Christmas in Seoul 2026: Markets, Lights and Department Stores

People walking down a Seoul street strung with Christmas lights at night

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

If you can choose, the best time for Christmas in Seoul is mid-December or later. The Seoul Lantern Festival on the Cheonggyecheon stream is planned for December 11, 2026 to January 31, 2027, and The Hyundai Seoul’s Christmas display opens on November 10. In 2025, Shinsegae’s Christmas screen in Myeongdong started on November 7.

As of November 2, four of this year’s events had posted dates: the lantern festival, Seoul Light on Gwanghwamun Square, Starfield Library at COEX, and The Hyundai Seoul. Every other date you’ll see here is from the 2025 to 2026 season, and I’ve marked it that way.

Quick answer

  • 🗓️ 2026 dates: lanterns and Seoul Light from Dec 11; Starfield Library from Nov 13; The Hyundai Seoul from Nov 10
  • 📍 Free in 2025: Myeongdong’s store facades and the Cheonggyecheon lanterns
  • 🛍️ Christmas market: Jamsil’s Lotte Town market, Nov 20 to Jan 4 in 2025
  • ✅ Best window: mid-December to New Year’s

When do Seoul’s Christmas lights start?

Gwanghwamun Gate and the wide crosswalk in front of it under a clear blue December sky
Gwanghwamun Gate in December 2023, by the square where the city’s winter festival runs.

You’ll see it in two waves. The stores and malls light up in November, and the city’s festivals arrive in December. Here are the 2025 dates next to the 2026 dates confirmed so far:

What Where 2025 to 2026 2026 to 2027
Shinsegae’s media facade Myeongdong Nov 7 to Jan 31 Not out yet
The Hyundai Seoul Christmas village Yeouido Nov 1 to Dec 31 From Nov 10
Starfield Library Christmas display COEX Nov 13 to Jan 31 Nov 13 to Jan 31
Seoul Plaza tree City Hall Nov 17 to Jan 1 Not out yet
Lotte Town Christmas Market Jamsil Nov 20 to Jan 4 Not out yet
Seoul Light Gwanghwamun Square Dec 12 to Jan 4 Dec 11 to Jan 3
Gwanghwamun Market Gwanghwamun Square Dec 12 to Dec 31 Not out yet
Seoul Lantern Festival Cheonggyecheon Dec 12 to Jan 18, closed Jan 5 Dec 11 to Jan 31

Lotte World Tower Seoul Sky on KlookLotte World ticket on Klook

So a late-November trip gets you Starfield Library’s display and The Hyundai Seoul’s village, both confirmed, and, if 2025 is a guide, the store lights, the Seoul Plaza tree, and the Jamsil market. The lanterns and Seoul Light both start on December 11 this year, so if your trip ends before then, you’ll miss them. I couldn’t find separate 2026 dates for the Gwanghwamun Market or the Seoul Plaza tree.

I wouldn’t hold the stores to exact days. The Hyundai Seoul opened its village on November 1 in 2025 and opens nine days later this year, so the others could shift too, and I’d check each one before you go.

You can reach every stop in this guide by subway. You’ll use Line 4 for Myeongdong, Line 2 for Jamsil and COEX, and Line 5 for Gwanghwamun and Yeouido. If you’re riding several times a day, I’d look at the Climate Card. My guide to it shows when an unlimited pass pays off.

Myeongdong: the free light show

Crowds walking past brightly lit shop signs on a Myeongdong shopping street at night
Shop signs and crowds on a Myeongdong street at night. Photo: Christian Bolz (크리스티안 볼츠), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

I’d start here, because it costs nothing and you don’t need to book. For the 2025 season, Shinsegae’s main store turned its front into a screen from November 7 to January 31, running 5 p.m. to midnight with the show repeating every five minutes. Take Line 4 to Hoehyeon Station, Exit 7, and walk about 230 meters to the facade.

If the lights are why you’re coming, I’d stay in Myeongdong. Shinsegae, Lotte’s main store, Myeongdong Cathedral, and the Cheonggyecheon are all within walking distance, and my Seoul area guide has more on the neighborhood.

Is the Hyundai Seoul’s Christmas village worth the booking?

For most first-timers, no. In 2025 the village filled the fifth floor of The Hyundai Seoul in Yeouido from November 1 to December 31, and you needed a timed booking to get in. This year’s display opens on November 10, according to Hyundai’s event page.

I couldn’t confirm where 2026 bookings are taken, or whether you can book without a Korean phone number. If you want to try, check The Hyundai Seoul’s own site before you plan a day around it. The store is by Yeouido Station on Lines 5 and 9.

Honest take

You could see the Myeongdong facades and the 2025 lanterns without booking, so I’d only chase The Hyundai’s village if it’s the one thing you came for.

Jamsil’s Christmas market: check this year’s entry rules

Lotte World Tower lit up at night above Seokchon Lake in Jamsil, Seoul
Lotte World Tower lit up at night above Jamsil in Seoul. Photo: kallerna, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In 2025, the Lotte Town Christmas Market filled the lawn of the World Park at Lotte World Tower from November 20 to January 4. On November 2, Lotte’s market page still showed those 2025 dates, so this year’s run isn’t confirmed yet.

