When to visit Korea — what is actually on, month by month

Happening right now

75 festivals are open today. These are the ones you could reach this week.

• Peinteojeu 페인터즈
  until 2026.12.31 · Seoul
  Open in Kakao Map →
• Gwangalli M Drone Light Show 광안리 M(Marvelous) 드론 라이트쇼
  until 2026.12.31 · Busan
  Open in Kakao Map →
• Gugak Performance Jinyeon 국악공연 진연
  until 2026.12.31 · Seoul
  Open in Kakao Map →
• Namsanbongsuuisik Deung Jeontongmunhwahaengsa 남산봉수의식 등 전통문화행사
  until 2026.12.31 · Seoul
  Open in Kakao Map →
• Seoul Wanggungsumunjang Gyodaeuisik 서울 왕궁수문장 교대의식
  until 2026.12.31 · Seoul
  Open in Kakao Map →
• 2026 Sungnyemun Pasuuisik 2026 숭례문 파수의식
  until 2026.12.31 · Seoul
  Open in Kakao Map →
• DDP Geonchuktueo DDP 건축투어
  until 2026.12.31 · Seoul
  Open in Kakao Map →
• Wanggaui Sanchaek 왕가의 산책
  until 2026.12.31 · Incheon
  Open in Kakao Map →
• 2026 Seom Bangmunui Hae 2026 섬 방문의 해
  until 2026.12.31 · South Jeolla
  Open in Kakao Map →
• APAP Artwork Tour APAP 작품투어 (안양공공예술프로젝트)
  until 2026.11.30 · Gyeonggi
  Open in Kakao Map →
• 2026 Munhwaga Inneun Nal Cheongchunmaikeu 2026 문화가 있는 날 청춘마이크
  until 2026.12.11 · Gwangju
  Open in Kakao Map →
• Ssokssokdeul-i Festival 2026 국립극장 쏙쏙들이페스티벌
  until 2026.12.26 · Gyeonggi
  Open in Kakao Map →

Month by month

Festival counts are from the national tourism database. Months with at least 8 events have their own page listing every one of them.

What each season is actually for

Derived from how visitor numbers move across the country, not from opinion — these are the months when the relevant places measurably fill up.

Visitor movement is measured for months 1, 4, 8, 9, 10 only, so peak months are drawn from those measurements. Source: Korea Tourism Data Lab, visitor counts per district.

Where the festivals actually are

Upcoming festivals are spread across 17 provinces and metropolitan cities. Seoul has the most, with 57 — and even that is only 21% of the total. Korean festivals are not concentrated in one place; most of them happen where a first-time itinerary never goes.

Counted from festivals currently running or scheduled. A province made up of many small counties will naturally show more events than a single city.

Where foreign visitors actually go

Not a recommendation list — a measurement. These are the districts with the highest foreign-visitor counts in the national tourism data. Yeongjonggu is first with 3,067,535. Airport and port districts rank high for obvious reasons; the rest is where people actually spend their days.

Source: Korea Tourism Data Lab, foreign-visitor counts per district, 2026.07.31~2026.08.29. Estimated from mobile and card data. Korean names are shown so you can paste them into a map app.

Why every name here has Korean next to it

Korean festivals are listed in the national database under their Korean names, and roughly half have no official English title. Where an official translation exists we use it; otherwise we romanise. Either way the Korean original is shown, because that is the string that works when you paste it into Naver Map or Kakao Map — which are the map apps that actually work in Korea.