Seoul Palace Closing Days and the Monday Museum Trap
The classic Seoul itinerary mistake isn't forgetting that palaces have a day off. It's assuming they all take the same day off. Seoul's royal sites are split across two different closing days, and museums follow their own rules on top of that. A tidy "palaces on Monday, museums on Tuesday" plan can leave you facing locked gates twice in one trip.
Who closes on which day
The Korea Heritage Service, which runs the palaces, publishes one regular closing day per site:
| Site | Regular closing day |
|---|---|
| Gyeongbokgung | Tuesday |
| Jongmyo Shrine | Tuesday |
| Changdeokgung | Monday |
| Changgyeonggung | Monday |
| Deoksugung | Monday |
| Joseon royal tombs | Monday |
When a closing day lands on a public holiday or substitute holiday, the site stays open and closes on the next non-holiday day instead. That rule catches people in reverse: a palace you expected to be closed on a holiday Monday is open, and then it closes on the Tuesday you'd planned for it.
The practical result is that no weekday has every palace open. On Mondays you have Gyeongbokgung and Jongmyo. On Tuesdays you have Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung and Deoksugung. Wednesday through Sunday, everything is open.
Turning Monday into a good day
Monday is when most people get caught out, because it's also when many smaller museums and galleries close. It doesn't have to be a wasted day.
Gyeongbokgung is the obvious anchor, and with fewer alternatives open it can get crowded, so arriving at opening pays off. After that, the National Museum of Korea in Yongsan is a strong second stop. It is open every day of the year except New Year's Day, Seollal and Chuseok, so Monday works. One exception: its permanent and special galleries close for maintenance on the first Monday of March, June, September and December, so check the date if your Monday falls there.
City-run museums are where Monday closures are most common. The Seoul Museum of History, for example, closes on Mondays, but it opens on a Monday that falls on a public holiday. It also stays open until 9 p.m. on Fridays. The same pattern applies to many smaller public galleries, so if a museum isn't a national one, assume Monday might be its day off and check its own website.
Jongmyo's weekday rule
Jongmyo Shrine has a second restriction most visitors don't expect. On weekdays you can't just walk in and wander. Entry is by timed guided tour, with set departure times through the day and English tours at some of those slots. Free wandering is allowed only on Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays and the last Wednesday of each month.
That makes Jongmyo a reasonable Monday stop if you're happy to follow a guide, but a poor one if you want to take your time photographing the long main hall. If your visit depends on wandering, move it to a weekend.
The last-entry trap
Closing time and last entry are not the same thing. Ticket sales and entry at the palaces stop well before the gates close, and at Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung that's an hour before closing. Showing up forty minutes before closing time can mean being turned away at the booth.
Closing hours also change with the season, running longer in summer and shorter in winter, so the time you saw on a blog written in June won't hold in December. The official Royal Palaces and Tombs site lists the current month's hours for each site.
Deoksugung is the exception for late plans. It stays open until 9 p.m. with last entry at 8 p.m., and it's the easiest palace to fit in after dinner on any day except Monday.
Free Wednesdays at the palaces
Culture Day (문화가 있는 날) used to be the last Wednesday of each month. From April 2026, the government extended it to every Wednesday, although individual venues decide what they offer and when they join in.
For the palaces, the Korea Heritage Service has been extending weekly free Wednesdays site by site during 2026:
- Joseon royal tombs: free every Wednesday starting late May 2026.
- Deoksugung: free every Wednesday starting August 2026.
- Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung and Jongmyo: scheduled to join in autumn 2026.
- Gyeongbokgung: kept to the last Wednesday of the month because of crowding when the plan was announced.
The official fee page has been slower to update than the announcements, so check royal.khs.go.kr for the current list before you plan a day around free entry.
Changdeokgung's Secret Garden is excluded from Culture Day free entry and keeps its own separate ticket and reservation system. Also expect free Wednesdays to be busier, especially at the smaller palaces where the grounds fill quickly.
Two other free-entry rules are worth one line each. The palaces and Jongmyo are typically free during the Seollal and Chuseok holiday periods, and wearing hanbok gets you in free year-round, as covered in the Gyeongbokgung guide. Staff do check that you're in actual hanbok, a proper traditional top and bottom, rather than a single traditional-looking piece over ordinary clothes.
A week that doesn't hit a locked gate
If you have a full week in Seoul, this layout avoids every closing day:
- Monday: Gyeongbokgung at opening, then the National Museum of Korea.
- Tuesday: Changdeokgung, then walk to Changgyeonggung next door.
- Wednesday: whichever palaces are on the current free-Wednesday list, with Deoksugung the safest bet.
- Saturday: Jongmyo, when you can wander without a tour.
- Any evening except Monday: Deoksugung after dark.
Before you finalize the plan, check the official site for each palace or museum on your actual dates. Holiday shifts and temporary closures do happen, and a two-minute check is cheaper than a wasted trip across the city.
Official sources
This guide is checked against Korea Tourism Organization. Prices, hours, and procedures change — confirm time-sensitive details there before you rely on them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Seoul palace is open on Monday?
Gyeongbokgung is the main palace open on Mondays, along with Jongmyo Shrine by guided tour. Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung and Deoksugung all take Monday off unless it is a public holiday.
Is the National Museum of Korea closed on Mondays?
No, it opens on Mondays and closes only on New Year's Day, Seollal and Chuseok. Admission to its permanent galleries is free, which makes it a reliable backup on any day.
Are Seoul palaces free on Wednesdays?
Some are. Deoksugung and the Joseon royal tombs are free every Wednesday, more palaces were scheduled to join during 2026, and Gyeongbokgung was kept to the last Wednesday of the month, so check royal.khs.go.kr for the current list.