Seoul in December 2026: Lanterns, a ₩1,000 Ice Rink and the Midnight Bell

December in Seoul is the Seoul Winter Festival. From Friday, December 11, lanterns and media art light up the Cheonggyecheon stream every evening from 18:00 to 23:00, and a Christmas market fills the south end of Gwanghwamun Square. The ice rink on Seoul Plaza opens on Friday, December 18, at ₩1,000 an hour with skates included. Christmas Day, Friday, December 25, is a public holiday, and on the night of Thursday, December 31, the Bosingak bell is struck 33 times at midnight. Dress for real cold: December nights average -3.4°C (26°F).

If you can choose your dates, come between December 18 and 23, when the lanterns, the market and the rink are all running before the Christmas and New Year nights.

Seoul in December 2026 at a glance

What is the Seoul Winter Festival?

It is the city’s umbrella for its December and January events, running from December 11, 2026 to January 31, 2027 at Gwanghwamun Square and six other downtown sites. Each program keeps its own dates inside that window. The ones a visitor will notice:

• Seoul Light Gwanghwamun: media art projected on Gwanghwamun, the main gate of Gyeongbokgung, with light sculptures on the north end of the square and a New Year countdown, December 11 to January 10, 18:00 to 23:00.
• Gwanghwamun Market: the Christmas market (below).
• Seoul Lantern Festival: lanterns and media art along Cheonggyecheon (below).
• Seoul Light DDP: Christmas decorations from December 11, a media facade from December 17 to 31 (18:00 to 22:00, planned), and a New Year countdown with live performances and fireworks on December 31, at Dongdaemun Design Plaza.
• Seoul Plaza Ice Rink: the outdoor rink in front of City Hall (below).
• New Year’s Eve bell ringing at Bosingak: the midnight bell (below).

The market, the lanterns and the rink sit close together downtown, between Gwanghwamun, Seoul Plaza and the head of Cheonggyecheon, so one evening covers all three. Skate in the late afternoon, reach the market after it opens at 17:30, then walk the stream, which stays lit until 23:00.

When and where is the Seoul Lantern Festival?

Every evening from Friday, December 11, 2026 to Sunday, January 31, 2027, 18:00 to 23:00, along Cheonggyecheon from Cheonggye Plaza to Samil Bridge. The festival, held since 2009, fills the stream with lanterns of traditional Korean paper (hanji) and media-art light sculptures, with hands-on programs along the way.

The head of the stream is about 380 meters from Exit 4 of City Hall Station on Lines 1 and 2. Jonggak Station on Line 1 and Euljiro 1-ga Station on Line 2 also connect to the stream further along.

Is there a Christmas market in Seoul?

Yes: Gwanghwamun Market, from Friday, December 11, 2026 to Sunday, January 10, 2027, on the south end of Gwanghwamun Square and in Sejongno Park. The organizer builds it as a market village of booths selling Christmas decorations, gifts and food from small local businesses, with collaboration booths, photo zones and free activities. The market opens at 17:30 and closes at 22:00 Sunday to Thursday, 22:30 on Friday and Saturday.

How much is the Seoul Plaza ice rink, and when is it open?

₩1,000 for a one-hour session, including skates and a helmet, from Friday, December 18, 2026 to Tuesday, February 9, 2027. The rink is on Seoul Plaza in front of City Hall, at Exit 5 of City Hall Station on Lines 1 and 2.

There is a separate rink for children and lessons for beginners, plus a snack bar and café, a stall selling winter strawberries and a Seoul souvenir shop beside the ice. The city may pause skating or change the program because of the weather or poor air quality, so keep a second plan for a day with heavy snow or a fine-dust warning.

What is open on Christmas Day, December 25?

Most sights. Christmas Day is one of Korea’s public holidays, and in 2026 it falls on a Friday, which is not a regular closing day for any palace, so all of them open with normal hours. Jongmyo, which on an ordinary Friday admits visitors only on timed guided sessions, is an independent-entry day on a public holiday, so you can walk in. The ice rink keeps its Friday hours, 10:00 to 00:30.

How do I see the Bosingak bell ringing on New Year’s Eve?

