Seoullo 7017

The overpass in front of Seoul Station was built in 1970 and by 2006 was judged unsafe for vehicles. Rather than demolish it, the city commissioned the Dutch practice MVRDV to turn it into a walkway; it opened in 2017, and the name carries both dates - 70 for the year built, 17 for the year reopened. About a kilometre long, it is planted with over two hundred species held in round concrete pots arranged, at least nominally, in botanical order, with cafes, a small stage and seventeen connections down into the surrounding streets. Comparisons to New York's High Line are inevitable and not quite fair: this is narrower, more exposed, and the planting is in containers rather than in ground, so it reads as a walkway with pots rather than a linear garden. It is free, lit blue at night, and useful as a way over a difficult junction.

What to look for

• The kilometre of pots - over two hundred species in concrete planters.
• The station view - Seoul Station and the rail yards below.
• The seventeen connections - stairs and lifts into the surrounding streets.
• The night lighting - the walkway lit blue after dark.

When to go

April to June and September to November; evenings for the lighting. It is fully exposed - avoid midsummer afternoons and windy winter days.

Practical notes

The planting is in containers and does not read as a garden. It is narrow, hard-surfaced and hot in summer. An hour end to end, and mostly useful as a route rather than a destination.

Nearby

Seoul Station, Namdaemun market and Myeongdong are at either end.

Key facts