numbered 8-1 and 8-2 rather than 9 and 10, and a great many of the corridors that connect the station to the terminal buildings carry no exit number whatsoever — you navigate by the name of the building instead.
How to find yours
Get the number from the map app before you travel. Naver Map and Kakao Map both give the exit as part of a walking route, and Naver Map's place pages list it in the address block. Search the destination in Korean — the results are far better — and read the number off the itinerary before you get on the train.
Then read the platform sign. Every Seoul platform carries a board listing every exit by number with the landmarks it serves: City Hall (시청), Lotte Department Store (롯데백화점), the hospital (병원), the bus transfer centre (버스환승센터), and so on. Use the board to check which exit serves your destination. Many exits connect through the unpaid concourse. If your chosen route would cross a fare gate again, ask staff about the available route and any re-entry conditions.
Follow the number, not the compass. Exits are signed continuously along the concourse with arrows and numbers, and the underground layout rarely matches your mental map of the street above. Trust the arrows.
If you emerge wrong, go back down. In central Seoul, walking round the block usually means walking to a signalised crossing and back, which is longer than retracing the concourse — and the concourse is dry, level and lit.
The underground arcades
Seoul's central stations are joined by a network of 지하도상가, underground shopping streets that predate the subway in places — several were built as air raid shelters and pedestrian underpasses in the 1970s and 80s. Seoul Facilities Corporation (서울시설공단) runs 25 of them, holding 2,788 shops; anything inside a station's paid area is Seoul Metro's instead.
The ones a visitor actually walks through:
| Arcade | Where | Size | Shops |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goto Mall (고투몰), Express Bus Terminal | 서초구 신반포로 지하200 | 31,566 ㎡ | 620 |
| Gangnam Station underground centre | 강남구 강남대로 지하396 | 12,315 ㎡ | 212 |
| Jamsil Station | 송파구 올림픽로 지하265 | 8,446 ㎡ | 139 |
| Hoehyeon (회현), near Namdaemun | 중구 소공로 지하58 | 9,031 ㎡ | 225 |
| Euljiro (을지로) | 중구 을지로 지하88 | 20,334 ㎡ | 216 |
| Sogong (소공), by Lotte Hotel | 중구 소공로 지하102 | 6,799 ㎡ | 150 |
Shop hours and passage access can differ. Check the particular arcade’s opening hours before relying on it as an indoor route, especially overnight.
The catch is that they are long, they curve, and the shopfronts look identical. Use them as a corridor with a destination exit number in mind, not as a place to wander and then look for a way out.
Small things that save time
- Lifts do not serve every exit. Check the lift locations and any service notices for your station. With a suitcase or a
pushchair, search the lift first and the exit second.
- Exit numbers are the same in every language. They are just digits, so a
Korean-only sign is still readable, and you can show a number to anybody.
- Bus stops are numbered off the exits too. A route sheet saying
"강남역 6번 출구 앞" — in front of Gangnam Station exit 6 — means the stop directly outside it, not the next one along.
- Some exits close overnight where they run through a building or a
department store. If you are travelling on the last train, aim for a street-level exit rather than one inside a mall.
