Bongeunsa is the great surprise of Gangnam — a thousand-year-old Buddhist temple that survives among the office towers, sitting directly across the road from the COEX mall. Founded in 794 and rebuilt many times since, it remains an active monastery, with monks chanting through the main halls and a 23-metre stone statue of the Maitreya Buddha rising above the courtyards.
The complex is free to wander, and the contrast — wooden eaves, lanterns, and incense set against the mirrored skyline — is what makes it worth the trip. The temple runs a popular Temple Stay programme for visitors who want to try monastic life, meditation, and tea ceremony for a night. Spring, when the grounds fill with lotus lanterns ahead of Buddha's Birthday, is the most atmospheric time to come.