Seoul’s five palaces: which to see, and when
The Joseon kings ruled from Seoul for five centuries and left five palaces within walking distance of each other, plus the royal ancestral shrine at Jongmyo. They are cheap, central and beautiful. Two things trip visitors up: the palaces close on different days of the week, and each one feels different enough that the choice matters if you only have time for one or two.
![Changdeokgung Palace Complex [UNESCO World Heritage Site]](https://tong.visitkorea.or.kr/cms/resource/03/3092503_image2_1.jpg)
- Tuesday: Gyeongbokgung and Jongmyo are closed. Monday: Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung and Deoksugung are closed. There is always a palace open.
- Wear hanbok and you get in free at all of them. Rental shops by every palace gate charge by the hour.
- The Secret Garden at Changdeokgung is a separate, timed ticket with limited numbers. Book it online a few days ahead in spring and autumn.
The palaces at a glance
| Gyeongbokgung | The main palace and the biggest, with the mountain behind the throne hall and the guard ceremony at the gate. It is the one to see if you see one, and the busiest. Most of it is a 20th-century reconstruction of what the Japanese colonial government tore down. |
|---|---|
| Changdeokgung | The UNESCO-listed palace, built to follow the hillside rather than a grid, and the one the kings actually preferred to live in. Behind it is the Secret Garden (Huwon), a wooded valley of pavilions and ponds seen on a guided walk of about 90 minutes. |
| Changgyeonggung | Next door to Changdeokgung and joined to it by a gate. Quieter, with a lake and a white Victorian-style glasshouse. Open until 21:00, so it works in the evening. |
| Deoksugung | In the middle of the modern city by City Hall, a small palace with stone Western-style halls from the last years of the dynasty. Also open until 21:00, and the stone-wall path outside is one of the loveliest walks in Seoul. |
| Gyeonghuigung | The least restored and least visited. Worth it only if you have seen the others. |
| Jongmyo | Not a palace but the royal ancestral shrine, and a UNESCO site: a single enormously long hall in a silent forest. On weekdays entry is by guided tour at set times, including tours in English; on weekends you can wander freely. |
Three palaces and the Secret Garden
Gyeongbokgung for the ceremony, Changdeokgung for the garden, and Deoksugung in the evening. Not on a Monday or Tuesday.
Avoid: Mondays and Tuesdays. One of the three is closed on each
- 09:30
Gyeongbokgung
Arrive before the 10:00 guard-changing ceremony at Gwanghwamun, the main gate; it runs again at 14:00, about 20 minutes each time. Then walk the axis north through the throne hall to Gyeonghoeru, the pavilion on its lake, and on to the smaller residential courts at the back.
- 12:3015 min walk
Lunch in Bukchon or Samcheong-dong
The hanok neighbourhood between the two palaces. Residents live here and the lanes of Bukchon are closed to tourists after 17:00, so it fits best in the middle of the day.
- 14:0010 min walk
Changdeokgung and the Secret Garden
Book the Secret Garden tour for mid-afternoon and see the palace first. The English tours run at fixed times; the tickets sell out first in the spring blossom and autumn foliage weeks. From here, the gate into Changgyeonggung is a short walk if you still have energy.
- 18:00subway 10 min
Deoksugung after dark
The palace stays open until 21:00 and is lit in the evening. Walk the stone-wall path round the outside afterwards. The guard ceremony here runs at the Daehanmun gate several times a day.
The palaces at night
Beyond the late opening at Deoksugung and Changgyeonggung, several palaces run special night programmes in spring and autumn. They need tickets, sell out within minutes of release, and some hold places for foreign visitors.
- Gyeongbokgung Starlight Tour, a guided night walk with a royal-kitchen meal, until 24 October.
- Night at Seokjojeon Hall in Deoksugung, until 18 October.
- Changgyeonggung Night Banquet, until 4 October.
- Changdeokgung Moonlight Tour, by lantern through the Secret Garden, each spring and autumn.
Hanbok, in practice
- Rental shops cluster around the Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung gates. Two to four hours is typical; hair styling and accessories cost extra.
- Free entry is for traditional-style hanbok. Staff at the gate decide what counts, so very costume-like versions may still pay.
- In winter, shops rent padded jackets and fur shawls to wear over it.
- Wearing hanbok as a foreigner is welcomed, not seen as costume.
![Jongmyo Shrine [UNESCO World Heritage] (종묘 [유네스코 세계유산])](https://tong.visitkorea.or.kr/cms/resource/15/3535215_image2_1.jpg)
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