Seoul Palace Hours · Deoksugung
Deoksugung: hours, closing days and how to visit
Downtown, beside City Hall. Open late, and lit at night.
Deoksugung sits downtown beside Seoul City Hall and mixes traditional halls with Western-style buildings from the Korean Empire period. It is open until 21:00, and the stone-wall road that runs along it, Deoksugung Doldam-gil, is one of the city's best-known walks.
- Closed
- Mondays — except when a public holiday moves it
- Hours
- 09:00–21:00, all year · last entry one hour before
- Adult ticket
- ₩1,000
- Nearest subway
- City Hall Station, Exit 2 (Lines 1, 2)
Opening hours
| Months | Open | Last entry | Closes |
|---|---|---|---|
| All year | 09:00 | 20:00 | 21:00 |
Closing days
Deoksugung closes every Monday. When a public holiday lands on a Monday, it opens for the holiday and the closure moves to the first following day that is not a holiday. Because Seollal and Chuseok follow the lunar calendar, those moved dates are different every year.
| Usually closed | Opens instead, for | Closed on |
|---|---|---|
| Monday, February 8, 2027 | Seollal holiday | Wednesday, February 10, 2027 provisional |
| Monday, March 1, 2027 | Independence Movement Day | Tuesday, March 2, 2027 provisional |
| Monday, June 7, 2027 | Memorial Day (substitute) | Tuesday, June 8, 2027 provisional |
| Monday, August 16, 2027 | Liberation Day (substitute) | Tuesday, August 17, 2027 provisional |
| Monday, October 4, 2027 | National Foundation Day (substitute) | Tuesday, October 5, 2027 provisional |
| Monday, October 11, 2027 | Hangeul Day (substitute) | Tuesday, October 12, 2027 provisional |
| Monday, December 27, 2027 | Christmas Day (substitute) | Tuesday, December 28, 2027 provisional |
November 2026
December 2026
January 2027 · provisional
OpenClosed Open, but normally a closing day
Put Deoksugung closing days in your calendar. Subscribe once and moved closures appear on their own when the holiday data is updated.
Royal Guard Changing Ceremony
11:00 and 14:00, at Daehanmun Gate. Every day except Mondays. It can be cancelled in bad weather.
Tickets and free entry
Adult admission is ₩1,000. A ₩6,000 combined ticket covers the four palaces and Jongmyo and stays valid for six months from purchase; it does not include Changdeokgung's Secret Garden.
- Korea Grand Festival, Oct 29 – Nov 15 2026: free for everyone on every open day. Regular closing days still apply.
- Wearing hanbok: free entry, every open day.
- Every Wednesday: free for everyone, since August 2026.
What to see
- Daehanmun — the main gate, where the guard ceremony takes place.
- Junghwajeon — the throne hall.
- Seokjojeon — the Western-style stone hall completed in 1910.
- National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Deoksugung — inside the palace grounds.
Getting there
| Station | Line | Exit | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|
| City Hall Station | Lines 1, 2 | Exit 2 | 2 min walk |
| Gwanghwamun Station | Line 5 | Exit 6 | 10 min walk |
If it is closed when you are there
On an ordinary Monday, Gyeongbokgung and Jongmyo Shrine are open. A moved closing day can close several sites at once, so put your dates into the date checker to see which.
Questions
When is Deoksugung closed?
Every Monday. When a Korean public holiday falls on a Monday, Deoksugung opens that day and closes on the next non-holiday day instead, so check the exact date rather than the weekday. This page lists every moved closing day through 2027.
What are Deoksugung's opening hours?
09:00–21:00 all year, last admission 20:00. Last admission is one hour before closing.
What time is the changing of the guard at Deoksugung?
At 11:00 and 14:00 at Daehanmun Gate, every day except Mondays. It can be cancelled in bad weather.
Is Deoksugung open at night?
Yes. It is open until 21:00, with last entry at 20:00, every day except its closing day.
How do I get to Deoksugung by subway?
Take Line 1 or 2 to City Hall Station and use Exit 2 — about a two-minute walk.
Sources
Ceremony times, tour schedules, ticket rules and directions were checked against these official pages on Saturday, October 31, 2026. Closing days are computed from Korea's official holiday calendar.