Your Korea Trip Toolkit

Tipping isn't part of Korean restaurant culture. Leave cash on the table and your server may try to return it, thinking you forgot your change.

Until 2023, Koreans were legally 1 or 2 years older than their international age. The government changed the law, and most Koreans now use international age day to day, though you'll still hear the old system.

Korean convenience stores (CU, GS25, 7-Eleven) serve hot food, sell alcohol until midnight, have seating, and are open 24/7. They're basically mini-restaurants.

Korea is packed with coffee shops, and Koreans drink iced Americanos even in winter. There's slang for it: 얼죽아, 'iced Americano even if I freeze to death.'

Koreans care more about your zodiac animal (띠) than your star sign. Ask a Korean 'what's your 띠?' and they'll know immediately. It's based on a 12-year lunar cycle.

Korean numbers use units of 만 (10,000) and 억 (100,000,000), not thousands and millions. A ₩30,000 meal is '3만원', and an apartment worth ₩300,000,000 is '3억'. This trips up almost every visitor.