A Guide to Lotte World
pend an action-packed day at the world’s biggest indoor theme park.
As if Seoul wasn’t thrilling enough! Just a convenient train ride away from downtown is Lotte World, a giant beast of an indoor theme park located inside the Lotte World Shopping Mall.
Combining part of the shopping mall into the park’s experience (you know, if you ever needed to buy that Etude House makeup when your beat face gets screwed on the rides) this entertainment complex contains indoor and outdoor ride options, a hotel, Korean folk museum, an ice skating rink with daily live performances, parades and a nice selection of in-park eating options to fill the belly.
Rain, hail or shine, it’s the ideal place to ensure hours of fun without needing to leave. Let’s explore why Lotte World is the greatest time spent staying indoors.
ATTRACTIONS
hough not as big as South Korea’s other major theme park Everland, I was pleasantly surprised that Lotte World has some thrilling roller coasters for an indoor theme park.
There are 55 attraction rides in total including the Kidzone area to experience. Most rides inside the main building called “Lotte World Adventure” are a mixture of fun 4D rides, cart ride experiences, and arcade games while outside called “Magic Island” has the more mature variety of roller coasters.
It is important to note that there are a few rides that will require an extra fee on top of your standard entry ticket to enter such as the “Tomb of Horror” which was around 3,000 KRW.
As we arrived on a weekday, the queue wait for the more popular rides was quite reasonable but you will still be waiting in line, a lot! With Seoul’s human traffic, lines can be a 45 min wait and maybe longer on the popular rides which can be unbearable if you went in winter like us. There is a limited daily quantity of “Magic Passes” which works the same as a Fast Pass at Disneyland letting you skip the queue lines but you must purchase this as an admin ticket on entry and not from a ticket machine at the roller coaster. Alternatively, you can also purchase the Lotte Worl Magic Passes online in advance. It’s a bit more expensive but definitely worth it.
If you are the impatient type and want to only line up for the best, here are the highlights for us (please note that the below table is taken directly from the full list of attractions page on the Lotte World website).
For the Adventurous Frill Seeker
Atlantis
My personal favourite! Locate outdoors it’s a super high-speed roller coaster that can clock up to 72km per hour with twists, falls and turns. Best to line up early as it’s one of the most popular attractions.
French Revolution
The indoor version of “Atlantis” if you will. It’s a high-speed roller coaster that loops 360 degrees in-between the other indoor locations giving riders a uniquely thrilling experience.
Flume Ride
A water ride where you hop into a boat and tour a jungle full of dinosaurs before plunging down the final waterslide.
For the Cautious and Couples
The Adventures of Sinbad
Great for youngsters and mild cheap thrills experience the stories of Sinbad through an underground boat ride with talking temple walls, singing pirates and a fire breathing three-headed dragon.
Balloon Ride
An indoor hot-air balloon inspired ride that rotates above the theme park for a great view.
Inside the Lotte World Adventure area.
The huge ice rink in the middle of Lotte World Adventure.
Lotte World’s Magic Island. Photo Credit: Korea Travel Easy.
seasonal themes and parades
aking a break from the screams of fun (or horror), another thing you definitely want to check out are the many event shows that run throughout the whole day.
Just like Disneyland, Lotte World too has parades with their own brand of mascot characters which make an appearance throughout the show. All parades and goods are themed for the season and when we went in January, it was called “Flower Festival.” Ironic, since January has to be the coldest, most painful winter month ever! Alas, Lotte World has decided on a theme that would chase those winter blues away and decorated the interior with many colourful beds of fake and real flowers as well.
Unfortunately, Lotte World does not provide a full list of their seasonal themes. Their site only displays the most current season, but according to KLOOK these are the themes every year:
Masquerade Ball
From March to June, the parade is themed like a masquerade ball with masked dancers performing on the dance floor.
Rio Samba
From June to August, Rio Samb dancers light the parade for summer with their extravagant outfits and powerful dance moves.
Halloween
From September to October, Lotte World is ready to celebrate all things that go boo!
Christmas
From November to December, Santa comes to Lotte World with everything decorated in the spirit of Christmas.
If you are sticking around until nighttime, the “Let’s Dream Night” Parade has flying lanterns, fireworks, and a light show to enjoy before wrapping up your time at Lotte World. As a one of a kind experience for families with children, children can apply to join in the parade and receive some exclusive gifts as well. How cool is that! Unfortunately, we were still waiting in line for Atlantis and missed the show but if you’re keen, make sure you don’t miss it at 8PM.
The day parade during Flower Festival.
Performance Shows
nother show to enjoy is the performances held at the Garden Stage.
The shows can vary from retellings of traditional stories to dancers showing off their choreography and it was fun to see many local and international dancers, actors, and even martial artists entertaining guests with their
During certain seasons and weather conditions, some attractions or performances will be closed.
Check the website or download their app to see which rides and performances are closed or canceled before going.
moves and acrobatic skills. This was one of the highlights for me and it was definitely worth taking a break to watch.
The shows are also interactive and the performers will also ask audience members to join. At the end, everyone who joined will receive a free gift!
What to Eat
fter some rides and running around, Lotte World would leave you pretty hungry – a hunger that hotdogs and sugar popcorn can’t satisfy.
Lucky for us Lotte World not only has street food style options like pluto pups, chips,
and takoyaki but some real dine-in food like fusion pasta, steak, roast chicken, fruit smoothies, and oh yes, delicious traditional Korean food!
If you don’t want to binge eat on junk food, we definitely recommend checking out the pavilion outside on Magic Island for some satisfying Korean grub.
Lotte World Tips
- Go on a weekday. Even though Seoul’s human traffic is still quite packed even on a Monday, the weekends are way worse.
- The performance schedules are available at the information desk. Pick one up from there so you can time your rides with the shows.
- Lockers are available to rent inside Lotte World for a small fee.
- Something interesting we found out was that it is a standard everywhere at Seoul’s amusement parks that requires you to bring your bags or anything you have on you brought onto the ride with you.
Here in Australia, before everyone goes on a ride they must leave their possessions on the opposite side behind a marked line so no one is carrying or holding anything.
It does have some perks though because I saw some people bring their GoPros and no one refused them from recording. The roller coasters have a place to put your bags in but tends to be a large mesh bag that doesn’t even close! So bring a securely closed bag if you can (a bag pack is even better) or you can rent a locker to place your stuff inside.
GENERAL INFORMATION
ENTRANCE FEES
- 1 Day Park Ticket (Lotte World): Adult: 54,000 won | Child: 48,000 won
- 1 Day Universal Pass (Lotte World and Folk Museum): Adult: 57,000 won | Child: 50,000 won
- Magic Pass Premium Ticket: Ride 5: 40,000 won | Free/Unlimited: 100,000 won
OPENING HOURS
9am – 10pm (Late ticket admission: 4:00pm~)
*Performances or rides may be canceled due to certain conditions. You can get live updates on the performance schedules from their site.
TRANSPORTATION
Take a train to Jamsil Station on Line 2 or Line 8. From there you can get to Lotte World using Exit 4.
Click on the map to see the larger version. | Photo Credit: Lotte World Adventure.
LOTTE WORLD MAP
- Save money on a Lotte World 1 Day Pass using our special deal
- Get a discount on a Lotte World Aquarium Admission Ticket on us
Need a place to stay in Seoul? Use our handy widget to find the perfect accommodation:
- Explore all the winter fun with our guide to Korea’s largest theme park, Everland
- Discover the home of Korea’s famous bibimbap at Jeonju
Updated 9 May 2020