Seoul Lantern Festival
Dec 11, 2026 – Jan 31, 2027 · Seoul
Overview
The Seoul Lantern Festival is held every year and is one of the most anticipated festivals in Seoul. With various themed lanterns around Cheonggyecheon Stream, visitors can enjoy both traditional lanterns and modern LED lanterns. The festival provides much to see and do with the addition of Gwanghwamun Square Market.
Why go
The Seoul Lantern Festival is an annual winter event that fills the Cheonggyecheon Stream with themed lanterns, pairing traditional Korean paper and LED designs with kinetic and media art installations. The nearby Gwanghwamun Square Market adds extra things to see and do in the same visit. Admission is free, making it an easy evening add-on to a day in central Seoul.
Getting there from Seoul
The festival runs along Cheonggyecheon Stream between Cheonggye Plaza and Samilgyo Bridge, right in central Seoul's Jung-gu district, so there's no need to travel in from elsewhere in the country. The closest subway stops are Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5) and City Hall Station (Lines 1 and 2), both a short walk from Cheonggye Plaza; Jonggak Station (Line 1) also works from the other end. If arriving by KTX, Seoul Station connects directly to City Hall Station on Line 1.
Tips
- Visit between 18:00 and 22:00, when the lanterns are lit — daytime has nothing to see.
- The festival runs into late January, so dress for cold, windy conditions along the open stream walkway.
- Admission is free, but the walkway narrows, so expect crowds near Cheonggye Plaza and Gwanghwamun Square in the evening.
Best for: families, photographers, couples, winter illumination seekers.
Program
1. メインプログラム：光のオブジェ展示（韓紙／LED灯、エアバルーン、キネティックアート、メディアアートなど）
Photos
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization 
Photo: Korea Tourism Organization
Other festivals in Seoul
Seoul
Lights of Cheonggyecheon
Dec 11 – Dec 31, 2026
'Lights of Cheonggyecheon,' which first lit up Seoul's winter nights in 2015, returns for its twelfth winter, running for 21 days from December 11 to 31 at Cheonggye Plaza in Seoul. This year the festival is presented anew as a storytelling-style event under the theme 'Light Up Tomorrow,' telling the story of citizens' dreams and hopes through light. In addition to the unique trees, photo zones, and rides on the Dream Light Train (mini train) that have been loved every year, this year the festival will screen, on a large electronic display, a video featuring dream drawings by child artists with developmental disabilities and dream messages sent in by citizens. The festival lights up Cheonggye Plaza every day from 6 PM to 10 PM, and anyone can view it free of charge.
Seoul
20th Century Photography Masters Exhibition - Light, Stopping Time
Nov 20, 2026 – Mar 28, 2027
We live in an age when hundreds of millions of images are born on LCD screens every day, only to vanish just as easily with a single flick of a finger. Amid the flood of digital technology and artificial intelligence, anyone can now capture and reproduce a moment with ease. Within this weightless maze of pixels, the heavy resonance and afterimage that analog photography conveys are gradually fading. As easy production and consumption repeat endlessly, we are losing the 'authenticity of gazing' — looking deeply and lingeringly at a subject.
Seoul
MATERIALISM｜Bjarke Ingels Group Exhibition
Nov 7, 2026 – Feb 28, 2027
The first-ever exhibition in Korea featuring the world-renowned architectural design firm BIG is being held at the Seoul Urban Architecture Exhibition Hall. Bjarke Ingels, founder of BIG, is renowned for an architectural style that is both unique and experimental while also taking into account the user’s purpose and experience. This exhibition, which offers a glimpse into his creativity, features exhibits and models centered around 10 architectural materials, including stone, earth, concrete, metal, and wood. Visitors can explore the past and present of architecture as presented by the world-renowned architectural design firm BIG and gain insight into the direction of sustainable urban architecture for the future. In addition to the special exhibition, public engagement programs—including a special lecture by BIG founder Bjarke Ingels on the theme of future urban architecture—are scheduled to take place.
Reach travelers heading to Seoul: sponsor this page.
Dates and programs can change. Check the official site before you go. Official site