Korea's national parks in autumn: live cameras, crowds and entry times — what to check before you go

It is common to arrive at a mountain after reading that its colours have peaked and find the trees by the path still green. Foliage starts at the summit and works downhill, so the trailhead can lag a 'peak' announcement by several days to more than a week. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) and the Korea National Park Service (KNPS) publish free pages that close that gap. Below are ten official pages in the order to open them, a few days before → the morning you leave → before you reach the trailhead; we checked that every link opened on 3 November 2026.

Where has the colour reached on the mountain right now?

Choosing a mountain takes two pages. KMA observers climb each mountain and record its foliage stage, and KNPS park offices post dated photographs taken by their own staff. The KMA page judges the mountain as a whole; the KNPS photos show one spot. Looking at both shows how far the trail you will walk is behind the official verdict.

When we reopened the KMA page on 3 November 2026, 11 of the 21 mountains were at peak — Seoraksan, Odaesan, Bukhansan, Chiaksan, Gyeryongsan, Sobaeksan, Woraksan, Songnisan, Jirisan, Deogyusan and Wolchulsan — and 10 were at first colour: Palgongsan, Mudeungsan, Juwangsan, Hallasan, Naejangsan, Duryunsan, Gayasan, Geumosan, Gajisan and Jogyesan. Songnisan was marked as peaked from a photograph taken on 2 November. The southern and south-coast mountains still at first colour are the ones to aim for through mid-November.

Paging through Saengsaeng Photo by date shows the colour moving down a single mountain. On Songnisan, the 11 October photos show the Gwaneumbong area turning red first; by 15 October it had reached the ridges around Chilhyeongjebong, and by 18 October the trail at 500 m. The KMA peak verdict came later, on 2 November. Rather than picking a date from summit photos, check whether photos from the altitude you will walk have appeared.

How do you check the weather on the mountain the day you go?

Once the date is set, look at the live pictures again the morning you leave. It can be clear at the bottom while the ridge is in cloud or high wind, and Seoraksan had its first snow at the end of October. The KNPS live video page covers 18 spots in 16 parks: Bukhansan (Baegundae and Sapaesan), Sobaeksan (Yeonhwabong), Deogyusan (Seolcheonbong), Jirisan (Cheonwangbong and Jangteomok), Seoraksan (Daecheongbong), Odaesan (Duroryeong), Taebaeksan (Cheonjedan), Chiaksan (Sangwonsa), Naejangsan (the 108 maple road), Mudeungsan (Jangbuljae), Gyeryongsan (Cheonhwangbong), Juwangsan (Gian), Taeanhaean (Hakampo), Byeonsanbando (Jungmak trail), Hallyeohaesang (Gaksan) and Dadohaehaesang (Jiricheongsong beach).

The KNPS page warns that feeds may pause depending on weather and connection on site. If a picture is frozen, use page ④ for the Gangwon parks and the latest dated photo on page ① for the rest. For Seoraksan, the KNPS camera shows Daecheongbong and the KMA one shows Ulsanbawi, so the two together show the difference between altitudes.

How do you know if a trail is crowded or closed?

October and November are the national parks' busiest months. Avoiding the busiest entrance on the same mountain makes parking and the walk down far easier, and late in the season the wildfire-prevention closures begin, so check that the trail is open before you arrive.

On routes like Namsanjeilbong, where a long stairway comes just before the summit, check the walking time on page ⑧ and set your start time against the entry hours on page ⑩. At Gayasan's Cheongnyangdong ranger post, winter entry is 05:00 to 14:00.

Which trails need a booking, and what are the November entry hours?

Some autumn hot spots cannot be walked without a booking, and from 1 November the designated entry-time rule switches to winter hours, earlier than in summer for both the last entry and the closing time. Start late and you may be turned back at the gate.

Using these pages if you do not read Korean

All ten pages are Korean-only, but most of what they say is visual. On the KNPS live video page, each camera is labelled with the park name followed by the spot in brackets, as listed above, so matching the park name is enough. On the KMA foliage page, each mountain carries one of three leaf icons for no colour, first colour and peak, and each photograph shows the date it was taken. The congestion page is a set of green, amber and red lights, one per park. The catch is booking. KNPS's English reservation site lists only shelters and campsites; trail slots such as Heullimgol and Seoraebong are on the Korean-language site, which needs a KNPS account with Korean identity verification, and Seoraebong sends its entry QR code by KakaoTalk. A visitor without a Korean phone may need help from someone in Korea, or can pick one of the many trails that need no booking. From Seoul the easiest peak-colour option is Bukhansan, at peak on 3 November and reached by subway: Bukhansan Ui station at the end of the Ui-Sinseol line is a short walk from the trailheads. Remember the winter entry hours and the 15 November closures before choosing a high route.