Safety in South Korea

Overall: Korea is one of the safest countries in the world, and walking through back streets alone at night is unremarkable here.

Belongings: Leaving a laptop or wallet on a cafe table to reserve a seat is normal local behaviour, though there's no reason for you to test it.

North Korea: The proximity of the border has no bearing on daily life. Military rhetoric is background noise that locals barely register.

Weather: Summer brings serious typhoons and flooding rain, so check forecasts if you're planning mountain hikes. Trails close when conditions turn.

Cameras: Surveillance is everywhere, which is a large part of why street crime and petty theft are close to nonexistent.

Traffic: Drivers can be aggressive and delivery scooters routinely use the pavement, so pay attention at crossings even on a green light.

Lost property: If you leave something on the subway or in a taxi, there's a very good chance it ends up in a lost property office or comes back to you through the police.

South Korea has some of the lowest street crime in the world. A phone left on a cafe table will not be touched, and locals rely on that freely. Schemes aimed at tourists barely exist, but two places are worth knowing.

Itaewon and Hongdae at night. Bars that pull you in from the street, and hostess bars where women keep you company. The evening's bill climbs into the hundreds of thousands of won through drinks bought for staff, and your card is sometimes requested "to open a tab". Better not to enter a venue you were invited into from the street.

Taxis. Broadly honest and metered. The problem comes late at night in club districts, when drivers refuse fares or demand a fixed price — unlawful, but not worth arguing about at one in the morning. Use an app, where the price is fixed in advance.

Shopping. Haggling is fine at Dongdaemun market and in Myeongdong, but outright deception is absent. Returns culture is strong: keep your receipt and you can usually take something back without discussion.

The real threat to your wallet in Korea is not fraud but your own spending: the country is designed to make it easy and unnoticeable.

Drugs are the harshest subject in the country. Cannabis is unconditionally illegal, and not as a formality: for Korean citizens the law applies extraterritorially, so using it in a country where it is legal remains a criminal offence. Foreigners in Korea are prosecuted and deported for drug offences. There is no testing on entry, but detentions on suspicion do occur.

Hidden filming. Molka — recording people without consent, especially in changing rooms, toilets and on escalators — is a serious offence carrying real sentences. It is also why Korean phones have a shutter sound that cannot be switched off. Photographing people in close-up without permission is best avoided on ordinary courtesy grounds too.

Drinking in public is legal — a beer in a park or on the Han river is entirely lawful and very common. Drink-driving, by contrast, is punished severely and the blood alcohol threshold is low.

Medicines. Pseudoephedrine products and strong painkillers are restricted. Bring prescription drugs with the prescription and a translation.

Military sites and the DMZ. Photographing military installations is prohibited, as are drones near the border and over Seoul. On a DMZ tour, the rules are followed to the letter.

Foreigners are expected to carry their passport.

Vaccinations. None required, and no certificates are checked on entry.

Water. Korean tap water is potable and tightly monitored, though Koreans themselves often prefer bottled or filtered out of habit. Drinking from the tap is safe.

Fine dust. From March to May comes the misemeonji season — a mix of dust blown in from continental Asia and local pollution. On bad days the index climbs high, and anyone with asthma should watch the forecast and carry a mask. Every local has a dust forecast app.

Heat and humidity. July and August bring 35°C at high humidity, plus the jangma rainy season. Heatstroke happens, but the infrastructure helps: air conditioning is everywhere.

Healthcare. Among the best in the world, with first-class equipment. Expensive without insurance: a specialist consultation at a major hospital costs a noticeable sum, and an inpatient stay quickly runs into thousands of dollars. A policy is essential.

Pharmacies. Medicines are not sold in supermarkets — everything goes through a pharmacy, and many familiar drugs require a prescription. A basic kit is easier to assemble at home.

Korea ranks in the upper part of the Corruption Perceptions Index. Nobody takes bribes from tourists, and offering money to an officer is treated as a separate offence.

Police stations exist in every district, and police are called on 112. Response is fast and foreigners are treated correctly, though not every officer speaks English — ask the operator for an interpreter, the service works.

The 1330 hotline. A round-the-clock tourist line with interpretation into Russian, English, Japanese and Chinese. It is the most useful number in the country: they help not only with routes but with disputes in taxis, hotels and shops, and will even interpret a conversation with a police officer over speakerphone.

Lost property. Almost always returned. The Seoul metro runs a central lost-and-found, and forgotten bags and phones genuinely reach their owners.

If you are detained. You have the right to a consul and an interpreter; ask immediately. Do not sign Korean-language documents without a translation.

Emergency numbers: 112 for police, 119 for ambulance and fire, 1330 for the tourist line.