Korea Festivals

Korea Grand Sale

Dec 23, 2026 – Feb 13, 2027 · Seoul

Korea Grand Sale
Korea Grand Sale. Photo: Korea Tourism Organization

Overview

The Korea Grand Sale is Korea’s premier tourism festival for international visitors, combining shopping, culture, and travel. Held during the winter tourism off-season, the event aims to promote travel to Korea by offering a wide range of benefits for international visitors across various sectors, including flights and transportation, shopping, accommodation, food and beverages, beauty and wellness, experiences, and travel services. The event also features special promotions and hands-on programs, along with visitor services and exclusive benefits available at the Myeongdong Welcome Center. More information is available on the official Korea Grand Sale website and Korea Tourism Organization social media channels.

Why go

The Korea Grand Sale is Korea's flagship tourism festival for international visitors, running through the winter off-season with discounts spanning flights, shopping, accommodation, food and beverage, beauty and wellness, and travel services. It is organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and centers on the Myeongdong Welcome Center, which offers visitor information, hands-on experience programs, and lucky draw events.

Getting there from Seoul

The festival's hub, the Myeongdong Welcome Center, is in central Seoul at 14 Myeongdong-gil, Jung-gu, on the first floor of NOON SQUARE. It is an easy walk from Myeongdong Station (Line 4) or Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station (Line 2), and only a short subway or taxi ride from Seoul Station, which is also the main KTX terminal for travelers arriving from other regions.

Tips

  • The Myeongdong Welcome Center runs daily 11:00–20:00 for the full festival period (23 Dec 2026 – 13 Feb 2027), offering trip info, experience activities, and lucky draws.
  • Special brand discounts (flights, OTAs, shopping) start from October 2026 but vary by vendor, so check the official Korea Grand Sale website for specific offer dates.
  • If traveling outside Seoul, look for the mobile Welcome Center, which tours regions such as Gangwon and Gyeongnam with its own experience events and lucky draws.

Best for: shoppers, first-time visitors, deal hunters, winter travelers.

What's new this edition

The 2026–2027 Korea Grand Sale runs under the slogan "Come get your own K," and this edition's special theme is food culture, with hands-on Korean dining programs taking a bigger role than in past years. Alongside the usual flight, hotel, K-tourism and shopping discounts, organizers are adding instant-refund and receipt-based reward events for purchases made during the festival, plus a coupon book for international visitors redeemable at participating stores. A mobile version of the Welcome Center will also tour regions outside Seoul, including Gangwon and Gyeongnam, so the festival isn't confined to Myeongdong.

Getting there

The Myeongdong Welcome Center is on the 1st floor of Noon Square at 14 Myeongdong-gil. The closest stop is Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station on Line 2, exit 5 or 6, about a 2-minute walk; Myeongdong Station on Line 4 (exits 5 through 8) opens directly onto the same Myeongdong shopping street and is a similarly short walk. There's no ticket to buy and no admission fee — you just walk in during opening hours, 11:00–20:00 daily through the 53-day run.

Language and benefits

The official website runs in five languages — English, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese and Korean — and the festival, including the Welcome Center, is built around foreign visitors rather than Koreans. Discounts aren't sold as a single admission ticket; flights, hotel rooms, shopping discounts and the Myeongdong coupon book come through individual airlines, hotels, retailers and the Welcome Center itself. Exact booking windows for this edition's flight and hotel deals hadn't been published as of early November 2026; in the previous edition (Dec 2025–Feb 2026), partner deals went live on the festival's opening day, so expect something similar around December 23, 2026, but confirm on the airline or hotel's own page closer to the date.

FAQ

Is Korea Grand Sale the same as Korea Sale Festa or Korea Grand Festival?

No — they're different events that get mixed up because the names are similar. Korea Sale Festa (now folded into what organizers call the Korea Grand Festival) is a domestic consumer discount drive for people in Korea, running October 29–November 15, 2026, with category-specific dates (beef discounts, for example, ended November 8). Korea Grand Sale, covered on this page, is the separate festival built for international visitors, running December 23, 2026–February 13, 2027.

When can I book the discounted flights and hotels?

Not announced yet for this edition. In the 2025–2026 edition, airline and hotel partner discounts went live on the festival's opening day through each airline's or travel platform's own booking page rather than a central ticket office. Check the official site and your preferred airline or hotel around December 23, 2026, for this edition's deals.

Do I need to speak Korean to use the Welcome Center or the discounts?

No. The official Korea Grand Sale website operates in English, Japanese, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese as well as Korean, and the whole festival — including the Myeongdong Welcome Center — is designed for international visitors rather than locals.

What's the nearest subway station to the Myeongdong Welcome Center?

Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station, Line 2, exit 5 or 6, about a 2-minute walk. Myeongdong Station, Line 4, exits 5 to 8, also opens directly onto the same Myeongdong shopping street, a few minutes further on foot.

What's new or different about this year's Korea Grand Sale?

The 2026–2027 edition runs under the slogan "Come get your own K" and picks food culture as its special theme, with hands-on Korean dining programs alongside the usual flight, hotel and shopping discounts. It also adds receipt-based reward events and a mobile Welcome Center touring regions like Gangwon and Gyeongnam, not just Myeongdong.

Sources (Last checked 2026-11-09):

Program

1. 旅遊歡迎中心 Welcome Center

活動期間:2026年12月23日(三)~2027年2月13日(六),共53天/每日11:00~20:00

活動地點:首爾明洞 NOON SQUARE 1樓大廳

活動內容:提供活動介紹及購物旅遊資訊/體驗活動/地方商圈合作活動(消費收據回饋等)/幸運抽獎活動(Lucky Draw)/參與企業優惠宣傳等

2. 移動式旅遊歡迎中心

活動期間:依各地區實際狀況而異

巡迴地區:預計巡迴江原地區、慶南地區等全國各地

活動內容:體驗活動/地方商圈合作活動(消費收據回饋等)/幸運抽獎活動等

3. 特別優惠活動

活動期間:2026年10月起/各項優惠活動期間不同

活動內容:涵蓋航空、OTA線上旅遊平台、購物等多元領域,提供韓國人氣品牌的多項專屬折扣優惠

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Festivals: Seoul

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Dates and programs can change. Check the official site before you go. Official site