Seoul Travel Forum

hi ppl,

i'm planning to go seoul for holidays from 12 feb 2010 to feb 21 2010 and realise tat the period is their Lunar New Year...anyone have idea if it's a good idea to go? will the do Dongdaemun or Namdaemun Market be closed?? will most of the shopping centres/night markets/restaurants be closed too?

In the past, almost everyone headed to their hometowns to perform ceremonial rites paying their respect to their ancestors, which is why the day before and after Seollal are also designated holidays and why government offices, banks and many businesses/services are closed.

That being said, an increasing number of Koreans either stay home (and avoid the heavy traffic) or if the holidays are long enough (close to a weekend so they can add days), travel abroad. The majority of department/discount stores, markets, tourist sites, restaurants, etc. are now open for at least one or two of the holiday days, including New Year’s Day itself.

I am pretty sure Dongdaemun is open the whole time during the holiday, but some of the other markets and the larger department stores will probably be closed on the New Year's Day itself. You can find out for sure here:

http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SH/SH_EN_7_1_6.jsp