Seollal 2027: Feb 7 in Korea, Not Feb 6, and What Closes

Apples, strawberries, rice sweets, clams and fish laid out on a table for a Korean ancestral rite

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

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Last checked: November 2, 2026

Seollal 2027 falls on Sunday, February 7 in Korea. Hong Kong and Vietnam mark the lunar new year on February 6, so a calendar made outside Korea may show you that date. Korea’s public holiday runs from Saturday, February 6, to Tuesday, February 9.

If you’re in Seoul then, I’d plan palaces inside those four days, shop on the days around them, and skip the National Folk Museum on February 7. You will likely find the National Museum of Korea closed that day too, under its usual Seollal rule. I’m assuming the 2027 palace notice follows the last two years, so you’ll want to confirm that part in late January.

In 2026 the palaces opened free over the holiday, while most big department store branches closed for two days.

Quick answer

  • 🗓️ Seollal 2027: Sunday, February 7, with days off February 6 to 9
  • 📍 Palaces in 2026: open and free through the holiday, closed the day after
  • 🛍️ Department stores in 2026: most big branches closed two days
  • ✅ Avoid on February 7: the National Folk Museum, and likely the National Museum of Korea

Hotels near the palaces on KlookPalace guided tour on Klook

Why is Seollal February 7 in Korea but February 6 in China?

A bowl of tteokguk, Korean rice cake soup topped with thin egg strips and beef
Tteokguk, the sliced rice cake soup eaten on Seollal morning.

Because of one hour. The lunar new year starts on the day of the new moon, and each country counts that day in its own time zone. The US Naval Observatory and NASA put the February 2027 new moon at 15:56 UTC on February 6, minutes before an annular solar eclipse peaks over the South Atlantic.

That’s 11:56 p.m. on February 6 in Beijing, four minutes before midnight. In Seoul, which runs an hour ahead, it’s 12:56 a.m. on February 7. So if you’re in Korea, the new year starts a day later. Hong Kong lists its Lunar New Year’s Day as Saturday, February 6, and Vietnam’s Tết is the same day.

The split happens whenever the new moon lands between midnight and 1 a.m. Korea time, so I’d check any “Lunar New Year” date you find against a Korean source. The Korean government’s 2027 calendar and the National Folk Museum’s closing list both say February 7.

Honest take

The mix-up matters less for your trip than it sounds, because February 6 is a holiday in Korea too. Where it can catch you out is closures: places that shut “on Seollal day” close on Sunday, February 7, not Saturday.

Which days are off, and why is Tuesday included?

Seollal itself is three days: the day before, the day, and the day after. In 2027 that’s Saturday, February 6, to Monday, February 8.

Korea adds a substitute holiday when that block overlaps a Sunday, and Seollal itself is the Sunday this time. The extra day is the first working day after the block, Tuesday, February 9.

A Saturday in the block does not count for Seollal, which is why February 6 doesn’t add a second day. So Korea gets a four-day weekend, not five, and you’ll find holiday hours from Saturday to Tuesday.

If you’re coming for the holiday, I’d stay near the palaces, since they’re the sights most likely to be open. My Seoul area guide compares the neighborhoods.

Will the palaces be open? In 2026, yes, and free

Red and green palace buildings of Gyeongbokgung in Seoul covered in snow
Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul under a layer of snow.

I couldn’t find a 2027 palace notice yet, but you can see the pattern in the last two years. In 2026, when Seollal fell on February 17, you could visit the four main palaces, Jongmyo Shrine, and the royal tombs free from February 14 to 18, with no closing days.

The Secret Garden at Changdeokgung was not included, so you’d still pay for that. Then every one of them closed on February 19.

In 2025 it was the same idea. You got in free from January 25 to 30, the palaces opened on their usual weekly closing days, and all of them closed on Friday, January 31, instead.

That matters for your 2027 plans, because Tuesday, February 9 is Gyeongbokgung’s usual closing day, and it’s inside the holiday. How it will be handled isn’t announced yet. The 2025 and 2026 notices came out about two weeks before Seollal, so I’d look for the 2027 one in late January.

Until then, I’d keep Wednesday, February 10 free of palace plans if you can. In both of the last two years, every palace closed on the day after the holiday.

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What closes over Seollal?

The front entrance of Gwangjang Market in Seoul with its large name sign above the street
Gwangjang Market in Seoul, in a photo from 2022.

