Also known as “Doosan Tower”, Doota Mall is located in Dongdaemun (the East Gate of old Seoul) along with the popular Dongdaemun market where you can get things at a cheap price if you have good bargaining skills. We were not that adventurous that day so we decided to just hang out at the mall instead.
After alighting at the Dongdaemun subway station, it was not that hard to locate Doota’s bright orange logo. The Dongdaemun area is akin to Bugis Street in Singapore, bustling with activity(cafes, restaurants, eateries and the like) and people out for a good bargain: having a market (within the vicinity) with makeshift stalls selling their wares (and even some bargaining to boot).
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| After alighting from Dongdaemun Subway Station |
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| We made our way to Doota |
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| The market area (I think) |
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| Shoes, clothes... the sellers are out and ready! |
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| Snacks anyone? |
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| Bags, bags, bags |
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| Pants |
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| Shirts |
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| Some street food anyone? :) |
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| Getting ready to cross the road to Doota |
Doota Shopping Mall consists of 10 floors, has high ceilings with mostly natural lighting (in the day) with cafes galore. To get to the 1st floor, you can enter through the entrance located there or simply take the escalator outside to get to B1. We started from B1 and made our way up.
Level 7 & 8 - Although there are cafés and restaurants on each floor within Doota, the 7th and 8th floors is the “Food Gallery”. From coffee shops to fast food joints and proper restaurants, there is a wide selection of establishments to choose from. A rooftop garden gives you a breath of fresh air in the warmer seasons.
Level 6 - Looking for children wear and maternity wear for the soon-to-be moms? Then this floor would be for you. A nursing room is also available on this floor.
Level 5 - Accessories, cosmetics (e.g. Skin Food, ATRIUM etc…), souvenirs and even a manicure stall are located here. The tax refund counter is also located at this floor. So if you’re a foreign tourist, you can apply for a tax refund by simply filling out the documents at the office here.
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| PincessyLee's recommendation Laneige products |
Do note: Remember to ask for the “tax free receipt” when making your purchase.
Level 4 - Finally a floor for the men.
Level 3 - This floor basically contains shoes, bags, and imported goods for any occasion.
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| Shoes galore! |
Level 2 - This floor is called “Young Career” and caters to women as well. As the name suggests, this floor has outfits more suited for the office.
Level 1 - The “Designer Gallery” level with designer clothes and various accessories on this floor.
Floor B1 - Young new designers’ shops are in this area with casual womenswear, innerwear, and designer shops, and a small stationery shop to boot. Each shop has its own cahracteristic and we spent a tad too much time here.
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| I was really tempted to buy them... but I guess I overcame the temptation ha |
Floor B2 - Where the well-known local and international sportswear brands are located. Not forgetting casual outfits ad demnin, as well as clothes alterations on this floor.
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| Lost? No worries there's always the directory |
After making our way through floors B2 to 8, it was time for a break - tea break at Beans Bins Coffee! And I have to say the waffle ice-cream is nice! Just looking at the photos is making me hungry again!
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| After all that shopping and walking, its time to take a break |
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| The beeper beeps when your order is ready for collection |
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| We had a corner seat near the window so it was one with a view |
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| View of the hustle and bustle below |
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| Waffle time! Yummy! |
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| Tea |
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| Coffee |
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| Coffee Beans of all varieties! |
Doota has a strict fixed-price policy so no haggling is accepted, but if you happen to buy a lot at a single shop, the shop owner might just give you something extra. Besides the tax free shopping, the store offers various services including money exchange, baby carriage rental, foreigner service, and clothes alterations.
Tip: Unless at a specific designer shop, when you find something you like, look around the section or other floors (especially B2 to level 1) first to make sure the same item isn’t being sold at a different price.
How to get there:
Alight at
- Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Subway Station Exit 14 : walk straight out of the exit towards Dongdaemun
OR
- Dongdaemun Subway Station Exit 8 : cross the bridge towards the Dongdaemun History & Culture Park on your left
Opening hours : 10:30 am ~ 5:00 am (open all night)
Closed : Sunday 11:00 pm ~ Monday 7:00 pm
Tel : (02) 3398-3333
Official site (Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese) :
http://www.doota.com
When travel collides with a byte, a unit of information made up of bits, TravelBytez is formed: snippets of ramblings on travel, food, shopping, living and anything else that comes to mind.
Korea serve really nice coffee. 👍
ReplyDeleteFor a moment I forgot that you had coffee. Lol next time I will try. :p
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