Seoul's Five Palaces, Ranked: Which One to Visit

Hanbok wearers, and foreign visitors aged 18 or under or 65 and over, enter the first five free, the Secret Garden excepted. Ticket prices and closing days are from the Korea Heritage Service, which runs all of them except Gyeonghuigung.

1. Changdeokgung and the Secret Garden

Changdeokgung ranks first because its garden is the one palace visit in Seoul where the number of people is capped. The Secret Garden, Huwon, admits 100 people per entry slot, 50 booked online and 50 sold on site, so even in October it never fills the way Gyeongbokgung's courtyards do. UNESCO lists the Changdeokgung complex as World Heritage; Gyeongbokgung is not on the list.

Entry to the garden is at the time on your ticket only, and the Korea Heritage Service says guided commentary is optional; you can walk the route on your own. English slots run at 10:30, 11:30, 14:30 and 15:30 from March to November, and at 10:30, 11:30 and 14:30 from December to February. The route takes about 70 minutes, and the innermost Ongnyucheon area is closed for repairs.

Booking is the catch. Online tickets open at 10am six days before your visit, not counting the visit day, and on-site tickets for every slot go on sale together at 9am on the day. The palace authority warns that October and November slots sell out very fast. Arrive late for your slot and you are refused entry without a refund.

The garden costs 5,000 won for adults, and you need a Changdeokgung ticket of 3,000 won as well. Hanbok covers the palace ticket but not the garden. Changdeokgung is a five-minute walk from exit 3 of Anguk Station on Line 3, and it closes on Mondays.

It beats Gyeongbokgung for one reason: what you see is less crowded and more complete, a palace and its garden rather than a rebuilt courtyard full of tour groups.

2. Gyeongbokgung

Gyeongbokgung is second, and first for anyone without a garden ticket. It is the largest of the five and has the most to watch: the royal guard changes at Heungnyemun at 10am and 2pm, and free English tours leave at 11am, 1:30pm and 3:30pm. It is closed on Tuesdays and is not part of the free Wednesday opening the other palaces now have.

It loses to Changdeokgung on crowds. The palace authority excluded it from the every-Wednesday free entry because of crowding, and its courtyards are where the tour groups go. Hours, the guard ceremony and the autumn 2026 notices are in the Gyeongbokgung guide.

Related guideGyeongbokgung Palace: Hours, Tickets and the Guard CeremonyGyeongbokgung opening hours by month, the Tuesday closure, who gets in free, when the royal guard changes at Heungnyemun and the free English tours.

3. Deoksugung

Deoksugung ranks third because it is the palace you can visit after dinner. It is open from 9am to 9pm every day except Monday, with last entry at 8pm, and the adult ticket is 1,000 won. It is two minutes from exit 2 of City Hall Station on Lines 1 and 2.

It has its own guard ceremony. Seoul Metropolitan Government stages a changing of the guard at Daehanmun, the main gate, at 11am and 2pm daily except Mondays, which can be cancelled for weather. Seokjojeon, the stone Western-style hall inside, is seen only on a booked, guided visit.

The Stone Wall Road outside runs along the palace wall, and the Korea Tourism Organization singles it out in autumn, when ginkgo trees line it. Deoksugung beats Jongmyo for most visitors because it fits into an evening; it ranks below Gyeongbokgung because it is a small palace.

4. Jongmyo Shrine

Jongmyo is not a palace but the royal ancestral shrine, and it ranks fourth for the opposite of crowds. UNESCO inscribed it as World Heritage in 1995. The adult ticket is 1,000 won and it closes on Tuesdays.

How you enter depends on the day. On Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays and Wednesdays you walk in freely. On Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, entry is by timed guided tour only, about 50 minutes, with English tours at 10am, noon, 2pm and 4pm, and 200 places per tour, half online and half on site. It is five minutes from exit 11 or 8 of Jongno 3-ga Station.

Jongmyo beats Changgyeonggung because nothing else in Seoul is like it; it ranks below Deoksugung because, for a first visit, a shrine with little to explain on your own needs the tour.

5. Changgyeonggung

Changgyeonggung ranks fifth: pleasant, open late, and easy to skip on a short trip. It is open from 9am to 9pm except on Mondays, the adult ticket is 1,000 won, and it is about 12 minutes on foot from exit 4 of Hyehwa Station on Line 4.

After 6pm in spring and autumn, 6:30pm in summer and 5:30pm in winter, visitors move into a night area around Honghwamun, Myeongjeongjeon, Chundangji pond and the Great Greenhouse. It beats Gyeonghuigung because of that evening opening and the greenhouse.

6. Gyeonghuigung

Gyeonghuigung is last, and free. Visit Seoul lists it as open from 9am to 6pm, closed on Mondays, with no admission fee. It is about 875m from exit 1 of Gwanghwamun Station on Line 5, so it fits around Gwanghwamun rather than as a trip of its own.

Is the integrated palace ticket worth it?

Only if you will pay at three or more of the five. The integrated ticket costs 6,000 won and covers Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung and Jongmyo once each within six months of purchase, bought at any of their ticket offices. It does not include the Secret Garden.

Two cheaper routes exist. Hanbok gets you into all five free, and the shops beside Gyeongbokgung Station rent it by the hour. And the Korea Heritage Service now opens the palaces free every Wednesday for Culture Day, except Gyeongbokgung and the Secret Garden.

Related guideHanbok Rental Near Gyeongbokgung: Free Entry and the RulesHanbok gets you into Seoul's main palaces free if it has a wrap collar and a top with a skirt or trousers. Where to rent, what is included, and Bukchon's 5pm rule.

How many palaces fit in one day?

Two, plus Jongmyo or an evening palace. Gyeongbokgung at 9am and Changdeokgung in the afternoon, with Bukchon between them, is the day the Seoul itinerary builds around, and it works from Wednesday to Sunday. Deoksugung, open until 9pm, is the one to save for the evening.

Related guideSeoul in 3 Days: An Itinerary for a First VisitThree full days in Seoul for a first visit: two palaces and a market on day one, the DMZ and Hongdae on day two, Namsan on day three, with closing days checked.

The rest of the city is covered in the Seoul travel guide.