Seoul Tower

The N Seoul Tower (), officially the YTN Seoul Tower and the Namsan Tower, is a communication and observation tower located on the summit of Namsan () in central Seoul, South Korea. The structure marks the second highest point in Seoul and is considered a local landmark.

Built in 1971, N Seoul Tower is South Korea's first general radio wave tower, providing TV and radio broadcasting in Seoul. Currently, the tower broadcasts signals for Korean media outlets, such as KBS, MBC and SBS.

History of the Seoul Tower

Built in 1969 at a cost of approximately , the tower was completed on 3 December 1971, designed by architects at Jangjongryul, though at the time the observatory was not built, and the tower was only used for transmission purposes, primarily to block North Korean television and radio from reaching Seoul. The observatory was built in 1975, but was not opened due to national security concerns, as the presidential residence at the time, the Blue House, was visible from the observatory, with President Park Chung Hee even saying "Songaksan is visible from there? If so, then the Blue House would be visible too, right?". Even today, telescopes are not mounted in the general direction of the Blue House. Since opening to the public in October 1980, the tower has been a landmark of Seoul. Tower elevation ranges from at the base to above sea level. It was renamed to ''N Seoul Tower'' in 2005, with the 'N' standing for 'new', 'Namsan Mountain', and 'nature'. Approximately was spent in renovating and remodeling the tower, also in 2005.

When N Seoul Tower's original owner merged with CJ Corporation, it was renamed the ''N Seoul Tower'' (official name ''CJ Seoul Tower''). YTN acquired it from CJ Corporation in 1999, and changed its name to ''YTN Seoul Tower''. It has also been known as the ''Namsan Tower'' and ''Seoul Tower''. It is also Korea's first general radio wave tower that holds transmissions antennas of KBS, MBC, SBS TV, FM, PBC, TBS, CBS, and BBS FM.

N Seoul Tower, along with Changdeokgung, was selected as one of the world's top 500 tourist destinations in Lonely Planet's Ultimate Travel List.

Floors and amenities

N Seoul Tower is divided into three main sections called ''N Lobby'', ''N Plaza'' and ''N Tower''. The N Plaza section comprises two floors, while the N Tower section comprises four floors. There are three observation decks throughout the building, although the restaurant on the third floor (3F) and the revolving restaurant on the top floor (7F) offer views comparable to those of the observation decks on the fourth (4F) and fifth (5F) floors.

N Lobby

The lobby has the entrance to the observatory, an information desk, a museum, a cafe, children's theatre, and a nursing room.

N Plaza

N Plaza has two floors. The first floor (''1F'') includes the ticket booth, a souvenir shop, a cafe and a burger shop, whereas the second floor (''2F'') houses an Italian restaurant and a roof terrace. The "Locks of Love" are situated within the roof terrace.

N Tower

The N Tower section has four floors: ''3F'', ''4F'', ''5F'', and ''7F''. Unlike most buildings in South Korea that do not have a fourth floor due to Tetraphobia (similar to Triskaidekaphobia), N Seoul Tower does but avoids Tetraphobia by including the 'F' suffix for 'floor' in the floor name. Note that there is no sixth floor.

Most of the city of Seoul can be seen from the N Tower section, although a lattice transmission tower is situated approximately east of N Seoul Tower. The third floor (3F) of N Seoul Tower has a Korean restaurant called ''Hancook'', and a digital observatory with a 360° panoramic view that showcases Korea's history through 32 LCD screens. Floors 4F and 5F have observation decks and gift shops. The seventh floor (7F) has a French restaurant, which rotates at a rate of one revolution every 48 minutes.

Attractions

Visiting

Many visitors ride the Namsan cable car up Namsan Mountain to walk to the tower. The tower is renowned as a national landmark and for its cityscape views. The tower sits on the Namsan Mountain (). It attracts thousands of tourists and locals every year, especially during nighttime when the tower lights up. Photographers enjoy the panoramic view the tower offers. Each year, approximately 8.4million visit the N Seoul Tower, which is surrounded by many other attractions South Korea offers, including Namsan Park and Namsangol Hanok Village. Visitors may go up the tower for a fee that differs for the following groups: children, elderly and teenagers, and adults. Rates also differ for packages and group size.

In 2012, surveys conducted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government revealed foreign tourists ranked the N Seoul Tower as the number one tourist attraction. The N Seoul Tower is now also a symbol of Seoul.

