Seoul palaces free every Wednesday — except Gyeongbokgung

The Korea Heritage Service's Royal Palaces and Tombs Center finished moving from one free day a month to every Wednesday on 7 October 2026. Three of the Seoul palaces, Jongmyo Shrine and the Joseon royal tombs around the capital now charge no admission each Wednesday. It is not quite "every palace is free on Wednesday", though: Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung's Secret Garden are left out, each site started on a different date and closes at a different hour, and early November adds a separate free period on top. We checked six official notices against the hours and admission pages to sort out the parts that are easy to get wrong.

From once a month to every week: what changed

The royal sites used to be free on the last Wednesday of each month, the government's Culture Day. When the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism widened Culture Day to every Wednesday in April 2026, the Royal Palaces and Tombs Center did not switch everything at once; it phased the change in site by site, according to staffing and how many visitors each could handle. The royal tombs went first on 27 May, Deoksugung followed on 5 August, and Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung and Jongmyo on 7 October. The center's admission page now lists "every Wednesday, Culture Day (except Gyeongbokgung and the Changdeokgung Secret Garden)" among its free-entry categories.

What becomes free is general admission. The official pages do not say whether pre-booked guided visits or paid special programmes inside the palaces are also free on Wednesdays.

Which sites, since when, and until what time

Five sites are free on Wednesdays; only Gyeongbokgung is missing. Opening hours change through the year, so the times below are for November. The usual fee shown is the adult rate (ages 19 to 64 for foreign visitors, 25 to 64 for Korean nationals).

Why Gyeongbokgung and the Secret Garden are left out

Gyeongbokgung is left out because it is already crowded. In its May press release the center said it would decide separately when to extend the scheme there, weighing congestion and visitor safety, and as of 30 October no date has been given.

• Gyeongbokgung: KRW 3,000 for adults on Wednesdays too. The official pages do not say whether the old last-Wednesday free day still applies there.
• Changdeokgung Secret Garden: a guided visit with a fixed number of places per departure, so it stays KRW 5,000 for adults on Wednesdays. A Secret Garden ticket normally has to be bought together with the palace-buildings ticket; nothing official says whether that part is waived on Wednesdays.
• MMCA Deoksugung: the art museum inside the palace charges separately, but its Wednesday and Saturday late opening, 18:00 to 21:00, is free, and it is free all day on the last Wednesday of the month. The palace's main gate, Daehanmun, stops admitting people at 20:00, so get in before then.

Where to go on a Wednesday

Changdeokgung, Deoksugung, Changgyeonggung and the royal tombs close on Mondays; Gyeongbokgung and Jongmyo close on Tuesdays. Nothing closes on Wednesday, which makes it the easiest day to string several of the free sites together.

Changgyeonggung — a palace you can still reach after work. Even in November it stays open until 21:00, with last entry at 20:00. The gate on the Yulgok-ro side opens only on weekends, public holidays and Wednesdays, and it leads straight across to Jongmyo on foot. From 10 to 15 November, however, the evening programme Donggwol Dongnak takes over and general entry stops at 17:30: last daytime entry is 16:30.

Jongmyo — on Wednesdays, no guide required. On Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays Jongmyo can only be entered with a guide at set times. On Wednesdays, weekends and public holidays you walk round on your own without booking, and the north gate on Yulgok-ro is open, so you can come straight over from Changgyeonggung. During the Korea Grand Festival (29 October – 15 November) it is self-guided every open day, and on Saturday 7 November the autumn ancestral rite, Chuhyang Daeje, is held there.

Deoksugung — an evening walk in the middle of the city. Free on Wednesdays since 5 August, and open as usual until 21:00 with last entry at 20:00. The interior of Seokjojeon runs as pre-booked guided visits, and nothing says whether those are free on Wednesdays. Work on the outer wall continues until 19 November, so check the notice for which entrances are in use.

The royal tombs — where it started. Free on Wednesdays since 27 May. Most are open 09:00–17:30 in November (last entry 16:30); Donggureung and Jeongneung in Seoul open at 06:30, Seooreung and Jangneung in Gimpo at 07:00, and Seolleung and Jeongneung at 06:30. Jangneung in Yeongwol is run separately by Yeongwol County, and we could not confirm that the Wednesday rule applies there.

Which sites are free on each Wednesday in November

The first two Wednesdays of November fall inside the Korea Grand Festival free period, so Gyeongbokgung is free as well. On the 18th and 25th, after the festival, the normal rule applies and Gyeongbokgung is not included.

Closing days

If a closing day falls on a public holiday, the site opens and closes the next day instead. Whatever the day, foreign visitors aged 18 and under or 65 and over, Korean nationals aged 24 and under or 65 and over, and anyone wearing hanbok get in free (bring ID or proof). Residents of the district where each site stands get 50% off.

Getting there, and what you can do without Korean

Deoksugung is opposite City Hall Station (Lines 1 and 2); Changdeokgung is a short walk from Anguk Station (Line 3); Changgyeonggung adjoins it to the east (Hyehwa Station, Line 4, is the other way in); and Jongmyo's main gate is near Jongno 3-ga Station (Lines 1, 3 and 5). A Wednesday that takes in all four costs nothing for the tickets: Changdeokgung in the morning, across to Changgyeonggung, through the Yulgok-ro gate into Jongmyo while it is open (until 17:30, last entry 16:30), then the Line 1 to City Hall for Deoksugung and the MMCA gallery after dark. Signs and the main information panels are in English, and free English guided tours start from the information point inside each gate with no booking. At Jongmyo during the Korea Grand Festival the English tours are at 10:00 and 14:00 (not on Saturdays). The Secret Garden is the one thing to book ahead: it has its own English departures (10:30, 11:30, 14:30 and 15:30 through November) and, during foreign-language slots, Korean visitors are admitted only as companions of a foreign guest. Book through the integrated reservation site, or buy at the gate on the day — half of each departure's places are held back for sale on site. We have not confirmed whether the online system accepts a foreign phone number, so the gate is the safer plan if you are not set up for Korean verification.