Hongcheon Ginkgo Forest opens free each October — 2026 dates unannounced

In Naemyeon, Hongcheon County, on the slopes of the Odaesan range in Gangwon State, about 2,000 ginkgo trees stand in rows across 40,000 m² of land. The Hongcheon Ginkgo Forest is neither a park nor a tourist site but one person's forest. It stays closed all year and opens to the public free of charge for roughly a month around October, when the leaves turn, and the exact dates are set by the owner each year. Below we separate the opening details confirmed by Hongcheon County and the Korea Tourism Organization from what is still unconfirmed.

What is the Hongcheon Ginkgo Forest?

According to the Hongcheon County tourism portal, the forest began in 1985. A farmer moved to Naemyeon for the sake of his wife, who suffered from chronic indigestion; hearing that the nearby Sambong mineral spring was good for the health, he began planting ginkgo saplings one by one in the hope she would recover. Those saplings are today's forest.

The trees were planted on a 5 m grid, so walking in feels like entering a chessboard of golden columns. In its 2024 and 2025 notices Hongcheon County described the forest as an autumn landmark that has drawn more than 100,000 visitors a year since it first opened in 2010, after 25 years in which it was never open to the public.

We have not written about the owner beyond the published story of how the forest began. It is enough to remember that the path you walk is someone's front garden.

Why do the opening dates change every year?

The pattern — about a month around October — stays the same, but the first and last days have shifted from year to year. These are the recent dates confirmed by Hongcheon County notices.

The main reason the dates move is that this is private land. Whether and when the forest opens is the owner's decision, not the county's, and the Korea Tourism Organization's travel feature also warns that the opening schedule can change at the owner's discretion.

When are the leaves at their most golden?

The peak is hard to predict in advance. The Korea Tourism Organization's 2019 travel feature notes that the forest sits on the Odaesan slopes, where temperatures are lower, so the leaves turn earlier than elsewhere.

Missing the peak is not a wasted trip, though. The Hongcheon County tourism portal points out that before the leaves have fully turned you see a fresh mix of green and yellow, and after they fall the paths are carpeted in yellow leaves. Early and late visits simply show different scenes, each particular to this forest.

If you want to know how far the colour has come this year, the quickest way is to ask when you call to check the forest is open. All the photos here are archive pictures taken in October 2016 and 2019, so this year may look different.

What about parking, transport and pets?

Official information is thin here, so we have split what is confirmed from what is not.

• Confirmed — free admission, open 10:00–17:00 (Hongcheon County tourism portal; Korea Tourism Organization travel feature).
• Confirmed — as private land, the opening schedule can change at the owner's discretion (Korea Tourism Organization travel feature).
• One source only — the Korea Tourism Organization place page lists parking as unavailable. Roadside temporary parking is mentioned only by private media, so ask about this year's arrangements.
• Not confirmed — whether pets are allowed, and how to get there by public transport; we found neither in official sources.
• Basic courtesy — you are walking on someone else's land, so no cooking or camping, and take your rubbish home. On weekends, arriving at opening time means fewer crowds.

What else is nearby?

The Hongcheon County tourism portal's 'within 4 km' listing puts Sambong mineral spring on Gachilbong (one of Hongcheon's nine scenic sights, and the spring in the forest's origin story) about 3.4 km away, and Sambong National Recreational Forest about 2.8 km away. The Korea Tourism Organization's travel feature suggests combining the spring with Chiksopokpo Falls and Saldun Valley.

According to Hongcheon County notices, during the 2024 and 2025 openings residents of Gwangwon 1-ri ran a food market selling potato pancakes and acorn jelly, along with radishes and napa cabbage grown in Naemyeon. There is no notice yet on whether the market will run this year.

Old ginkgo trees to visit if the dates do not work

If you miss the Hongcheon opening, another option is one of the old ginkgo trees designated as Natural Monuments. None of the three is on private land, so they can be seen outside October too.

Getting there, and what to expect on the day

The forest is in Naemyeon, the remote eastern end of Hongcheon County, off Route 56 (Guryongnyeong-ro) near the Guryongnyeong pass towards Yangyang. We found no official public-transport route, so in practice this is a drive — or a long intercity-bus ride to Hongcheon followed by a taxi, which you should arrange before you go. With parking listed as unavailable, ask the information centre where to leave the car. Once there, nothing is ticketed, booked or signed in a way you need to read: you walk in, follow the rows of trees and leave by 17:00. The tourist information line answers in Korean; if you need help in English, the 1330 Korea Travel Hotline can call on your behalf to confirm the forest is open.