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K-BEAUTY HAUL

Seoul Travel Haul: All the Korean Makeup and Skincare Products I Brought Home

You can actually shop these Korean favorites right from the comfort of your couch.

Elizabeth Denton

PublishedMar 26, 2026, 4:31 PM EDT

UpdatedMar 26, 2026, 5:12 PM EDT

Updated Mar 26, 2026, 5:12 PM EDTPublished Mar 26, 2026, 4:31 PM EDT

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I’ve been dreaming of going to Seoul since I was a junior beauty editor. 15 years later, it finally became a reality when I attended K-pharmacy skincare brand Dr. Reju-All’s Global Symposium at the Four Seasons Hotel Seoul, which brought together more than 300 pharmacists, dermatologists, and marketing executives from Korea and international markets.

It was heaven for a skincare obsessive like me. I learned about the next generation of retinol, what makes a Korean pharmacy product different from its other retail counterparts, and even heard from Lee Sun-jung, the marketing powerhouse who helped transform Olive Young (a popular Korean beauty and health chain) into what it is today.

But I wasn’t there just to learn more about skincare. I was also there to shop. I even checked an empty mini suitcase just for the occasion. I don’t get excited about shopping for beauty products in the States, but in Seoul, it felt like a sport—a really fun one.

At Korean pharmacies, like Ready Young Drugstore, skincare isn’t tucked behind glass or diluted by trend cycles. Instead, it’s clinical, intentional, and often surprisingly affordable. I found the viral Acnon Cream and Aclean Gel, two acne topicals available only by prescription in the U.S. I also spotted Urea foot creams, medicated hand treatments, and tons of hangover remedies.

At Olive Young, it’s the opposite kind of thrill: aisles of sheet masks, viral serums, and indie brands I’ve only seen on TikTok, all merchandised with the anticipation of play. It’s all about discovery here. There’s even an AI tool that analyzes your hair and skin and recommends makeup in your color palette. There are more than 1,300 Olive Young stores across Korea, with hundreds clustered in Seoul alone, so the discovery was endless. (Good news for Los Angeles residents: the first U.S. locations are coming to the city in May 2026.)

Within just a few days, I had already filled half my suitcase with things I’d never seen before: high-strength retinal creams, pharmacist-recommended barrier repair ampoules, and sunscreens that somehow feel more like skincare than SPF. It made shopping back home feel… a little boring.

Thankfully, many of these items are also available online now that brands are bringing their skincare and makeup to the United States. Due to FDA regulations, there are some formula changes (especially in the sunscreen category), but I’ve been happy with my restocks thus far. It’s important to ensure the place you shop is an authorized retailer of the brand, so you don’t get a potentially dangerous counterfeit item.

I’ve compiled some of my favorite discoveries and the products I’ll be repurchasing now that I’m home. Well, at least until I get back to Seoul.

Amazon

$50

Dr. Reju-All PDRN Rejuvenating Cream

Some travel to Korea for PDRN injections to repair skin at a deeper level, but I was too nervous to go the needle route. That’s when I became obsessed with topical options. One of the coolest days of my trip was when we got to see PDRN (yes, the viral “salmon sperm”) being made at Cosmax, one of the world’s largest cosmetics manufacturers. I learned that not all PDRN is created equal, and that quality and quantity matter. Dr. Reju-All’s formula contains an optimal 1,200 ppm of PDRN. I find it soothes my sensitive skin, repairs my barrier when I overexfoliate, and hydrates without breaking me out. I’ve already gone through two tubes. The ingredient-focused brand is only available at Korean pharmacies, but thankfully, you can get it on Amazon now, too.

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Ulta

$15

Round Lab 1025 Dokdo Cleanser

In my excitement about shopping, I totally forgot to pack a simple cleanser. A fellow beauty editor recommended Round Lab, and I headed over to Olive Young to buy multiple items from the brand. I’m officially hooked. Sadly, you can’t buy its popular sunscreen in the U.S.—at least not the version from Seoul. But you can grab this mild, foaming cleanser that takes off all my makeup and sunscreen without leaving my skin feeling stripped.

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Amazon

$31

Medicube Zero Pore Pads

My skin gets congested anytime I travel, but especially on 14-hour flights. I picked up these affordable exfoliating pads and used one every other night, focusing on my chin and jaw—my most problematic area. The combination of salicylic and lactic acid kept breakouts at bay without drying out my skin.

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Amazon

$20

Dr. Reju-All Advanced PDRN Rejuvenating Lip Serum

I used two lip balms religiously while walking around Seoul in 20-degree weather. The first, CuLip Ointment, isn’t available in the U.S. But Dr. Reju-All’s new PDRN lip balm is. I only got a sample of the formula and found myself heading to Amazon to purchase a full size the second it started to run out. In addition to hydrating PDRN, the formula also contains hibiscus enzyme and lactic acid to gently exfoliate lips.

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Amazon

$22

Aprilskin TXA Pink Capsule Gel Mask

You can’t go to Seoul without picking up a few too many sheet masks. Some of my favorites are from Aprilskin, such as this color-changing overnight mask. Admittedly, I found sleeping in it too overstimulating. But I did wear it while watching Netflix and got the same glass-skin results as with the tranexamic acid- and ceramide-infused formula.

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Amazon

$17

Fwee Long-Lasting Dual Eye Shadow Stick

I was already a fan of this colorful cosmetics brand, so when I saw it had its own full stores in Seoul, I went a little crazy. My favorite purchase is this creamy eyeshadow stick that delivers a ton of color without turning into a creasy mess on my 41-year-old eyelids. I used the deep brown Deep Focus shade as eyeliner and lighter First Sight hue all over my lids.

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Amazon

$17

Colorgram Duo Blusher

Another brand I’ve had my eye on is Colorgram. To my excitement, there’s an entire section of Olive Young devoted to the brand. This cream-and-powder blush duo is gorgeous and feels much more expensive than its under-$20 price. The buildable red hue also looked good on everyone I tested it on—fair to deep skin tones.

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Amazon

$19

Amuse Seoul Daisy Flower Dew Tint

Everything in Korea is just cuter, including this flower-topped lip tint. I picked up a few shades and have been using them nonstop. I love that they provide long-lasting, hydrating color, but you don’t have to peel them off and make a big mess.

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Ulta

$25

TirTir Mask Fit Red Cushion

TirTir is another brand that’s recently made a splash in the States. It was exciting to see how large the stores in Seoul are, complete with V from BTS splashed on the facade. I played with all the different foundation options and found this hydrating one to be the best for my dry skin. It contains hyaluronic acid and botanical extracts to minimize dry spots, while still providing a natural, satin-glow finish that doesn’t feel too dewy or greasy. I love that it’s also the most inclusive Korean brand in terms of skin tone options.

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