Seoul Searching | Fun at Lotte World!

On our second Sunday in Seoul, my husband and I chose to go to a place that Yue will never be able to resist - Lotte World! It is a theme park after all, and there would be no chance in hell that Yue (or any other kid, for that matter) would say no to this. The little man got out of bed as soon as we told him we were going to a theme park. He even ate breakfast in a jiffy, and was the first one to take a bath that morning.

By 8:30 am, we were out and about, waiting for the subway to take us to Jamsil Station. It was our first time and the only time we took the subway during our two-week stay in Seoul.

Waiting for the train to arrive.

The train came after a few minutes, and about three or four stops later, we finally arrived at Lotte World!

Hello from Lotte World!

But first things first - tickets! We purchased ours at a discount, thanks to my Korean unni. She was the one who bought them at the Ticket Office using her credit card, which had some sort of ongoing promotion.

Ticket Office.

From the regular rate of 48000 won (around $41 or Php 1900) each for the 'Daily Passport Ticket', we were able to buy ours for only 15000 won (around $12 or Php 600). That's just 45000 won (around $38 or Php 1785) for the three of us!

Our tickets to adventure!

The Daily Passport Ticket includes admission and playing facilities to both the indoor and outdoor theme park, as well as free admission to the Lotte World Museum (will write a separate blog post about this later). If you're not into rides, you can settle for the Admission Only Ticket, which is a bit cheaper at 33000 won (around $28 or Php 1300). However, I suggest you buy the Daily Passport Ticket for you to fully enjoy the theme park. 

Lotte World Adventure!

More of our Lotte World Adventure after the jump!
Since we arrived early that day, we had to wait a bit for the theme park to open. Both the Lotte World Adventure (the indoor theme park) and the Magic Island (the outdoor theme park) operate from 9:30 am to 10:00 pm daily.

EXO just added a new member. :)

Once we got inside, we leisurely took photos first. Not many patrons yet at this hour, which made it perfect for photo ops. No long lines, no photobombers, no kids running around to ruin the photos. Haha!

The Happy Christmas Tree smack dab in the middle of Lotte World Adventure.

My boys enjoying their time together. :)

Waiting for Santa to arrive?

Waiting for Pororo Park to open.

It felt warm and toasty inside the theme park so we took off our winter coats and stowed them in the locker area. Lockers can be rented for just 1000 won each.

With Lotty and Lorry, the stars of Lotte World.

Lotte World Adventure has five floors inside, and boasts of 32 different attractions that can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike. The rides are categorized into three - Family Rides, Kids' Rides, and Thrill Rides. Since we have a kid in tow, most of the attractions that we tried were Family Rides.

One of our favorites was The Adventures of Sinbad, an underground boat ride with a bit of scare factor. Nothing my seven-year-old couldn't handle, though.

The Adventures of Sinbad.

We also enjoyed the 4D Shooting Theater, an interactive ride and shooting game with life-like special effects. We even got to battle villains using the 'Lotty Gun'.

Inside the 4D Shooting Theater.

Ready to fight the villains! :)

For the rest of the morning, we spent our time lining up for the rides in Underland, located at the first floor basement. This area has a 'Wild West' theme to it, and the rides here were mostly 4D adventure rides that felt so real. Yue enjoyed them as much as we did!

Lining up for Wild Wing.

After finishing all the rides in Underland, we took a break and had lunch at Cafe d' Azur, located at the first floor. It's actually a burger joint owned by Lotteria, so you can't go wrong with the food and its taste.

Cafe d' Azur.

There are lots of food options inside Lotte World Adventure, so don't fret if burgers and fries aren't your cup of tea. There are several restaurants in each floor, with menus that vary from one to another.

Burger, chicken, and fries, what else? :)

We didn't want to go on rides as soon as we ate, so we decided to take a stroll inside Fantasy Forest. 

Fantasy Forest.

It's an interactive zoo that features birds, butterflies, turtles, and a lot more. 

Inside the Fantasy Forest.

Hamsters!

My Ninja Turtle!

Yue loved this area so much because for the first time in his life, he finally got to see a squirrel up close. Can you see how delighted he is in this photo? :)

Yue's first time to see a squirrel!

Baby beetle!

Butterflies...

... and birds!

After our Discovery Channel-esque experience at Fantasy Forest, we headed to the second floor to line up for the Bumper Cars. But alas, this ride had a 140 cm height requirement, and our son was still too small for it!

Yue was a bit disheartened, so we went back to the Adventure Kiddie Zone in the first floor, which had Kiddie Bumper Cars. The line was already long and winding when we got there, and Yue was ready to burst into tears when he saw the throng of people. My husband saw a shorter queue at the Jumping Fish, so we coaxed the little one to line up for that ride instead. 

That's Yue riding the Puffer Fish!

Then we took him to the Arcade, where he played games with his Dad.

Bonding.

Vroom!

One-on-one.

Popping balloons to get a prize!

With the Bumper Cars completely forgotten, we headed outside to check out the rides at Magic Island.

Magic Island.

There are 17 attractions featured in the outdoor theme park, which includes thrill rides such as the Gyro Drop, Gyro Spin, and Gyro Swing.

Gyro Drop!

That I no longer have the guts for such rides made me feel so old. Lol! During my high school and college years, I would hop on extreme rides like these (think Anchors Away and Space Shuttle in Enchanted Kingdom) without a second thought. But now, I'd rather stay on the sidelines and take photos of screaming people. Haha!

Gyro Swing.

We didn't stay outside for too long because of the biting cold. I reckon the temperature was below zero that day, and we only had two layers of clothing on since our winter coats were stashed in the locker area.

Christmas Parade!

So we headed back inside just in time to witness the fun and festive Christmas Parade, complete with colorful floats, cute mascots, and talented performers. The parade left the kids, especially the little ones, in awe!

Lotty and Lorry!

At this point, all three of us were already feeling tired. But my husband knew that we could never leave Lotte World without me stopping by the Folk Museum. So as soon as the crowd dispersed, he lead the way to the third floor, where the museum is located. More about the Lotte World Folk Museum on my next blog post! :)

Lotte World Adventure

240 Olympic-ro Songpa-Gu, Seoul, South Korea
Tel. +82-2-1661-2000240