This jaw-dropping festival only happens once a year in Seoul, so make sure you plan your trip in November to catch both the fall foliage and the Seoul Lantern Festival!
Celebrated annually in November, the Seoul Lantern Festival is a two-week event that creates a magical atmosphere along the Cheonggyecheon Stream in the center of Seoul. More than 2 million people from around the world see the Seoul Lantern Festival annually since it’s inception in 2009. It is the largest Korean lantern festival to date. It typically begins on the first Friday of November and continues until the first day of winter.
The event was created for two reasons. The first was to welcome winter, the second was to commemorate the breadth and magnificence of Seoul’s history. A walk down the stream shows lanterns honoring various UNESCO Culture Heritage icons, Korean cultural symbols, and both domestic and internal lantern artisanry.
Bungeoppang Street Food: Korean Fish-Shaped Pastries
The walk from my stay in Bukchon Hanok Village at Cheong Yeon Jae to Cheonggyecheon Stream was only 20 minutes. It was a brisk fall evening and perfect for walking. On our way there we ran into a ton of local street food vendors, I stopped by this older lady’s street cart almost every night I was in Seoul. She would make the most amazing Bungeoppang, or carp-shaped pastry with sweet red bean and custard filling, that my mom and I just couldn’t resist.
After grabbing our Bungeoppang, we headed down Insadong towards Cheonggyecheon Stream. The Seoul Lantern Festival is always held at Cheonggyecheon Stream to emphasize one of Korea’s most successful sustainable projects. Cheonggyecheon Stream was previously an elevated highway that interrupted the flow and natural beauty of Seoul. It was eventually removed and replaced by this 6 kilometer stream to offer locals a break from the city. This is considered one of the most successful projects in Seoul, which is why the Seoul Lantern Festival is held here every year.
The lanterns line up the stream for about 1.3 kilometers (or .8 miles). Each year, the lanterns showcase a new theme. In 2018, it was “Seoul Dream, Flowing Light.” Hundreds of thousands of unique lanterns are placed along the stream, telling the stories of the city, bridging the past and the future. There are multiple bridges that allow you to walk over Cheonggyecheon Stream and give you views of the lanterns below. I stopped on top of one of the bridges before heading down to the stream.
The city does a great job of streamlining the entrance and exit to the Seoul Lantern Festival. There is only two entrances and two exists. In 2018, the concept of “Seoul Dream, Flowing Light” was divided into four different lantern themes: The Launch Point for a New Dream, Seoul’s Dream for the Future, Seoul’s Shining Memories, and Seoul Filled with Traditions. As you walked through the lanterns you got a mix of old Seoul traditions and new Seoul traditions such as high heeled shoes and popular icons and TV figures. Korean pop music played softly as you walked down the stream. All the lanterns were made using Hanji, the same material used for my doors and windows in my Hanok stay.
At the end of the Seoul Lantern Festival was a large gathering of people and tons of activities available to the public. You could create wishing lanterns and release them into the sky, craft your own traditional lanterns and send them down the stream, purchase various lantern gifts and more. In Korean culture, creating and decorating your own hanji lanterns and releasing them into the sky or stream brings good health, fame and even riches. If you have $5 to spare, I would make one and join in the on the fun.
Sending wishing lanterns down the stream
Creating your own hanji lanterns Purchasing lanterns The decorations throughout the event
What was above ground was just as lively and beautiful as below. A plethora of street food vendors, performances, and more livened the streets. From thin caramelized-candy in the shape of
If you’re starting to get hungry, there’s a number of amazing street food and traditional Korean snacks available at the Seoul Lantern Festival. Cotton candy was for sale everywhere, but what caught my attention was this thin candy in the shape of butterflies, dragons, fish, turtles and more. A popular street food that is true food for the “Seoul,” is Samgyeopsal-gui or Korean bacon. Some places stack them up in squares and serve them to people passing by. Bacon is huge in Korea and you’ll see it in a lot of their meals. Aside from food you’ll see a lot of fun gadgets sold including balloons with fun lights on them and light up flowers. There’s so much to choose from it’s hard to go through all the food, so lose yourself in the festival and don’t be afraid to splurge on different and unknown foods as the Seoul Lantern Festival lights up the sky!
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