I couldn’t confirm the opening hours or the entry rules on Lotte’s own pages, so check them there before you go. Lotte World Tower is next to Jamsil Station on Lines 2 and 8, and the market is on an outdoor lawn, so you’ll want warm layers.

You can pair it with COEX, a few stops west on Line 2 at Samseong Station. Starfield Library inside the mall runs its Christmas display from November 13 to January 31 this year, the same dates as in 2025. In 2025 it was open 10:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. every day.

Gwanghwamun and the Cheonggyecheon: the city’s festival

Christmas lights and decorations along the Cheonggyecheon stream at night in Seoul
Christmas lights along the Cheonggyecheon stream in central Seoul. Photo: Christian Bolz, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

From December 12, 2025, Seoul ran its Winter Festa until January 4, across several spots including Gwanghwamun Square, the Cheonggyecheon, and Seoul Plaza, which are close enough for you to walk between in one evening.

Gwanghwamun Station on Line 5 puts you right on the square. This year Seoul’s festival site lists Seoul Light, a media facade show, for December 11 to January 3, 5:30 to 10 in the evening.

In 2025 the square had two parts. Seoul Light ran from 5:30 to 9:30 in the evening Sunday to Thursday, and until 10 on Friday and Saturday. The Gwanghwamun Market’s stalls ran from December 12 to 31, 5:30 to 9:30 in the evening, and until midnight on New Year’s Eve.

The Seoul Lantern Festival is the one I’d make time for, even if you skip everything else. The Seoul Tourism Organization plans this year’s for December 11 to January 31, from 6 to 11 at night, along the Cheonggyecheon from Cheonggye Plaza to Samil Bridge. The lanterns stay on until 11, an hour after Seoul Light’s planned finish, so I’d see Gwanghwamun first and walk the stream after.

In 2025 it was free and drew 2.77 million visitors in its first 20 days. That run was extended to January 18 with one closed day on January 5, so I’d check this season’s notice for closed days before you go.

Seoul Plaza, by City Hall Station Exit 6, had its light tree from November 17 to January 1. If you want to skate, the plaza’s ice rink opened on December 19.

Yuna’s pick

One evening: Shinsegae’s facade, then the lanterns on the Cheonggyecheon from December 11.

Two evenings: add Seoul Light from December 11, and the Gwanghwamun Market and Seoul Plaza tree once their 2026 dates are out.

A daytime slot: the library at COEX from November 13, plus Jamsil’s market if it returns this year.

What happens on Christmas Day?

Lit Christmas trees in front of Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul at night
Christmas trees outside Myeongdong Cathedral on a December evening. Photo: Nat4Eben, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

December 25 is a public holiday in Korea. In 2026 it falls on a Friday, so Seoul gets a three-day weekend. The lantern festival’s planned run covers Christmas, with the lights on from 6 in the evening, so you can end the day there.

Myeongdong Cathedral is the stop I’d pick on the day itself. In 2025, it kept its Sunday Mass times on December 25, with the main Mass at noon. The 2026 schedule isn’t out, so if you want to attend, check the cathedral’s notices in December.

If you’re leaving Seoul over the long weekend, fix your dates before you book a train. Friday-to-Sunday and holiday KTX tickets cost more to cancel than Monday-to-Thursday ones, and Christmas falls on a Friday.

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FAQ

Is Christmas a public holiday in Korea?

Yes. December 25 is a national holiday, and in 2026 it’s a Friday.

Are Seoul’s Christmas events free?

Many were in 2025, so you could see a lot without spending anything. You could watch the store facades from the street, and the Seoul Lantern Festival cost nothing, while The Hyundai Seoul’s village needed a booking. I couldn’t confirm the Jamsil market’s entry rules.

Is Christmas Eve a holiday too?

No. Only December 25 is a public holiday, so December 24 is a normal working Thursday in 2026.

When will the other 2026 dates come out?

The lantern festival, Seoul Light, Starfield Library, and The Hyundai Seoul have posted theirs. Seoul published its 2025 winter festival program on November 24, 2025, so I’d check the city’s news site in late November for the Gwanghwamun Market and the Seoul Plaza tree.

If you can only pick one evening, make it Myeongdong and the Cheonggyecheon after December 11. Merry Christmas!

Hwaiting!

Yuna

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Sources and last check

How I put this guide together: from the Seoul Tourism Organization, Seoul’s city news sites, the stores’ own pages, Myeongdong Cathedral’s bulletin, the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute’s calendar, and Korean and English news, checked on November 1 and 2, 2026. Which events are worth your evening is my own read. No store or tour company paid for or reviewed it. More on how I research every guide is on the About page.

Last checked: November 2, 2026. Apart from the 2026 dates marked as such, the dates here are from the 2025 to 2026 season, and this year’s can differ, so please confirm before you go. This is an independent guide, not affiliated with any store or with the City of Seoul.

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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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