Be at Bosingak, the bell pavilion on Jongno beside Jonggak Station on Line 1, by 23:00 on Thursday, December 31. Later than that, get off at Jongno 3-ga, City Hall or Gwanghwamun and walk: last year trains ran through Jonggak without stopping from 23:00 to 01:00. The ceremony is part of the 2026 Seoul Winter Festival: a countdown, the bell struck 33 times at midnight, a media-art performance, and performances before and after.

The city has not yet published this year’s timetable. For the 2025 ceremony it ran from 22:50 to 00:20, and the arrangements were:

• Road closures: Jongno from the Sejong-daero intersection to Jongno 2-ga, Cheonggyebuk-ro from Cheonggye Plaza to Cheonggye 2-ga, and Ujeongguk-ro were closed to traffic from 18:00 on December 31 to 07:00 on January 1.
• Subway: the last trains on Lines 1 to 9 (Seoul Metro sections), the Ui-Sinseol Line and the Sillim Line ran until about 02:00 instead of 01:00, with 104 extra trains. From Jonggak Station, the last Line 1 trains left at about 01:48 toward Dongmyo and 01:53 toward Seoul Station.
• Jonggak Station: trains passed through without stopping from 23:00 to 01:00 to control crowds, so arrive before 23:00 or get off at Jongno 3-ga, City Hall or Gwanghwamun and walk.
• Buses: 45 routes passing the area ran their last buses through about 02:00.

Plan to go home by subway, and walk to Jongno 3-ga, City Hall or Gwanghwamun if Jonggak’s platforms are packed; their last trains also ran until close to 02:00. Wear everything warm you brought: you will stand outside for an hour or more near midnight.

If you would rather see in the year with a light show than a bell, Seoul Light Gwanghwamun holds a New Year countdown on the square (Gwanghwamun Station, Line 5), and Seoul Light DDP ends December 31 with a countdown, live performances and fireworks at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Station, Lines 2, 4 and 5).

What time do the palaces close in December?

Early, except two. In December, Gyeongbokgung is open 09:00 to 17:00 (last entry 16:00) and Changdeokgung 09:00 to 17:30 (last entry 16:30). Deoksugung and Changgyeonggung stay open to 21:00 (last entry 20:00), so they are the palaces to save for the evening. Inside Changgyeonggung, the Grand Greenhouse closes its interior from 18:00 in December and January.

Changdeokgung, Deoksugung and Changgyeonggung close on Mondays (December 7, 14, 21 and 28); Gyeongbokgung and Jongmyo close on Tuesdays (December 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29).

Every Wednesday is free at the palaces and Jongmyo, except Gyeongbokgung and the Changdeokgung Secret Garden. On other days foreign adults aged 19 to 64 pay ₩3,000 for Gyeongbokgung or Changdeokgung and ₩1,000 for Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung or Jongmyo. For each palace, see our guides to Deoksugung, Changdeokgung and the Secret Garden, Jongmyo and Gyeongbokgung in hanbok.

How cold is Seoul in December?

Cold and dry: December averages a high of 4.2°C (40°F) and a low of -3.4°C (26°F), and January is colder still. Snow falls on about 6 days in December, so a snowy day is possible but not something to plan around.

Bring a padded or down coat, a hat, gloves and a scarf for the evening events, which are all outdoors. Our Seoul weather by month guide has December’s average highs and lows, what to pack, and how to check fine dust, which is at its worst from December to March.

What exhibitions are on in Seoul in December?

KAWS: FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS at Space K Seoul, until Sunday, December 27. It is the artist’s first solo museum exhibition in Korea, 20 works including new large paintings and sculptures. It is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00, and closed on Mondays. Adults (20 and over) pay ₩8,000, ages 8 to 19 ₩5,000 and ages 3 to 7 ₩3,000. Space K is at 32 Magokjungang 8-ro, Gangseo-gu, in Magok near Magoknaru Station on Line 9 and the Airport Railroad, an easy stop on the way to or from the airport.

For what was on before this, see Seoul in November 2026 and our autumn foliage guide.

Before you go

• For the midnight bell, reach Bosingak before 23:00: last year trains skipped Jonggak Station from 23:00 to 01:00.
• KAWS at Space K closes on December 27.

Steve OH edits Seoulpin. Steve runs Standardpin, a Seoul-based web studio that also builds websites for clinics; that work has no effect on whether or how any clinic appears here. Articles are drafted with AI assistance from the sources listed and reviewed by Steve before publishing. How we work