Secret Garden sold out? Changdeokgung booking, walk-up tickets and Geumhomun

When to book

Online and walk-up sales

Changdeokgung’s Secret Garden is the royal garden in Jongno, Seoul. Online tickets open at 10:00 six calendar days before your visit and close the previous day. For 24 October 2026, sales open on 18 October at 10:00. All times are KST, UTC+9: 10:00 KST is 01:00 UTC. An unselectable date may be outside the booking window or closed, rather than sold out.

Each session has 100 places: 50 online and 50 on site. If online tickets sell out, all that day’s walk-up sessions go on sale together at 09:00, first come, first served. There is no same-day online booking and no guaranteed walk-up fallback. The palace warns that April–May and October–November sell out quickly through both channels.

Payment deadlines and overseas cards

Overseas visitors can use the official English booking page’s email account and pay by card. Korean instructions require payment within 24 hours, or by 23:59 that day for a booking made the day before visiting. Follow the deadline displayed for your booking and confirm payment is complete. A booking number does not guarantee payment or approval of every overseas card. Check the purchase limit shown on the booking screen.

Conflicting party-size limits

The official booking guidance still gives both five and ten as the limit for the same garden-booking context. These are conflicting statements: use the limit shown during your actual booking and ask the palace office before planning a larger party.

Palace and garden prices

A garden ticket does not include palace-building admission. One foreign visitor aged 19–64 normally pays KRW 3,000 for the palace plus 5,000 for the garden: 8,000 total. Garden admission is 5,000 for ages 19+ including 65+, 2,500 for ages 7–18, and free for 0–6. Palace admission is free for foreign visitors aged 0–18 or 65+ with proof. Fees and concessions depend on nationality and age. Ask the palace how infants count towards session capacity when needed.

From 7 October 2026, palace-building admission is free every Wednesday. The Korea Grand Festival’s 29 October–15 November free admission also covers the palace, but excludes the garden and normal closure days. An eligible foreign adult pays 5,000 for the garden on an open free-palace day and still needs timed entry. Hanbok-based palace exemption and the 6,000 palace pass, valid six months, do not include the garden fee.

Session languages and open areas

English sessions run at 10:30, 11:30, 14:30 and 15:30 in March–November; winter omits 15:30. Japanese is 13:30 on Wednesday, Friday, Sunday; Chinese is 12:30 on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday. Korean is hourly 10:00–16:00 in March–October and 10:00–15:00 in November–February. Foreign-language sessions admit foreign visitors and up to two accompanying Korean visitors.

Enter with your session group at the booked time, then join the commentary or explore independently within open areas. Current official guidance gives approximately 70 minutes and closes Ongnyucheon for heritage repairs until further notice. The booking page’s generic 90-minute seasonal route is not a guaranteed current itinerary. Monday is the usual closure; a public or substitute holiday opens it, with closure on the next non-holiday. Date-specific notices take precedence.

From Geumhomun to the garden

1. Go to the temporary Geumhomun entrance, west of Donhwamun. In busy seasons, aim to arrive about an hour early for ticket and entry queues.
2. Carry a palace ticket or valid free-entry evidence and enter the palace at least 20 minutes before the garden slot.
3. Follow the garden signs. The walk from the palace entrance to the garden takes at least 15 minutes.
4. Reach the garden checkpoint for your booked session. Arriving at Geumhomun alone does not complete garden check-in.

1. 1
   Anguk exit 3

   Actual exit coordinate on Line 3

2. 2
   Temporary Geumhomun entrance

   Current official entrance and mapped gate

3. 3
   Buyongji Pond reference

   Inside the garden; not its admission gate

Official directions list Line 3 Anguk exit 3, or Jongno 3-ga exit 7 on Lines 1, 3, 5. The palace has no parking facilities, so use public transport. Marker 3 is Buyongji Pond, not the ticket checkpoint. The garden has steep hills and dirt paths that can become slippery or muddy. Wheelchair and stroller users should consult the entrance’s ramp-route board and palace staff before choosing the route.

OpenStreetMap · ODbL 1.0

Tickets, cancellation and afterwards

• Use the live mobile ticket on the day or exchange for a paper ticket. Screenshots and printed booking confirmations are not tickets. Carry ID and concession evidence.
• The FAQ says the mobile-ticket button appears 30 minutes before the slot; kiosk exchange ends 20 minutes before.
• Late arrival means no garden entry or refund.

Cancellation and refunds

• Earlier than two hours before the session: no cancellation penalty.
• During the final two hours before the start: 10% penalty.
• After the session starts: no refund. Cancel before reaching a deadline boundary.

After visiting, head west towards Insadong if you want a separate tea stop. KTO lists Jeontong Dawon inside the Kyung-in Museum of Fine Art at 11-4 Insadong 10-gil, with 11:00–21:00 hours. Options include herbal ssanghwacha, jujube, ginger and omija berry teas, plus yugwa, a fried rice sweet. Keep the tea stop after timed admission and check the shop’s day-of operation. Palace enquiries: +82-2-3668-2300.

Korean map search names: 창덕궁, 후원, 금호문, 돈화문, 안국역, 전통다원.

Official English booking guide · Geumhomun and current garden access