What closes during a holiday?

Pick a venue type. Major holidays (Seollal + Chuseok, 3 days each) hit hardest; single-day holidays barely register.

Quick facts

2026 calendar

All public holidays this year, with day of week and impact level.

• Thu Jan 1 New Year's Day 신정 Single-day, light
• Mon to Wed Feb 16 to 18 Seollal (Lunar New Year) 설날 MAJOR, expect closures
• Sun Mar 1 Independence Movement Day 삼일절 Single-day + substitute Mon
• Tue May 5 Children's Day 어린이날 Family parks crowded
• Sun May 24 Buddha's Birthday 부처님오신날 Single-day + substitute Mon
• Sat Jun 6 Memorial Day 현충일 Single-day, no substitute
• Sat Aug 15 Liberation Day 광복절 Single-day + substitute Mon
• Thu to Sat Sep 24 to 26 Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) 추석 MAJOR, expect closures
• Sat Oct 3 National Foundation Day 개천절 Single-day + substitute Mon
• Fri Oct 9 Hangeul Day 한글날 Long weekend
• Fri Dec 25 Christmas 크리스마스 Long weekend

The big two

Seollal and Chuseok are the only holidays that genuinely change a tourist trip. Both are 3-day family holidays.

1. Seollal (Lunar New Year)

   A 3-day holiday around late Jan or mid-Feb. Koreans return to family hometowns, so Seoul empties out and small businesses close. Best to avoid for first-time visitors. If you are already here: palaces have free entry + special hanbok events, but eat at chain cafes / convenience stores / hotel restaurants since most local kitchens close.

2. Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving)

   A 3-day harvest holiday around mid-Sep or early-Oct. Same closure pattern as Seollal: small shops close, highways clog, palaces free. Time it carefully: 2026 Chuseok runs Sep 24, 26 with substitute Monday Sep 28, so the long weekend stretches to 5 days. Book KTX/buses 2 weeks ahead.

Watch out for

• Substitute holidays exist If Seollal, Chuseok, Children's Day, Independence Movement Day, Liberation Day, National Foundation Day, Hangeul Day, Buddha's Birthday, or Christmas falls on Sunday (or overlaps weekend), the next Monday becomes a holiday. Memorial Day and New Year's Day do NOT substitute.
• Palace bonus During Seollal + Chuseok, the four grand palaces (Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung) and Jongmyo are free for everyone. Wear hanbok and entry is free year-round, but the major holidays add traditional games + parades.
• Highway timing Day before and day after Seollal/Chuseok are the worst driving days of the year, 3, 4x normal traffic. KTX and intercity buses sell out a week in advance. Stay in Seoul if you can.
• Convenience stores save you CU / GS25 / 7-Eleven / Emart24 stay open every public holiday including Seollal + Chuseok. Same with chain cafes (Starbucks, Twosome, Mega Coffee). When local kitchens are dark, these are your fallback.
• Lunar dates shift Seollal, Chuseok, and Buddha's Birthday are lunar holidays, so their Gregorian dates shift every year. The 2026 dates above are best-effort; for travel planning, verify against the official source linked at the bottom.

Sources

Updated May 2026. Lunar dates (Seollal, Chuseok, Buddha's Birthday) verified against the 2026 official Korean government calendar; for 2027+ verify directly with korea.kr.