Hi to all. My name is Konstantin, I’m from Moscow. I will be in Seoul from Monday to Thursday (9 to 12 september), and I can play badminton only on Monday and Wednesday. Can anyone recommend me place to play or wants to play together? I will be live in hotel at 58 Sejong-daero, Jung-gu, Seoul. I've been playing for 5 years, 3-4 times per week. I'll have rackets and shoes.
Your best bet is to jump on the #2 line and go two stops west to Ahyun Stn, and play at Ahyun Elementary School. An alternative would be to walk to Hoehyeon Stn and take the #4 line 6 stops north to Hansung Univ and play at the clubs I mentioned in this post. You might even try PM'ing samuelng, to whom I made that suggestion. Also, sainkr is just 2 stops away on the #4 line at Chungmuro so you could try PM'ing him. Good luck.
event, thanks for recomendations! i will try on wednesday. how i understood i can in this places just come, pay and play, right?
I can't speak for every club but for the most part, a club will let you play 2 or 3 times before they insist you join. I have seen some with a guest fee and I have heard of a donation box but my impression is that they are rare. No one asked me for any money at the Sky Club at Ahyun Elementary School but I just happened to be there with a member. Oldhand just showed up there one time, though, so he might be able to tell you.
Event, thanks for all, i think about going tomorrow (wednesday) to ahyun school. maybe we can play together? it's not important for me how much it cost, because i just would like to play good badminton with good peoples and the day after tomorrow going home.
Hi my name is Julia and I am from Denmark I'll be staying in Seoul for about six weeks and really wan't to play badminton during my stay. Are there any clubs or good Places to play close to Magok-Dong? //Julia
Post #120 above redirects to post #55, which has a map to the Magok Badminton Gym. As far as I know, it is the biggest badminton-only gym in Seoul, with 12 courts. It has an admission fee so you don't have to worry about sponging off a club or anything.
Dear Event I will be staying in either Yeongdeungpo-gu or Gangnam-gu in Seoul next week (13-17Oct) and i would like to find a place to play. Can you recommend a place that i can play, and a contact person whom i liaise with since i do not speak Korean. Is the Skyclub near to the place i am at since this is my first trip to Seoul? Thank you - Neo
I guess it depends on where you are in Yeongdeungpo. If you are near the #9 line, the Magok Gym will be easy to get to, whereas if the #700 bus comes near your door, your can use it to get to the Gyenam Gym (both mentioned in above posts). If you're in Gangnam, there are threads where I've suggested some gyms but no one has ever visited one and lived to tell the tale but either way, if language is an issue, your best bet might be the SNU Club. As for a contact person, I can't help you there. Only tanzent seems to have played in Gyenam or Magok so you could PM him but I don't know if he's still around on BC. At the SNU club, someone should be capable of communicating. Also, several people have received suggestions from me on this forum in the last few months but few have posted back here saying what they found, if anything. You could try PM'ing some members who are in that category. I know it's confusing but there seem to be two Sky Clubs that have been mentioned in this thread. One is at Ahyun Stn and the other plays, along with many other clubs, at the Dongdaemoon Gumin Gym near Janghanpyung Stn. The former wouldn't be far from you but the latter would.
Hi Event Thank you for the usual prompt response. I will try my luck at the Ahyun Elementary School (and provide some feedback). Do you know if they play on specific days or everyday since the availability of my play depends on my work schedule?
Hi Event, All, My apologies to rehash a question that has already been asked a few times. I'll be in Seoul for the next few months and I'm staying in Vabien Suites in Jung-gu area, near Seodaemun station on line #5. I'm an intermediate level player and would like to play in a local club on weekends and possibly weekday evenings. I tried going through the badminton times link posted by event before, but the link is in Korean and the search option does not work if I try to use Google translator. I would truly appreciate if you can point me to a club that is welcoming to foreigners and a club where possibly a few members speak English. I'm happy to hop on to the train for a short commute if the club is good. Thanks in advance!
Well, my advice would be to a) ride the subway 2 stops (plus transfer) to Ahyun and try the Sky Club at the elementary school there; or b) ride the subway 4 stops to Shinchon and try that one at Wow Park; or c) PM any of the now several BC members who have asked about the same area and try to get some first-hand information. To find out who they are, you might need to look at the Shinchon/Seogang thread in this forum.
I've just returned from Korea and played at the Ahyun Elementary School while i was there. The entrance is a little hard to locate, but other than that, they play everyday except Sun from 7-10pm, which is great. There are a total of 6 wooden floor courts and the players vary from beginner to intermediate. Look for Min while there and he is one of the few that can converse in English. The atmosphere is generally friendly and it takes a while to break the ice. I had my Korean friend to help me while i was there. I played a total of 4 games there and they waived off the 3,000won when i was there. Was told to bring some shuttlecocks next time i play there though. Would look forward to hearing other BC-ers' feedback about their playing experience in Seoul in other locations.
Thanks event for your reply, and apologies for the delay in my response. I will probably try the Sky Club at Ahyun as it's closer to my hotel. Thanks aikyneo for your detailed response. I will try out the Sky Club and look for Min. I live in Simei, not far from you! Where do you play in Singapore?
I play either at bedok sports hall on weekdays and revenue house on Sundays. PM me and we can catch up a little more.
Thanks for this helpful post event. I did not bring my racquet and thanks to your post, I went to Badminton Mart in Digital Media City and bought a Yonex racquet. Thanks again!
An update: I managed to find the Sky Club in Ahyeon elementary school. The entrance is a bit tricky especially since it gets dark pretty early in Seoul these days. I printed this picture from oldhand's response and used that to get there. Initially I sent them a message through their website but there was no response so I decided to drop in directly today evening and request for their permission to play. The members were very kind to admit me in and I start playing from this week. They also offered me a nice hot cup of coffee, a piece of chocolate to celebrate Pepero Day and asked me to watch a few games I could not go last earlier since I forgot to bring my ankle brace and went on a hunt last weekend to find a brace locally. I found the McDavid ankle brace in a sports shop around Dongdaemun stadium. It was quite a hunt, as I went to almost 20 shops around the stadium and came up empty. I was about to give up and go to the train station, when I saw a shop called "Multi Sports Shop" right in front of Exit 4 (I think) of Dongdaemun History & Culture Park station and decided to give it one last try. And I got lucky there! I also saw quite a few shops there selling Yonex, Wilson & Victor racquets - I did not inquire on the prices though.
There's a club near in ilsan to play 7am to 11pm and unlimited play for 2000 krw per head. They have 6 courts there and playing for doubles up to 31pts
Hi Event. I apologise for the horrendously late reply. LOL I was actually off this site for like 2 years as I found a friend who would take me to Shindorim to play every Saturday. Lol. I didn't search for the rest as you said, it is quite difficult if one does not speak Korea. I speak basic Korean, so that's how I got around. But I'm currently not in Seoul. It has been 5 months since I was there. But with the MERs outbreak and such. I have doubts I want to go any time soon
