Every statutory and substitute holiday, year by year, with the breaks they create.
Government offices and schools used to work through it. From 2026 they close too.
Dropped from the holiday list in 2008 and brought back in 2026, after 18 years.
| Book this off | You are off | Days in a row |
|---|---|---|
| January 2 (Fri) 🔥 Bridge day | Jan 1 - 4 | 4 days |
| February 13 (Fri) 🔥 | Feb 13 - 18 | 6 days |
| Feb 19 - 20 (2 days of leave) 🔥 Bridge dayLong break | Feb 14 - 22 | 9 days |
| February 27 (Fri) | Feb 27 - Mar 2 | 4 days |
| May 4 (Mon) 🔥 Bridge day | May 1 - 5 | 5 days |
| May 22 (Fri) | May 22 - 25 | 4 days |
| July 16 (Thu) | Jul 16 - 19 | 4 days |
| August 14 (Fri) | Aug 14 - 17 | 4 days |
| Sep 21 - 23 (3 days of leave) 🔥 Bridge dayLong break | Sep 19 - 27 | 9 days |
| September 23 (Wed) 🔥 | Sep 23 - 27 | 5 days |
| October 2 (Fri) | Oct 2 - 5 | 4 days |
| Oct 6 - 8 (3 days of leave) 🔥 Bridge dayLong break | Oct 3 - 11 | 9 days |
| October 8 (Thu) | Oct 8 - 11 | 4 days |
| December 24 (Thu) | Dec 24 - 27 | 4 days |
| December 31 (Thu) | Dec 31 - Jan 3 | 4 days |
| Year | Holidays | On a weekday | Lost to a weekend |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 22 days | 16 days | 6 days |
| 2027 | 24 days | 15 days | 9 days |
| 2028 | 19 days | 18 days | 1 days |
| 2029 | 20 days | 16 days | 4 days |
| 2030 | 19 days | 16 days | 3 days |
| Date | Day off? | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Armed Forces Day (October 1) | No | Not a statutory holiday. It was declared a one-off holiday in 2024 |
| Arbor Day (April 5) | No | Dropped from the holiday list in 2006 |
| Hangul Day (October 9) | Yes | Was dropped for years, then restored in 2013 |
| Parents' Day (May 8) | No | A commemorative day. Offices and schools run as normal |
| Christmas Eve (December 24) | No | Only Christmas Day itself is a holiday |
| Election days | Yes | National election days are public holidays, so the dates change year to year |
| Holiday | Set by | Range it lands in |
|---|---|---|
| Seollal (설날) | Lunar new year, plus the day before and after | Late January to late February |
| Buddha's Birthday | 8th day of the 4th lunar month | Late April to late May |
| Chuseok (추석) | 15th day of the 8th lunar month, plus the day either side | Early September to early October |
| New Year's Day, Liberation Day, Christmas and the rest | A fixed date on the solar calendar | The same date every year |
| What happens | What you get |
|---|---|
| A holiday lands on a Saturday or Sunday | The next working day is given back as a substitute holiday |
| Two holidays land on the same day | One extra working day is given back |
| New Year's Day or Memorial Day lands on a weekend | Nothing is given back. These two are excluded |
| Place | On a public holiday |
|---|---|
| Banks, post offices, government offices | Closed. Immigration and district offices too |
| Hospitals and clinics | Closed, apart from emergency rooms and on-duty pharmacies |
| Shops, cafes, department stores | Mostly open. Convenience stores never close |
| Palaces and museums | Usually open, and often free on the big holidays |
| Trains, buses, motorways | Running, but packed. Seollal and Chuseok are the two worst travel weeks of the year |
