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2024 KOREAN NATIONAL HOLIDAYS

Below is a list of the 2024 Korean National Holidays. 

We will also dig deeper and talk about the significance of the Korean Public Holidays and how they are celebrated. 

There is also a list of the 2025 Korean National Holidays for your reference below as well. 

Throughout the page we’ve also created a number of images (including the one you can see here) that you can download, share and save.

Let’s learn about the Korean National Holidays in more detail now!

First up, the dates for 2024.

Korean National Holidays
Korean National Holidays

Korean Public Holidays | Korean Holidays in 2024

Korean Public Holidays | Korean Holidays in 2025

Korean Public Holidays | How Does Korea Celebrate Holidays?

Korean Public Holidays | FAQ’s

KOREAN NATIONAL HOLIDAYS 2024

Korea has 13 public holidays, ranging from Hangul Day to Chuseok. Here is a full list of the Korean Holidays

DateHolidayKorean NameTransliterated Name
January 1st, 2024New Year’s Day신정Sinjeong
February 10th-12th, 2024Korean New Year설날Seollal
March 1st, 2024Independence Movement Day3ㆍ1절Samiljeol
May 1st, 2024Labour Day노동절Nodongjeol
May 5th, 2024Children’s Day어린이날Eorininal
May 15th, 2024Budhha’s Birthday부처님 오신 날Bucheonnim Osinnal
June 6th, 2024Memorial Day현충일Hyeonchung-il
August 15th, 2024Liberation Day광복절Gwangbokjeol
September 16th-18th, 2024Chuseok추석Chuseok
October 3rd, 2024National Foundation Day개천절Gaecheonjeol
October 9th, 2024Hangul Day한글날Hangeulnal
December 25th, 2024Christmas크리스마스/기독탄신일Christmas/Gidoktansinil

Other Holidays and Observed Dates in 2024

There are a number of other days scattered throughout the year that Korean’s like to celebrate.

These can include celebrating their love with their partner (Valentine’s Day) or their favourite teachers (Teacher’s Day), and a whole lot more!

DateHolidayKorean NameTransliterated Name
February 14th, 2024Valentine’s Day발렌타인 데이Barrentain Dei
February 24th, 2024Daeborum대보름Daeborum
March 20th, 2024March Equinox춘분Chunbun
April 5th, 2024Arbor Day식목일Sikmogil
May 8th, 2024Parent’s Day어버이날Eobeoinal
May 15th, 2024Teacher’s Day스승의 날Sisunginal
June 21st, 2024June Solstice하지Haji
August 10th, 2024Chilseok칠석Chilseok
September 22nd, 2024September Equinox추분Chubun
October 1st, 2024Armed Forces Day국군의 날Gukgunuinal
October 31st, 2024Halloween할로윈Harroein
December 21st, 2024December Solstice동지Dongji
December 31st, 2024New Year’s Eve섣달그믐Seotdal Geumeum

KOREAN NATIONAL HOLIDAYS 2025

Here is a full list of the Korean National Holidays for 2025.

DateHolidayKorean NameTransliterated Name
January 1st, 2025New Year’s Day신정Sinjeong
January 29th & 30th, 2025Korean New Year설날Seollal
March 1st, 2025Independence Movement Day3ㆍ1절Samiljeol
May 1st, 2025Labour Day노동절Nodongjeol
May 5th, 2025Children’s Day어린이날Eorininal
May 5th, 2025Budhha’s Birthday부처님 오신 날Bucheonnim Osinnal
June 6th, 2025Memorial Day현충일Hyeonchung-il
August 15th, 2025Liberation Day광복절Gwangbokjeol
October 3rd, 2025National Foundation Day개천절Gaecheonjeol
October 5th to 7th, 2025Mid-Autumn Festival추석Chuseok
October 9th, 2025Hangul Day한글날Hangeulnal
December 25th, 2025Christmas크리스마스/기독탄신일Christmas/Gidoktansinil

Other Holidays and Observed Dates in 2025

DateHolidayKorean NameTransliterated Name
February 12th, 2025Daeborum대보름Daeborum
February 14th, 2025Valentine’s Day발렌타인 데이Barrentain Dei
March 20th, 2025March Equinox춘분Chunbun
April 5th, 2025Arbor Day식목일Sikmogil
May 8th, 2025Parent’s Day어버이날Eobeoinal
May 15th, 2025Teacher’s Day스승의 날Sisunginal
June 21st, 2025June Solstice하지Haji
August 29th, 2025Chilseok칠석Chilseok
September 23rd, 2025September Equinox추분Chubun
October 1st, 2025Armed Forces Day국군의 날Gukgunuinal
October 31st, 2025Halloween할로윈Harroein
December 22nd, 2025December Solstice동지Dongji
December 31st, 2025New Year’s Eve섣달그믐Seotdal Geumeum

HOW DOES SOUTH KOREA CELEBRATE HOLIDAYS?

Here’s a quick rundown on how Korean people celebrate the big days in the calendar.

Korean New Year

Korean New Year, or 설날 (Seollal), is celebrated during the lunar new year, is one of the most important Korean holidays.