You’ll mainly need to plan around shops and museums. VISITKOREA’s 2025 guide said most department stores and major shopping districts close for two days, and many restaurants and shops close too. Here is what closed in 2026, next to what you can confirm for 2027 so far:

What Seollal 2026 2027 so far
Palaces and Jongmyo Open and free Feb 14 to 18; closed Feb 19 Not announced
National Museum of Korea Closed on Seollal day only Same rule; 2027 list not posted
National Folk Museum Closed on Seollal day only Closed Feb 7
Department stores Most big branches closed two days Not announced
Seoul subway Last trains reached the end of the line around 1 a.m. on Seollal day and the day after Not announced

If you have a store in mind, I’d check its own notice, because the days depend on the branch. In 2026, Lotte’s main store in Myeongdong closed on the day before Seollal and Seollal day, while Shinsegae’s main store closed on Seollal day and the day after. Shinsegae’s Hanam store closed on Seollal day only.

If 2027 works the same way, you will find most big branches closed on two of February 6, 7, and 8.

Outlets were different in 2026. If you’re heading to one on Seollal day, Lotte’s and Hyundai’s outlets closed that day, and Shinsegae’s premium outlets opened at noon.

If you’re out late on February 7 or 8, the subway may run later than usual, since Seoul added 128 late trips over Seollal day and the day after in 2026. Those last trains reached the end of the line around 1 a.m., so check the last train from your own station.

Restaurants are harder to predict. VISITKOREA only says many close, and I found no list, so I’d ask your hotel which places nearby stay open on February 7.

Yuna’s pick

Friday, February 5: shopping and museums, before any closures.

February 6, 8, and 9: palaces, if the free days return, and the National Folk Museum on any day but the 7th.

Sunday, February 7: a walk, or a palace if they open as they did in 2026, and dinner booked near your hotel.

Wednesday, February 10: shopping and museums again, and no palaces until the notice says otherwise.

How do you get a train over Seollal?

A large crowd waiting inside Seoul Station to book holiday train tickets
A crowd at Seoul Station booking Chuseok holiday train tickets in 2013. Photo: Park4223, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

If you need a train over the holiday, note that holiday trains had their own sale in past years, and the 2027 dates are not out yet.

For Seollal 2026, with trains on February 13 to 18, general sales ran from January 19 to 21, after two days set aside for travelers 65 and over, registered disabled travelers, and eligible veterans. General booking was online for Korail members, and phone booking was only part of that earlier priority sale.

Korail moved its regular booking window to two months ahead on October 1, 2026. I found nothing yet on whether holiday trains will follow it. Under the regular rule, a February 6 train would go on sale on December 6, so if you plan to leave Seoul over the holiday, I’d start checking Korail’s notices in early December.

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What do Koreans do at Seollal?

Wooden yut sticks and a yutnori game board used for the Korean New Year game
Yutnori, the stick-throwing board game families play at Seollal. Photo: 국립국어원, CC BY-SA 2.0 kr, via Wikimedia Commons

Seollal is mostly a family holiday. Families set a table of meat, fish, fruit, and liquor to honor their ancestors, and younger family members then bow deeply to their elders.

Breakfast is tteokguk, a soup of sliced rice cakes with beef, egg, and vegetables, and if you see it on a menu that week, that’s the Seollal dish. Afterward, the most popular game is yutnori, played by throwing four sticks. Some families wear hanbok for the day.

If you’d like to see some of it, I’d look at the National Folk Museum, which ran Seollal activities, including lucky-pouch making, on February 16, 2026. The 2027 program is not out yet, so check its site before you go.

💬 Say it in Korean

새해 복 많이 받으세요

Saehae bok mani badeuseyo

“Happy New Year,” or more literally, “Receive lots of luck in the new year.” It’s the standard greeting over the holiday, and you can use it with anyone you meet.

FAQ

Is Seollal the same as Chinese New Year?

Usually it’s the same date. In 2027, Korea’s Seollal falls a day later, on February 7, because Korea counts the new moon in its own time zone, so check which date your calendar shows.

Will the palaces be free in 2027?

I haven’t seen an announcement yet. They were free over Seollal in both 2025 and 2026, and I’ll add the 2027 dates here when the notice is out, so you can check back in late January.

Is Seollal a good time to visit Seoul?

For palaces, it was in 2026, since you could get in free. If you’re shopping, I’d avoid February 6 to 8, and for the National Folk Museum, February 7. The National Museum of Korea usually closes on Seollal day too, but I haven’t seen its 2027 list yet.

If the palaces open the way they did in 2025 and 2026, I’d plan them for February 6 to 9 and keep your shopping for the days around them. Have a good holiday!

Hwaiting!

Yuna

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Sources and last check

How I put this guide together: from the Korean government’s 2027 calendar, the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, the palace and museum notices, Seoul’s city news, VISITKOREA, Korail, and Korean news about stores, checked on November 1 and 2, 2026. What to plan on which day is my own read. More on how I research every guide is on the About page.

Last checked: November 2, 2026. Closures for 2027 are mostly not announced yet, and the 2026 pattern may change, so please confirm before you go. This is an independent guide.

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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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