Lighting of the Tower

The N Seoul Tower is illuminated in blue from sunset to 11pm (10pm in winter) on days that the air quality in Seoul does not exceed as measured by fine dust concentration. During the spring of 2012, the tower was lit up for 52 days, which is four days more than in 2011. The tower uses the latest LED technology to offer visitors a digital, cultural art experience through 'light art.' The N Seoul Tower puts on many different shows, including the "Reeds of Light" and "Shower of Light."

An exception to this is Earth Hour. During Earth Hour, lights are turned off nationwide to promote energy conservation awareness. At N Seoul Tower, lights are turned off in support of Earth Hour at 8pm.

Love Padlocks

In a poll of nearly 2,000 foreign visitors conducted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in November 2011, 16 percent stated that hanging named padlocks on the tower fence as a symbol of love was their favorite activity in Seoul. This attraction is situated on the 2nd floor of the N Plaza, at the Roof Terrace. The "Locks of Love" is a popular location for people to hang locks that symbolize eternal love, and has been depicted in many Korean television shows, dramas, and movies for this reason.

' Love padlocks' is a common couple activity that involves purchasing of a padlock and key, where initials, messages and symbols can be personally inscribed onto the surface of the lock with markers and pens. Securing the padlocks on the fences filled with locks of previous participants, the key is often thrown away as a symbol of everlasting love. This is similar to the love locks in Paris, France, on the Pont Neuf bridge.

Wishing Pond and Observatory

The N Tower also holds many other attractions including the digital observatory and the Wishing Pond. The Wishing Pond can be found on the second floor of the tower, where people throw coins into the pond while making a wish. The coins are collected and donated to help develop schools in China and Southeast Asia, especially in underdeveloped areas. The observatory, renovated in 2011, is on the third floor. The observatory not only offers a 360° view of the city, but also exhibits 600 years of Korean history through 36 LCD screens. The fifth floor houses a French restaurant known as N Grill.

Other events and attractions

In 2008, the Teddy Bear Museum was opened at the tower, with a Christmas tree made with 300 teddy bears to celebrate its opening. It showcases teddy bears in the past, present, and future of Seoul, as well as teddy bears models in Seoul attractions, such as the Cheonggyecheon Stream, Myeongdong, Insadong, and Dongdaemun.

Displays of 55-inch OLED Panels

OLED panels are displayed all around the Namsan Seoultower from level 1 to 4. On level 1, guests will be greeted by a OLED tunnel with welcome messages, and a curved panorama OLED display with a view of the Gwanghwamun Gate and Gyeongbokgung Palace through the four seasons. On level 2, we can see the OLED circle, shaped like a round belt hanging in the air. On level 4, there is a wavy structure decorated with images of wish lanterns, flames and patterns of dancheong to represent beautiful sky across Seoul. And next, we can experience '3D video world'.

Broadcasting use

N Seoul Tower is used as a radio/television broadcast and communications tower.

Television broadcasters

ATSC 1.0 stations

ATSC 3.0 stations

Radio broadcasters

Gallery

File:Teddy Bear Museum entrance.JPG, Teddy Bear Museum entrance
File:Love padlock trees N Seoul Tower.JPG, Love padlock trees
File:View from N Seoul Tower at night.jpg, A view of Seoul from the N Seoul Tower.
File:City of Seoul View From N Seoul Tower.JPG, Another view of Seoul from the N Seoul Tower
File:Korea-Seoul-Namsan Cable Car-01.jpg, The Namsan cable car, which leads up to the N Seoul Tower.
File:Namsan tower view (6907572689).jpg, The nearby lattice transmission tower at sunset (2012)
File:A romantic hotspot, N Seoul Tower (6937546767).jpg, N Seoul Tower illuminated from below at night

See also

*List of towers
*List of tallest buildings in South Korea
*List of tallest buildings in Seoul
*YTN Group

References

External links

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N Seoul Tower : Official Seoul City Tourism
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Landmarks in South Korea
Towers completed in 1971
Buildings and structures in Yongsan District
Tourist attractions in Seoul
Towers in South Korea
Towers with revolving restaurants
YTN Group
Service companies of South Korea
Radio masts and towers
Observation towers
1971 establishments in South Korea
20th-century architecture in South Korea
Namsan