Before your first Korean festival

Korean festivals are short. Most run three or four days, some just one.
Miss the dates and you wait a year. So a little preparation goes a long way.

Here is what trips people up the first time.

Google Maps will not get you there

This surprises everyone. Google Maps has almost no public transit directions in Korea.
It will show you the place but not how to reach it.

Use one of these instead. Both have English.

• Naver Map — best for buses, subway and walking
• Kakao Map — similar, and better for taxis
• Subway Korea — subway only, but very clear

Download one before you land. You will use it every day.

Most festivals are outside the city centre

Festival grounds are usually a riverside park, a plaza or a village square,
and the parking is somewhere else entirely with a shuttle bus in between.

• Check the shuttle first and last bus times, not just the festival hours
• If a train station is nearby, that is usually faster than a taxi
• Rural festivals may have one bus an hour. Plan the return trip before you go

Bring some cash

Card works almost everywhere in Korea, but festival food stalls are the exception.
Many are run by local vendors who take cash only, and some festivals sell their own
coupons at a booth near the entrance.

Small bills are better than large ones. A 50,000 won note at a food stall will get you a long pause.

A T-money card also helps. You can buy one at any convenience store,
top it up with cash, and use it on buses, the subway and in most shops.

The last day ends early

A festival listed as running through Sunday will often start packing up Sunday afternoon.
Main performances happen the night before, and stalls close one by one.

If you can only go on the last day, arrive in the morning.
Weekdays are quieter than weekends, and the middle days are the fullest.

You do not need much Korean

Festival signage is often Korean only, but that matters less than you would think.
Food is behind glass and you point. Performances are music and movement.
Vendors are used to visitors and will meet you halfway.

If you want a translation app, Papago handles Korean better than most.

About our listings

We show what the Korea Tourism Organization publishes, refreshed every morning.
The Korean listings are larger than the English ones — the tourism office simply
has more entries in Korean.

If something looks thin, try switching the language at the top right.
Even without reading Korean, the dates, maps and photos are the same.

Dates and details can change at the last minute. Check the organiser's own
announcement before you travel.