Booking by Instagram message
인스타 DM 예약
Some small salons, head spa shops and studios take bookings through a direct message on social media. It looks informal from the outside, but at some of these places it is a normal way to book.
Why this can help a visitor
Some Korean booking services ask you to verify a local mobile number, and the national tourism board lists a service that advertises booking without that step, which tells you how common the obstacle is. A direct message does not need a local number. You need an account and a few sentences, so it is one route around the phone number problem.
What to send
Keep it to one message with everything in it: what you want, roughly when, how many people, and that you are visiting and speak English. Open ended messages asking if they are free tend to create several rounds of replies. Ask about the price in the same message rather than assuming the posted menu applies to every staff member.
What to expect back
Reply times vary. Some shops answer in English, some in Korean that you will need to translate, and some may ask you to move to another messaging app to finish the booking. Some ask for a deposit. If so, check that the request comes from the shop's own account before paying.
Then confirm
Repeat the final date, time and name back in one short message. Screenshot the reply. If nothing comes back within a couple of days, the account may simply be inactive, so move on.
What we show
Whether a venue takes bookings by direct message is something we confirm per venue, with a date.
Phrases to show staff
Show the Korean line on your phone, or say it aloud: the spelling in brackets reads like English.
- ___ ___에 ___명 예약하고 싶어요.
- I would like to book for ___ people on ___ at ___.
- ___ ___-e ___-myeong yeyakhago sipeoyo. (___ ___-eh ___-myuhng yeh-yah-kah-goh shee-puh-yoh.)
- 영어 되는 분 계신가요?
- Is there anyone here who speaks English?
- Yeong-eo doeneun bun gyesin-gayo? (yuhng-uh dweh-neun boon geh-sheen-gah-yoh?)
- 이용료가 얼마인가요?
- How much does it cost?
- Iyongnyoga eolmaingayo? (ee-yong-nyoh-gah uhl-mah-een-gah-yoh?)