KTX Tickets Now Open Two Months Ahead: What Changed in 2026

A white and blue KTX high-speed train waiting at a platform in Seoul

By YUNA, my pen name. I read the official pages, then tell you what I’d do.

Topic:

Last checked: November 2, 2026

Since October 1, 2026, Korail has sold train tickets two months before departure instead of one. I’d book your KTX as soon as your flight is set. Cancelling early costs you very little: nothing on a Monday-to-Thursday train until three hours before it leaves, and 400 won on a weekend train up to two days out.

Quick answer

  • 🗓️ Window: two months before departure, from 7 a.m. Korea time
  • 💳 Foreign cards: accepted on Korail’s foreign-language site
  • 💰 Seoul to Busan: 54,400 won, down from 59,800 won on September 1
  • ✅ Book early if: your dates are fixed, since early cancellation is cheap

When do KTX tickets go on sale now?

A KTX-I high-speed train stopped at a Seoul Station platform with its door open
A KTX at Seoul Station, one end of the main KTX line. Photo: Luke Ma, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Sales open at 7 a.m. Korea time for the train on the same date two months later, and stay open until the train leaves. A December 31 train, for example, went on sale at 7 a.m. on October 31. So on November 3, you can book trains up to January 3, 2027, and New Year’s Day trains have been on sale since November 1.

Korea doesn’t change its clocks. From November 2, 2026 until mid-March 2027, 7 a.m. in Seoul is 2 p.m. the day before in Los Angeles and 5 p.m. the day before in New York. In London, it’s 10 the night before, and in Sydney, it’s 9 a.m. the same day. I’d add Seoul to your phone’s world clock before a sale day.

Some dates have no match two months earlier: January 31, 2027 (there’s no November 31), and April 29 and 30, 2027 (February 2027 ends on the 28th). I couldn’t find how Korail handles those. If you’re traveling on one of them, I’d start checking the booking page two months ahead: from late November for January 31, and from late February for April 29 and 30.

Korail counted 6.06 million foreign passengers in 2025, the first year it passed six million.

Should you book the minute sales open?

A KTX high-speed train at a Seoul Station platform before leaving for Busan
A KTX about to leave Seoul Station for Busan in 2012. Photo: calflier001, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Yes, if you must travel on a particular day: a Saturday day trip to Busan, the train back before your flight, or anything near a holiday. Cancelling early costs little even on those days, so I wouldn’t wait.

For a Monday-to-Thursday train, booking early won’t cost you anything if your plans change in good time. If you haven’t decided which city comes first, you can book and cancel, or wait until the order is fixed.

Korail’s August notice also lets you move a ticket to a train up to seven days before or after your date, free, until 30 minutes before it leaves. That only helps if the new train still has seats, and I couldn’t confirm that the foreign-language site offers it.

The same notice gives Korail members a free refund within 10 minutes of paying, twice a day, up to 30 minutes before departure. Both rules come from Korail’s Korean notice, so read the terms on the payment screen if you book on the foreign-language site.

What else changed in 2026?

A KTX-Sancheon high-speed train standing at a platform in Busan Station
A KTX-Sancheon at Busan Station, the name SRT trains now carry. Photo: Asacyan, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The two-month window is the third big change this year. On August 3, Korail replaced its Korail Talk app with Korail+, which books KTX and SRT trains in one place. On September 1, the two high-speed networks started running as one, and SRT trains were renamed KTX-Sancheon.

Fares came down at the same time, by about 10% on average, to match the old SRT prices. Seoul to Busan went from 59,800 won to 54,400 won, the fare Korail quoted for that route.

For you, the useful part is the station choice. The old SRT trains leave from Suseo Station in southeastern Seoul, and Korail’s app and Korean website now sell them alongside trains from Seoul Station. If you’re staying south of the river, I’d compare both stations before you book.

Honest take

If a guide was written before these changes, check three things. Older guides give you a one-month booking window, they send you to the SRT at Suseo Station, which now runs as KTX-Sancheon, and the KTX fares they quote are about 10% too high. I’d check the date on anything you read about Korean trains.

