Medical emergency in Korea: 119, English help lines and emergency rooms

Call 119

119 is fire and ambulance for the whole country, free from any phone including a foreign SIM without a Korean plan. Operators handle medical emergencies, can advise on where to go, and can bring an interpreter onto the call in English and several other languages: say "English, please" and stay on the line. Give the address from the nearest sign, your hotel card, or the Korean address on any pharmacy page on this site. Ambulance transport for a genuine emergency is free.

Call 119 (fire and ambulance)

When to call rather than walk Chest pain, trouble breathing, a stroke sign such as a drooping face or slurred speech, heavy bleeding, a serious allergic reaction, a bad fall or head injury, a suspected broken bone, sudden weakness or confusion, a high fever in a baby, or any symptom that frightens you. Do not go looking for a pharmacy for any of these.

Help lines that speak English

Call 1330 (travel helpline, English, 24 hours)

From a foreign mobile, dial the number as shown. If it does not connect, add the country code: +82, then the number. 1330 also works as +82 2 1330.

Pharmacy or emergency room?

• Pharmacy: headache, cold, sore throat, mild fever in an adult, upset stomach, minor cuts, insect bites, allergies without breathing trouble
• Emergency room, now: anything in the warning box above
• In between, such as a fever that will not break, vomiting for a day, or a deep cut that has stopped bleeding: a clinic (의원) during the day, or a hospital emergency room at night

This site lists pharmacies only. Do not search it for help in an emergency; call 119.

Going to an emergency room

Emergency rooms (응급실) are attached to hospitals and open around the clock. You are triaged on arrival; less urgent cases wait, sometimes for hours on weekend nights. Bring your passport and travel insurance details. Without Korean insurance you pay the full cost yourself: a basic visit with an examination and simple treatment runs into the hundreds of thousands of won, more with imaging or an overnight stay, and paying by card is normal. Ask for an itemised receipt and a medical certificate (진단서) for your insurer before you leave.

Large university hospitals in Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Incheon and Daejeon have international clinics and English-speaking coordinators during office hours, and their emergency rooms are used to foreign patients. Smaller regional hospitals may not have English speakers; the 119 interpreter or 1330 can help by phone.

Finding an emergency room with beds

Our sister service OnCareMap shows every emergency room in Korea with the beds currently available and the hospital’s registered hours, in Korean and English. In an ambulance the 119 crew chooses the hospital; if you are going by taxi, OnCareMap tells you which nearby emergency room is not full.

OnCareMap: emergency rooms near you

After the emergency: the pharmacy

Emergency rooms dispense the first dose and a short supply. For the rest of a prescription you are sent to a pharmacy, often the one directly outside the hospital, which keeps the hospital’s hours. This site shows which ones are open if you are discharged late at night.

• A fever, a bad cold, a stomach upset or a rash can usually wait for a clinic in the morning. Clinics take walk-ins
• Meanwhile a late-night pharmacy or a convenience store covers the symptoms
• Dental emergencies: some dental clinics run evening hours. 1330 can help you find one

Pharmacies open now

Finding a late-night pharmacy

Receipts and documents for insurance