Starfield COEX Mall - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)
Starfield COEX Mall
Starfield COEX Mall
4
About
If you're in the mood for shopping, eating, and entertainment, head to Starfield COEX Mall in Seoul's Gangnam district. As the largest underground shopping mall in Asia, it has over 300 shops and restaurants spread across four floors. Catch a movie at the cinema, marvel at over 40,000 sea creatures at the aquarium, or snap a photo in front of the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves at the iconic Starfield library. Getting there is easy, as the mall is connected to two subway stations. Otherwise, you can join a guided tour of Gangnam to explore more sights including the nearby Bongeunsa Temple. – Tripadvisor
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: Samseongdong / COEX
A large business hub, Samseongdong is anchored by Korea’s World Trade Center, where many important business exhibitions and meetings are held. The enormous COEX mall sprawls underground, providing a myriad of things to do and see, including a large aquarium and movie theater. For a bit of peace and zen, head over to the ornate Bongeunsa Temple which is one of Korea’s most important places of worship. Or take a stroll nearby through the tranquil royal burial grounds of Seonjeongneung, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
How to get there
  • Bongeunsa • 5 min walk
  • Samseong Jungang • 5 min walk
Reach out directly
See what travelers are saying
  • michelle y
    Hong Kong, China38 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    It’s a large mall. Nothing special.
    Visited this mall because of the huge hype of the Starfield Library and being in the heart of Gangnam. Well, the library was quite an instagramable spot, but other than that, there is nothing special about it. It’s just a mall. I guess if it is raining, it woul be a great place to go with lots of restaurants. Personally, I would not come again.
    Visited July 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written July 9, 2023
  • bcheong
    Shanghai, China26,727 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Mall
    Not sure why many call it a huge mall with many shops and restaurants. We walked around and didn’t find it large nor offering many options. The space seems to be taken up by the aquarium, library, 2 hotels and the hyundai mall. At least this place was open and the most lively during Chuseok holiday. Itaewon, Garosu areas were eerily quiet
    Visited September 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written September 28, 2023
  • 197gabes
    Singapore, Singapore137 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Probably the nicest underground mall in Seoul
    One of the nicest and biggest underground mall that you can find around Seoul. This one is connected to a convention center, 3 hotels, a casino, 2 subway lines, an aquarium, a library, a multi hall cineplex and the airport limo bus station, so finding your way around this huge complex is a challenge. If not for the various directional signs strategically placed at junctions, one may never find their way out of the maze of shops and passage ways. Most of the retail shops are located at the basement level. There is a decent selection of brands for shopping but there are malls in Seoul that offers better range, prices and choices. The thing that seems missing here is a supermarket but there are plenty of convenience shops scattered around as alternative. There are plenty of food outlets to choose from too, these ranging from fast food to pub to restaurant. Can get very crowded during lunch time, especially on days where there are events at the center. Guessing you would probably need at least a whole day to properly cover the place. So do come with a good pair of walking shoes and have fun exploring the place.
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled solo
    Written October 19, 2023
  • rlahuddin
    Jakarta, Indonesia338 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    without the library, this place will looks like standard shopping mal in many countries
    this is a mall where coex library is located. it is a good mal with many international brands but without the library, it feels like typical mal in any other country. easy to access by bus or metro, this is a good place to visit. there is giant digital screen outside this mal where you probably recognize for the 3D effects like T Rex jump of from the screen..
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written November 8, 2023
  • Sfd-n-chZ
    69 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Cafe Mama near Coex
    I absolutely love the lasagna dish, which comes with cread and ricotta and honey. It is by far my favorite lasagna dish! The caprese salad was a bit pricey, but delicious. The panini was also delicious and you can definitely taste the cheese!
    Visited December 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written December 16, 2023
  • Deanosaur89
    Edmonton, Canada2,255 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Went for the Library
    We went here for the Library area mainly but found ourselves spending more time than expected. We had a good breakfast at Eggslut and spent some time walking around the mall looking at stores and other restaurants. There is a Gangnam style statue at the east side of the mall if you want a fun picture opportunity. The closest metro is Bongeunsa and we spent a couple of hours in the area.
    Visited December 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written December 19, 2023
  • Trinh H
    Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam35 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Big shopping mall with many brand
    Nice and big mall with many international and local brand. I was here with my friends whole day for shopping and tried foods. We had a nice shopping day at duty free tax. I also visited the library, nice design
    Visited November 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written December 21, 2023
  • San Jules
    Malaysia21 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Amazing library in a Mall!
    You can find this huge library inside the COEX Mall. It's a place where you can take nice pictures, has space to rest and entertain yourself with books! Very interesting design inspired by Library of Alexandria. The library has a lot of books & magazines arranged so tall up to the roof.
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled solo
    Written January 5, 2024
  • bigwawao
    New York City, New York10,212 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great for an afternoon if you have extra time
    Large underground mall worth a stroll especially if you have extra time on hand. But nothing special to it. Best to combine it with the Coex Library for a photoshoot of the floor to ceiling bookcases and if you are interested in temples, Bonguesa temple is at the northern end of the Mall complex.
    Visited February 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 17, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles850 reviews
Excellent
254
Very good
355
Average
184
Poor
42
Terrible
15

Culinary-Consultants
Ferrara, Italy3,470 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
I agree with most that the architectural display out side the Starfield COEX Mall is impressive to say the least. But inside? That's another story. Low ceilings, very dole and depressive. We felt as encased for a lack of better words.