The date of Korean New Year will change each year as it follows the Lunar Calendar.

On this day, Korean people visit family, perform ancestral rites, and wear hanbok (traditional Korean clothing).

Children also often receive red packets, which contain money, from relatives.

Food eaten includes tteokguk and jeon, which are soup with sliced rice cakes and savoury pancakes respectively.

Korean National Holidays

Daeborum

Daeborum, celebrated February 15th, is also called the Great Full Moon Festival. It celebrates the first full moon after the Korean New Year. 

On Daeborum, people eat many traditional types of Korean food and partake in a number of local Korean traditions.

These include cracking nuts to ensure protection from skin diseases and drinking gwibalgisul (귀밝이술).

Gwibalgisul is a shot of liquor that keeps away ear infections and illnesses.

It ensures that you only hear good news for the rest of the year.

Korean Public Holidays

Chilseok

Chilseok is the Korean equivalent to Japan’s Tanabata festival and Romeo and Juliet.

It celebrates the one day a year that Jiknyeo and Gyeonwu, a couple separated by the Milky Way, can meet.

In Korea, people eat food made of wheat on Chilseok and take baths for good health.

DID YOU KNOW | Chilseok falls on the seventh day of the seventh month of the Korean Lunar Calendar.

Korean Public Holidays

Chuseok

Chuseok is the annual mid-autumn festival, which is held around the Autumn Equinox.

Chuseok is the biggest traditional holiday in South Korean aside from Korean New Year.

On this day, Korean people visit their hometowns and families, eat songpyeon (a type of Korean rice cake), and pay respects to their ancestors.

In fact, Mid Autumn Festival isn’t just celebrated in Korean, but other countries throughout Asia as well.

Check out our guide to the Mid Autumn Festival from a Chinese perspective.

Korean National Holidays

Hangul Day

Now for a holiday that most certainly is only celebrated in Korea!

Hangul Day is a celebration of the creation of the Hangul alphabet by King Sejong in 1443.

Prior to the alphabet’s creation, Korean people wrote using Chinese characters, and literacy rates were much lower, as only wealthy people could afford to devote time and energy to learning thousands of Chinese characters.

While the new writing system took a while to catch on, by the mid-20th century, it was widely used in Korea.

Today it is celebrated as one of the most significant achievements of King Sejong the Great, who is regarded as one of Korea’s best kings.

Check out our full guide to the Korean alphabet here. It’s actually really quite easy to learn.

Korean National Holidays

Christmas

Unlike in Japan, in South Korea 25-30% of the population is Christian, which is why Christmas is a national holiday, so everyone has the day off.

On Christmas, people celebrate by going to church, putting up light displays (often in shopping districts rather than their own homes), and eating Christmas cake.

Fun fact | Instead of traditional Christmas music, K-pop groups will often release special Christmas songs, which you’ll hear played in stores!

Money is a common gift, and presents are usually only given to one’s significant other, rather than between family and friends.

And just to make things even easier, the Korean pronunciation for Christmas is simply…

크리스마스 (keuriseumaseu)

Korean Public Holidays

That completes our guide to the Korean public holidays. Hopefully this gives you a clearer idea of the most important days in the Korean calendar.

Want to learn more about public holidays in Asia? Why not…

DID YOU KNOW | You can now study Korean in Korea with LTL. We offer group classes, individually tailored courses and even homestay experiences in Seoul.

Drop us a message if you are interested in this incredible experience.

KOREAN NATIONAL HOLIDAYS // FAQ’S

How many national holidays does Korea have?

Korea has 13 national holidays in total. 

When is Seollal in 2024?

Seollal, or Korean New Year, is celebrated on February 10th in 2024.

It will be on January 29th in 2025. 

When is Seollal in 2025?

It will be on January 29th in 2025

Does Korea celebrate Christmas?

Yes, about 30% of Koreans are Christian, so Christmas is a national holiday in Korea, and everyone gets the day of work.

Korea is the only country in East Asia to do so. 

What is Daeborum?

Daeborum celebrates the first full moon after the Korean New Year.

On Daeborum, people eat traditional foods meant to ward off various diseases and bad luck. 

How many other holidays does Korea have?

Koreans celebrate or observe 13 other holidays, of which 4 (Valentine’s Day, Daeborum, Chilseok, and New Year’s Eve) are significant.

What is the most important holiday in Korea?

The most important holiday on the Korean calendar is Seollal, or the Korean New Year, since everyone celebrates it and travels home to see their families (whereas only a third of the country celebrates Christmas, for example). 

What is Chuseok and when is it?

Chuseok, or the mid-autumn festival, is the biggest traditional holiday in Korea aside from Seollal.

It is held around the autumn solstice, and people visit their families and pay respects to their ancestors during the festival. 

When is Hangul Day?

Hangul Day, which celebrates King Sejong the Great’s invention of the Hangul alphabet, which has greatly increased the literacy of the Korean people, is held annually on October 9th.

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    Manuel Saldaña Quintans , Student Advisor

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