Korean Souvenir Shopping: Affordable gifts to send to family [PIEF Foreign Reporter]

A quick Google search will inform you of all kinds of fun souvenirs to buy while in South Korea. As someone who lives here, I am always looking for new ideas to send in care packages or bring with me when I visit home.

I will be traveling back to the US next month, and rather than relying on Google, I enlisted help from my Korean partner, Claire, to see what she recommends I take back to my family.

Claire said we should meet at AK Plaza to do our shopping. Most of our purchases ended up being food-related, so you could also purchase these items at Emart, LotteMart, or any of your favorite grocery stores. In AK Plaza, the grocery store is in the basement.

Let’s start with fun for the whole family - Korean Snacks!

Assortment of Korean Chips and Crackers

Various Packages of Dried Seaweed for Snacking and Pairing with Rice

The snack aisle is so fun to peruse. The options are inexpensive and are essentially edible bubble wrap when sending packages. You will find sweet, salty, fishy, flavored goods - sometimes all in one package. Some of my favorites are the chocolate churro bites and the various HBAF flavored almonds.

I know that seaweed snacks have become quite common in the states, but Korean stores have many varieties of dried seaweed!

Chapagetti is the Ramen on the Top Right of the Photo

Next, we have ramen. I love ramen, but all of the choices tend to overwhelm me. Claire showed me the most popular options and some of her favorites. I ended up purchasing Chapagetti because I have yet to try it and Claire recommended it. Plus, upon further research, I learned that Chapagetti is one of the ingredients in Chapaguri, the dish made internationally famous by the movie Parasite.

Olive Young is a Great Place to Purchase Masks

I am a bit of a skincare fanatic so I couldn’t leave without at least some skincare souvenirs from Olive Young. There are several locations in Pyeongtaek and we visited the location in AK plaza. Based on Claire’s recommendation, I purchased various types of face masks produced by Mediheal. I also threw in a couple of masks with animal faces that I found at Artbox, for the kids.

My Souvenirs from this Shopping Trip

Finally, Claire showed me some fun drinks I could take back to the states with me. I purchased a can of Silkhye (Korean rice drink), Omija tea packets, and some chocolate straws which are less traditional but will be appreciated by my nieces.

I could go on for hours about souvenir shopping but this was a great day of purchasing affordable items that are fun for everyone and specifically recommended by one of my Korean friends. I can’t wait to share this stuff with my family!

This article is written by Emily Peacock a PIEF Foreign Reporter