It does not represent inside the modernistic approach from the outside. The quality of the stores are really average and we believed that a structure of this kind would have design better stores and with better choices. Most things once again, cheap Chinese stuff, disposable value items and again the infantile South Koreans with stores filled with teddy bears (for adult people) cute cartoon printed made in China socks (for adults) and the distribution of the stores....very confusing.

Not a well planned mall and nothing to offer except for the Starfield Library, which is really pretty and impressive. Two floors library with lots of colors and places to eat. Basically the only highlight of the Starfield COEX Mall which is pretty average.

Except for the Starfield Library which you can access directly from the streets, the rest of the mall is a waste of pure time. Not recommended.
Written January 29, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

197gabes
Singapore, Singapore137 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Solo
One of the nicest and biggest underground mall that you can find around Seoul. This one is connected to a convention center, 3 hotels, a casino, 2 subway lines, an aquarium, a library, a multi hall cineplex and the airport limo bus station, so finding your way around this huge complex is a challenge. If not for the various directional signs strategically placed at junctions, one may never find their way out of the maze of shops and passage ways.
Most of the retail shops are located at the basement level. There is a decent selection of brands for shopping but there are malls in Seoul that offers better range, prices and choices.
The thing that seems missing here is a supermarket but there are plenty of convenience shops scattered around as alternative.
There are plenty of food outlets to choose from too, these ranging from fast food to pub to restaurant. Can get very crowded during lunch time, especially on days where there are events at the center.
Guessing you would probably need at least a whole day to properly cover the place. So do come with a good pair of walking shoes and have fun exploring the place.
Written October 20, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Leonhkny
Hong Kong, China14,549 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2023
This is one of Seoul's earliest shopping malls and is still a popular hangout place among locals. The underground arcade is huge with major brands readily available. It is so large that even library and aquarium can be found inside. Shopaholics can easily spend a couple hours here.
Written January 6, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jeff K
Pittsburgh, PA2,111 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2024 • Couples
I’ve been to some pretty interesting malls in foreign countries but this is not one of them. It’s very large with a lot of mid-level stores. It reminded me of the Mall of America but flatter. We walked to the far end of the mall to see the aquarium and learned that you had to pay to visit se we skipped it.

The bookstore was the lone highlight for me. It was impressive.
Written April 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Deanosaur89
Edmonton, Canada2,255 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Couples
We went here for the Library area mainly but found ourselves spending more time than expected. We had a good breakfast at Eggslut and spent some time walking around the mall looking at stores and other restaurants. There is a Gangnam style statue at the east side of the mall if you want a fun picture opportunity.

The closest metro is Bongeunsa and we spent a couple of hours in the area.
Written December 19, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sfd-n-chZ
69 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2023 • Family
I absolutely love the lasagna dish, which comes with cread and ricotta and honey. It is by far my favorite lasagna dish! The caprese salad was a bit pricey, but delicious. The panini was also delicious and you can definitely taste the cheese!
Written December 16, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Natalia
2 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2022
I really enjoyed visiting Starfield COEX Mall a lot. Even though it was only limited time for my friend and I there but both of us could feel the vibes of reading. At the time we went there, we almost lost. There was a renovation and we went into the wrong building... he he. I think the signage to go there should be clearer. Anyway, we both were so excited and want to go there again when we will visit South Korea especially Seoul.
Written December 4, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

San Jules
Malaysia21 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2023 • Solo
You can find this huge library inside the COEX Mall. It's a place where you can take nice pictures, has space to rest and entertain yourself with books! Very interesting design inspired by Library of Alexandria. The library has a lot of books & magazines arranged so tall up to the roof.
Written January 5, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kaleb S
Fort Worth, TX72 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020 • Couples
It’s you’re average mall. The library area was kind of cool.. until you realize that many of the “books” are fake and attached to the shelves. Was even more of a bummer when I saw that the “fake” books had duplicates all over the shelves.. They couldn’t even get unique fake books. 🤦🏻‍♂️

Here’s a picture of me looking at a real book about behavioral economics written in Korean. That part was cool.
Written January 26, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

bcheong
Shanghai, China26,727 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2023 • Couples
Not sure why many call it a huge mall with many shops and restaurants. We walked around and didn’t find it large nor offering many options. The space seems to be taken up by the aquarium, library, 2 hotels and the hyundai mall. At least this place was open and the most lively during Chuseok holiday. Itaewon, Garosu areas were eerily quiet
Written September 29, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Starfield COEX Mall - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

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