Seoul Welcome Week 2026: What Happened in Myeongdong, Yeouido, and Across Seoul

Seoul Welcome Week 2026 was held from May 1 to May 8, 2026, as a citywide hospitality program for foreign visitors to Seoul. The main welcome sites were concentrated around Myeongdong and Yeouido from May 1 to May 5, while linked events at tourist information centers and regional tourism antenna shops continued through May 8.¹

The program was designed around a practical visitor journey: arrival, movement through the city, on-site guidance, and hands-on cultural experiences. Because the event has already ended, this guide explains what was offered, where the core activities took place, and what visitors could use during the 2026 edition of Seoul Welcome Week.

Seoul Welcome Week 2026 Dates and Main Locations

The official operating period for Seoul Welcome Week 2026 was May 1 to May 8, 2026. Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Tourism Association operated the program for foreign tourists, with core hospitality centers in Myeongdong and Yeouido running intensively from May 1 to May 5.¹

In Myeongdong, the welcome center was located near Myeongdong Station. One report specified the site as being in front of Exit 6 of Myeongdong Station, operating daily from 12:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. between May 1 and May 5.² This location matched the event’s visitor-focused purpose, since Myeongdong is one of Seoul’s best-known shopping and tourism districts.

The second major site was the Yeouido Hangang Park welcome booth. It was set up near Exit 2 of Yeouinaru Station, around the event plaza area of Hangang Park, and operated from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. during the May 1 to May 5 core period.² This site provided multilingual festival information and Seoul travel consultation services, helping visitors navigate both the area and the wider city.

Beyond those two hubs, hospitality events also continued at major tourist information centers and regional tourism antenna shops until May 8.³ That extended schedule matters for travelers who were not in Myeongdong or Yeouido during the five-day core period but still wanted access to welcome events or tourism support.

What Visitors Could Do During Seoul Welcome Week 2026

The 2026 program combined travel assistance with participatory Seoul culture experiences. At the Myeongdong welcome center, visitors could use an AI smart travel guide consultation desk and visit the Seoul Styling Spot.¹ The Myeongdong program also included a traditional decorative daenggi hair-styling experience, giving visitors a specific cultural activity rather than only general tourism information.²

K-culture programming was also a major part of the week. Source summaries identify K-beauty experiences, K-pop cover dance performances, and other participatory content as part of the event.¹ These activities were positioned as on-site experiences for foreign visitors, especially in the Myeongdong and Yeouido areas.

The Yeouido welcome booth focused more strongly on multilingual guidance and travel consultation. Visitors there could receive festival information in multiple languages and get help with Seoul travel planning.² This made the Yeouido location useful not only for sightseeing around Hangang Park, but also for visitors trying to decide where to go next in the city.

Discount benefits and tourism product information were also included. TravelDaily reported that the Seoul Tourism Association and Seoul Metropolitan Government expanded public-private cooperative programs, including K-beauty experiences, tourism product guidance, and discount benefits.⁴ The official Seoul release also noted regional tourism-linked discount coupons as part of the program.¹

Seoul’s hospitality effort was not limited to the city center. Seoul Metropolitan Government worked with China Eastern Airlines to place welcome leaflets at departure airports on major Korea-China routes, including Shanghai, Qingdao, and Nanjing.⁵ TTL News also described the program as using cooperation with airlines and major city media to deliver welcome messages from before arrival through the stay and transportation stages.⁶

The timing was closely tied to regional travel demand. Yonhap reported that the welcome events coincided with Japan’s Golden Week and China’s Labor Day holiday period, both important travel windows for inbound tourism to Seoul.⁵ MoneyToday also cited Seoul’s explanation that foreign tourist arrivals to Korea in the first quarter of 2026 had increased by about 23 percent year over year.³

Seoul tourism official Kim Myung-joo described the goal as activating a dense hospitality system “from the airport to the city center” and using the week as a chance to raise the appeal of Seoul tourism.¹ In another quoted explanation, Kim said that inbound tourism demand was rapidly recovering, pointing to the roughly 23 percent first-quarter increase in foreign visitors to Korea.³

The Seoul Tourism Association also framed the event as more than a short-term promotion. Association chair Cho Tae-sook called Seoul Welcome Week a core platform for giving visitors the experience and memory of a city they would want to visit again.⁴

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Patrick Choi

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