'Early birds' try to sell public viewing areas ahead of fireworks festival
Prime viewing spots and parking near Yeouido are being resold for up to 300,000 won ($220) ahead of the Seoul International Fireworks Festival, as city officials warn against reserving public park space.
One picnic mat lies in Yeouido Hangang Park in western Seoul on Sept. 3, two days before the 2026 Seoul International Fireworks Festival. A note on the mat reads, “Please don’t move this mat. I’ll be back.”NEWS1
The scramble for a front-row view of Seoul’s fireworks has turned free public space into a hot commodity.
With the annual Seoul International Fireworks Festival approaching, people are staking out prime spots at Yeouido Hangang Park in Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul and offering to sell them for hundreds of thousands of won.
Dozens of posts appeared on secondhand trading platforms on Thursday offering to secure sought-after viewing spots for the festival. Prices ranged from around 100,000 won ($73) to 300,000 won.
The festival will be extended to two days for the first time this year. Friday night will feature preshow music festivities and the main fireworks show will take place on Saturday night.
The stepped area beneath Wonhyo Bridge, inside Yeouido Hangang Park and considered one of the best places to watch the fireworks, was already covered with picnic mats on Thursday morning, two days before the main event.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government attached warnings reading "No saving spots" to some unattended mats. Officials plan to remove mats left unattended at 9:30 a.m. Friday.
Parking spaces are fetching a price, too. Numerous posts on secondhand trading platforms offered one-day parking passes at buildings near Yeouido for between 20,000 won and 30,000 won.
Advance parking reservations in the area have also largely sold out on Kakao T, the festival’s official parking reservation app. Day passes in Yeouido were going for around 35,000 won, well above the usual weekend day pass in the 8,000-won range.
A man lays out a picnic mat in Yeouido Hangang Park in Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul, on Sept. 3 ahead of the Seoul International Fireworks Festival.NEWS1
Spots not only in Yeouido but around Noryangjin station in Dongjak District, southern Seoul; Yongsan station in Yongsan District, central Seoul; and Gongdeok station in Mapo District, western Seoul, have sold out.
Some apartment complexes near Yeouido are also preparing for an influx of vehicles. Several have told residents that outside vehicles will be barred during the festival and asked them to refrain from registering parking for visitors.
Stopping people from claiming public park space and reselling it, however, is easier said than done. Han River parks are public facilities open to everyone, and there is little legal basis for penalizing someone simply for leaving a picnic mat behind.
“Unlike hotels or cafes, which are private commercial spaces, Han River parks are public property, so this is problematic,” a Seoul Metropolitan Government official said. “But it is difficult for us to take compulsory action, so all we can really do is appeal to people’s sense of morality.”
Picnic mats cover Yeouido Hangang Park in western Seoul on Sept. 3, two days before the 2026 Seoul International Fireworks Festival's main fireworks show.NEWS1
The Seoul Metropolitan Government is discouraging people from reserving spots at the park and has asked secondhand trading platforms to remove related listings.
Festival organizer Hanwha is also monitoring such posts and reporting them to the platforms.
The annual fireworks show draws almost 1 million visitors each year. Viewers can watch the entire festival through a YouTube livestream on Hanwha’s official YouTube channel.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
