Kakao map
Kakao map is the ultimate must-have map app, especially since Google Maps hardly works in Korea and can’t calculate travel or transit. Instead, it’s Kakao to the rescue. It’s instant, flawless, and easy. Use it for walking, bus, metro and driving directions, with real-time arrival updates, and help finding local restaurants and businesses.

Kakao taxi
Taxis are most everywhere, but for those times when you’re in a more rural location, or after midnight when public transit stops running, or when you just need a guaranteed ride - Kakao Taxi can be a lifesaver. It’s fast, easy, safe, and on time.

Kakao talk
Kakao Talk is the most popular chat app in Korea. It’s free, fun, and emoji-filled. If you’re a K-drama fan, you’ll notice the characters texting each other constantly all day long. It’s a thing. Install the app, and make a user id, and chat away.

Papago
Papago is an AI language translation app. Like all superior Korean technology, it can instantly translate language based on contextual clues so that you receive more accurate language translations, with voice, conversation, and image functions. It also has a gigantic phrasebook of useful expressions.

Talk to me in korean
Make your Korean visit even easier by learning some Korean. Learning Hangul, the Korean alphabet, is a huge help so you can read signs and names. Talk to Me in Korean has a helpful website and app with bite-size language lessons to help you understand the basics you’ll need to use on a daily basis, plus anything else you want to learn.
