Following up here, I agonized a little over what to do for phone communication while visiting South Korea recently. My current plan didn't (AFAICT) offer an international pay-as-you-go plan, which would have been perfect. So then I thought I'd rent a SIM in Korea (very easy to do) then had nightmares imagining I'd lose either the new or current one. So, it's also easy to rent an entire phone, and very cheap to do so.
In the end, I did nothing more than download Kakaotalk. And I hardly used it.
I managed to get by just fine using email and Facebook messenger. And believe me, I hate Facebook! But my Korean friends use it, and it worked out fine.
When it comes to travel I always find that less is more. Another stop at the airport to rent a SIM or phone is just that -- another 15 minutes I'm not enjoying myself.
So at least for me, everything worked out fine with the caveat that it's very easy to find free wifi in Korea, or to buy a data card at a convenience store and roll with that. Then again, I got along just fine with coffee shops.
Also, be prepared to use an app to get a taxi at night in Seoul, and probably smaller cities as well. There's a shortage of cabbies right now. If you ask nicely, I'm sure any good restaurant or hotel will order one for you but be prepared to ask. They will go right past you if you try flagging them yourself, because they already have a fare booked in advance.
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