'Seoul Welcome Week' runs through Oct. 11; city eyes tourism revenue boost

Discounts on tourism passes, K-pop events and Han River cruises on offer at Myeong-dong, airports

[Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]
[Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it will run the "2026 Seoul Welcome Week" for 23 days from Saturday through Oct. 11, timed to coincide with major East Asian holidays including Japan's Silver Week and China's National Day.

About 1.61 million foreign tourists visited Seoul in July, generating tourism spending of 1.07 trillion won ($776 million). By nationality, Chinese visitors led with 600,000, followed by Japanese at 250,000 and Taiwanese at 200,000.

A string of major East Asian holidays falls in quick succession this month. Japan's Silver Week runs Saturday through Wednesday, followed by South Korea's chuseok holiday from Thursday through Sunday, China's Mid-Autumn Festival from Thursday through Sunday and its National Day holiday from Oct. 1 through Oct. 7, and Taiwan's National Day from Oct. 9 through Oct. 11. The overlapping holidays are expected to drive substantial tourism revenue during the welcome week.

Organized with the Seoul Tourism Foundation and the Seoul Special City Tourism Association, the event expands beyond its traditional focus on Myeong-dong to include airports, tourist information centers and the Seoul Culture Lounge, allowing foreign visitors to access a range of services from the moment they arrive through their time in the city.

Starting Saturday, 13 tourist information centers and booths — including those at Seoul Tourism Plaza, Myeong-dong, and Incheon and Gimpo airports — will offer traditional cultural experiences and events themed around chuseok.

The tourist information centers at Incheon and Gimpo airports will distribute, on a first-come, first-served basis, the "Discover Seoul Pass Heritage Edition," which includes free admission to 12 national heritage sites — among them Joseon royal tombs, the four grand palaces and Jongmyo Shrine — along with discounts at more than 110 affiliated facilities.

From Oct. 1 through Oct. 8, a "Seoul Welcome Center" will open near Exit 6 of Myeong-dong Station, offering tourist information and interpretation services in English, Chinese and Japanese, along with K-pop performances, lucky draws and participatory art programs.

At the Seoul Culture Lounge on the 11th floor of Seoul Tourism Plaza, traditional cultural experiences — including Korean folk dance lessons and songpyeon rice cake making — will run from Saturday through Oct. 10. Standing programs such as wish-writing and postcard making will also be available throughout the period.

The Han River will also host welcome events. Seoul Cruise will offer foreign tourists a 20 percent discount on river cruise tickets during the welcome week, and the Yeouido ferry terminal will host a "Moonlit Rooftop Night Market" featuring K-pop performances and traditional cultural experiences.

The city will also provide a consolidated information page bringing together welcome week programs alongside festivals, performances and experiences taking place across Seoul. Multilingual staff will be deployed at major venues, and the city plans to strengthen safety management as well.

"We will prepare carefully so that foreign tourists can feel a warm welcome and discover Seoul's many charms from the moment they arrive until the end of their trip," said Jo Seong-ho, director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's tourism and sports bureau.


ken@heraldcorp.com