Korean Laser Treatment: A Concern-by-Concern Map for Your First Visit to a Seoul Clinic

I'm Dr. Hyunji Kim, director and lead physician at Delphic Clinic in Gangnam, one minute from Sinnonhyeon Station. I trained at Korea University Medical Center and I am a member of the Korean Academy of Aesthetic Surgery & Laser Medicine and the Korean Society for Laser Dermatology & Hair. Lifting, laser and anti-ageing care is what I do every day, and Korean laser treatment is the most common reason first-time foreign patients walk in.

Several times a week someone tells me they want “a Korean laser treatment” but cannot say which one. That is completely normal, because Korean clinic menus list device names rather than problems. This page turns that around: you start from what bothers you, and I show you the laser I would match to it.

Start with the concern you would point to in a mirror

If you see more than one row in your mirror, that is common. I usually treat the concern that bothers you most first, then add the second once I see how your skin responds.

Brown spots and uneven tone: picosecond toning

PicoSure is an FDA-cleared 755nm picosecond laser. Toning uses gentle passes to break up melanin while sparing the surrounding tissue, which is why it suits a first visit and a busy itinerary. It works gradually, so a course of sessions is usually discussed rather than a single shot.

If your brown patches might be melasma, please read why I take a low and slow approach to melasma first. Treating melasma like a freckle is one of the most common and expensive mistakes I see.

Redness, vessels and red acne marks: the dual-wavelength GV laser

GV laser is a German-engineered device with 532nm and 1064nm wavelengths and four modes, so it can be set for pigment, vessels or red marks left by acne. I use it when the problem is red rather than brown. It usually takes ten to thirty minutes.

Red marks after breakouts are a specific case, and I explain how I approach them in my guide to GV laser for post-inflammatory erythema.

Scars, pores and rough texture: fractional resurfacing

Fraxel works in tiny columns, leaving untreated skin between them so the surface can renew from those islands. We offer an Erbium Fraxel and a Pico Fraxel; the Pico version uses the 755nm picosecond laser in a non-ablative way that leaves the surface intact. It suits acne scars, pores and texture rather than colour.

If you are torn between toning and resurfacing, my comparison of PicoSure vs Fraxel goes through which laser suits which problem in more depth.

A laser is only as good as the diagnosis that chose it.— Dr. Hyunji Kim, Delphic Clinic

Lasers I refuse on a first visit

• Strong resurfacing on fresh, deep tan or sunburn: I wait until the skin settles
• Any heat-heavy laser on suspected melasma before we have confirmed it
• Treatment over active acne inflammation or broken skin in the area
• A trip that continues to the beach the next day, when I would rather book you at the end
• Expecting one session to clear years of pigment or scarring

Hair removal is a separate decision with its own rules about hair colour, skin tone and timing. If that is what brought you here, my laser hair removal candidate check is the better starting point.

Fitting lasers into a short Seoul itinerary

1. 1

   Early in the trip

   Book the consultation in your first days, so there is time to see how your skin reacts before you fly home.

2. 2

   Treatment day

   Same-day treatment is possible after the doctor confirms the plan. Bring sunscreen and a hat for the walk out.

3. 3

   Rest of the trip

   Keep strict sun protection and skip saunas and exfoliating products for a few days, unless I advise otherwise.

Real menu prices for the three lasers

These are our real prices for the lasers on this map. International patients pay exactly what Korean patients pay, and the number of sessions is decided after I see your skin.

Related reading: I cover pico Fraxel in a separate post.

If you are not sure which row of the map you belong to, bring your questions to a free one-to-one consultation. I will look at your skin, name the concern, and tell you whether a laser fits it now, later or not at all. English and Chinese interpreters are on site, you pay the same price as a Korean patient, and we are one minute from Exit 3 of Sinnonhyeon Station.