How do you book a KTX from outside Korea?

A Korail ticket machine with a touch screen and card slot inside Gwangmyeong Station
A Korail ticket machine at Gwangmyeong Station, a KTX stop south of Seoul. Photo: Narubaru7, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

I’d use Korail’s foreign-language booking site. Since April 2025, buying there has needed only an email address and a password, and it takes cards issued abroad. The transport ministry’s September announcement also promised global mobile payment options.

The site has English pages, and the government plans to grow Korail’s foreign-language services from seven languages to 10. I couldn’t confirm that the Korail+ app accepts foreign cards, so I’d book on the website rather than the app.

Klook also sells Korail tickets under a sales contract with Korail, which suits you if the rest of your trip is booked there already.

Already in Korea? Ticket machines and the foreigner counter at Seoul Station take overseas cards, and station counters accept Apple Pay with a foreign card. Korail says 310 newer machines at 148 stations take overseas cards too. Outside holiday sales, Korail limits each person to 10 seats per train and 20 a day.

Yuna’s pick

Booking from home: Korail’s foreign-language site, at 7 a.m. Korea time if your day is fixed.

Booking the rest of your trip on Klook anyway: add the train there.

Already in Seoul with no ticket: the station machines, with your own card, if seats are left.

What does it cost to cancel a KTX ticket?

Monday-to-Thursday trains are free to cancel until three hours before departure. On Friday to Sunday and on holidays, the fee climbs as the day gets closer.

When you cancel Mon to Thu Fri to Sun, holidays
Two days or more before Free 400 won
The day before Free 5%
Departure day, until 3 hours before Free 10%
Last 3 hours before departure 5% 20%

On a 54,400-won Seoul to Busan ticket, cancelling a Saturday train the day before costs 2,720 won. In the last three hours, it costs 10,880 won.

The table follows Korail’s terms of carriage (April 2025 version), and two Korean guides from October 2026 give the same values. Korail’s payment screen shows the fee that applies to your ticket, so I’d check it there before you pay.

Holidays use the Friday-to-Sunday column even on a weekday. Monday, February 8, 2027, the day after Seollal, is charged like a Sunday.

Holiday trains sell separately

A KTX-I high-speed train at a platform of Busan Station in South Korea
A KTX at Busan Station, the southern end of the main KTX line. Photo: Smiley.toerist, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Holiday trains have their own sale. For Chuseok 2026, with trains on September 23 to 27, general sales ran from September 7 to 11, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., with each day covering different lines. Older and disabled travelers, among others, got two days before that. General sales were online only, for Korail members, and phone booking was part of that earlier priority sale.

That sale ran before the two-month rule started. I found no schedule yet for Seollal 2027, which runs February 6 to 9, and no word on whether those trains will follow the new window.

Under the regular rule, a February 6 train would open on December 6, and a February 9 train on December 9. If your trip touches Seollal, I’d start checking Korail’s notices in early December.

FAQ

Is the SRT gone?

Not the trains. Since September 1, 2026, Korail runs them as part of KTX, under the KTX-Sancheon name.

Does the KORAIL PASS follow the two-month window?

I couldn’t confirm how far ahead pass holders can reserve seats now. Check the pass terms on Korail’s site before you count on a two-month booking for a pass seat.

Does the new window cover slower trains too?

The announcement says “KTX and other train tickets” without a list of train types, so I’d check the date picker for the train you want.

Have a good ride!

Hwaiting!

Yuna

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Sources and last check

How I put this guide together: from Korail’s press releases and terms of carriage, the government’s announcement, and Korean news and card-company guides, checked on November 1 and 2, 2026. When to book is my own read. Nothing here is sponsored, and no rail company or booking site paid for or reviewed it. More on how I research every guide is on the About page.

Last checked: November 2, 2026. Fares, fees, and booking rules change, so please confirm before you book. This is an independent guide, not affiliated with Korail.

Sources:

Cover image: A KTX train in Seoul. Photo: Syced, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Hi, I'm Yuna. I read the Korean-only fine print so your trip doesn't have to start with a puzzle, and then I tell you what I'd pick.

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