Korea Grand Festival: free palaces and duty-free deals through Nov. 15, 2026

From Oct. 29 to Nov. 15, 2026, four royal palaces are free and duty-free shops advertise up to 25% off. What travelers can use, and what is excluded.

Updated 30 October 2026 · Dari team · 3 min read

Machine translation from French, being reviewed. Read the French version (reference)

Contents

The dates
Palaces and sites: free entry
Duty free: up to 25% off
Welcome week, Oct. 30 to Nov. 15
Eating for less
What this means for you
In Dari
Sources

_Traduction automatique / Machine translation_

Through November 15, 2026, Korea is holding the second edition of its nationwide sales event, the Korea Grand Festival. For travelers, three things matter: free entry to Seoul's main palaces, duty-free discounts and a "welcome week" at airports and ports. Here is what has been announced, with the limits.

The dates

The event runs for 18 days, from Thursday, October 29 to Sunday, November 15, 2026, nationwide, in stores and online. The government has gathered promotions that each ministry used to run separately, with about 40,000 participating businesses (Korea Herald, Seoul Economic Daily). The opening ceremony takes place on October 31 at the old Andong Station, in North Gyeongsang Province.

Palaces and sites: free entry

From October 29 to November 15, entry is free at the four main Seoul palaces (Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Deoksugung and Changgyeonggung), the Jongmyo shrine and the royal tombs of the Joseon dynasty. The usual closing days still apply, and the Secret Garden of Changdeokgung is excluded (Seoul Economic Daily). Cultural gift shops inside the palaces cut a selection of items by 10%.

A free concert by the Korean National Orchestra is also planned for November 14 at the National Theater (Korea Herald).

Duty free: up to 25% off

Twenty-five duty-free shops across the country, including Lotte, Shilla, Shinsegae and Hyundai, advertise up to 25% off liquor and cosmetics (Korea Herald). Each chain adds its own perks, for example:

Lotte and Hyundai: up to 15% for GOLD-tier members;
Shilla: a 5,000-won voucher with purchases of $100 or more;
Shinsegae: 10,000 wons of credit for online purchases.

Watch the conditions. Shilla's page specifies that its offer is for individual travelers of foreign nationality, and that it excludes items already discounted by 30% or more as well as certain brands. "Up to 25%" does not mean 25% everywhere: compare the listed price with that of a regular store before you pay.

Welcome week, Oct. 30 to Nov. 15

At the main airports and ports (Incheon, Busan), booths provide tourist information in several languages. The perks announced for visitors from abroad (Korea Herald, Seoul Economic Daily):

up to 25% off portable Wi-Fi and eSIMs;
2,000 wons off the airport express train (AREX);
up to 35% off tours and activities;
up to 15% off at department stores and Olive Young;
discounts or refunds of up to 10% with certain partner payment methods.

Eating for less

For residents and travelers who cook, supermarkets are offering Korean beef (hanwoo) up to 50% off from October 28 to November 8. Kimchi ingredients (cabbage, radish, chili pepper, garlic) are marked down by up to 40% until December 2, and some seafood by up to 50% until November 29 (Aju Press). Discounts on cars and electronics will be announced on November 1 (Korea Herald).

What this means for you

You are in Seoul before November 15: take advantage of the free entry to Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung or Deoksugung. On weekends the crowds will be denser than usual: arrive at opening time.
You are arriving soon: stop by the airport welcome booth before buying an eSIM or an AREX ticket, and compare with the usual prices.
You are buying at duty free: keep your passport and boarding pass, read each chain's conditions and check the excluded brands.
You are a resident: the kimchi and beef discounts are made for you, not just for tourists.