Noryangjin Fish Market

Noryangjin has been Seoul's main fish market since 1927 and moved into a large modern building in 2016 - a move contested for years by traders who stayed in the old hall, which is worth knowing since some of the atmosphere people came for went with the dispute. It runs around the clock, with the wholesale auction in the small hours and retail on the floor all day: several hundred stalls of live fish in tanks, crab, octopus, abalone, shellfish and dried goods. The system is two-stage. You choose and negotiate at a stall, pay by weight, then take the fish to a restaurant on the upper floors, which charges a separate per-person fee for slicing, side dishes, a table and cooking the frame into a soup afterwards. Both charges are negotiable and both are where visitors overpay. Go with a rough idea of prices, agree everything before anything is netted, and be prepared to walk away.

What you actually see

• The tank floor - several hundred stalls, live and iced.
• The night auction - the wholesale trade in the small hours.
• The upstairs restaurants - separate fee to slice, seat and cook.
• The frame soup - the carcass made into maeuntang at the end.

When to go

Any time - it runs all day and night. Autumn and winter for crab. The auction is in the small hours and is watchable from a viewing area.

Honest expectations

Two separate bills, both negotiable, and overcharging visitors is a known and persistent problem - agree the fish price by weight and the table fee per head before committing. The building is modern and functional rather than atmospheric.

Nearby

The Han river parks and Yeouido are across the water.