Google Maps is a powerful map tool that many travelers use on a regular basis.
However, thinking like this when visiting Korea could turn out to be a huge error.
If you use Google Maps in Korea, you’ll see that it contains a lot of wrong and out-of-date information and is essentially a neglected tool.
Why?
Why Google Maps doesn’t work in Korea
The explanation for this is simple. The Korean government refuses to grant foreign corporations complete rights to Korean maps for ‘security’ grounds. In an age when people can observe the White House using GPS satellite maps, I, even as a Korean, believe this is a stupid excuse, yet the government insists on it.
As a result, in Korea, Google Maps directions, public transit timings, and so on are not updated or are incorrect so Koreans do not use Google Maps, therefore information such as restaurant reviews is also limited.
So what are the other options?
We recommend Naver Map and Kakao Map, both developed by Korean companies. These two apps are among the most common in Korea, and can be compared to Google and WhatsApp. (For example, in Russia, Yandex is more popular than Google, while Telegram is more popular than WhatsApp.
Both programs are widely used, but I recommend Naver Maps. Foreigners can simply sign up by linking it to Facebook without having a Korean phone number, and the overall UI is cleaner. In the end, there are far more restaurant reviews and information than on Kakao Map. Unfortunately, there is no restaurant rating system on Naver Map currently recently.
Finally, in Korea, people often book reservations for restaurants and hair salons in advance using the Naver Map app, which is very helpful. Furthermore, Naver Pay (similar to Apple Pay), which is linked, is good at collecting points, so it might be a huge benefit for visitors who want to stay in Korea for an extended period.