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Heavy congestion, longer travel times expected during Lunar New Year holiday

Published: 11 Feb. 2026, 13:39

Vehicles move slowly on the Gyeongbu Expressway near Jamwon IC in Seocho District, southern Seoul on Oct. 7, 2025. [NEWS1]

Traffic on the way out of Seoul during the Lunar New Year holiday is expected to be heaviest on Friday, while return traffic will likely peak on Lunar New Year's Day, Tuesday. Airports are also expected to be crowded, adding to the confusion.

TMAP Mobility and SK Telecom published Wednesday predicted travel times by day and time slot for trips from Seoul to major destinations such as Gwangju, Busan, Daejeon and Gangneung, based on TMAP mobility big data from past holiday periods.

Outbound congestion is expected to build from Friday afternoon, with the worst traffic between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. Estimated travel times from Seoul during that window are 6 hours 2 minutes to Busan, 3 hours 34 minutes to Gangneung, 4 hours 40 minutes to Gwangju and 3 hours 40 minutes to Daejeon — about an hour longer than usual.

By contrast, travel times are expected to remain relatively normal during late-night and early morning hours: midnight to 7 a.m. Friday, midnight to 4 a.m. Saturday, and from 8 p.m. Saturday to 4 a.m. Sunday.

Return trips are expected to be most congested next Tuesday, the day of the Lunar New Year. Demand is forecast to begin rising from 7 a.m., with congestion building steadily and peaking around 10 a.m. Traffic is expected to remain heavy until around 8 p.m.

The estimated travel time from Busan to Seoul next Tuesday is 8 hours 53 minutes, nearly twice as long as usual. The Gwangju to Seoul route is expected to take 6 hours 45 minutes, while trips from Gangneung and Daejeon to Seoul are forecast at around 4 hours 30 minutes.

Reverse return traffic — trips from Seoul to regional areas — is also expected to be heaviest on Tuesday. A morning departure from Seoul could take more than seven hours to Busan, about five hours to Gwangju and around 3 hours and 30 minutes to Daejeon.

The domestic terminal at Gimpo Airport in Gangseo District, western Seoul, is crowded with holiday travelers on May 2, 2025. [YONHAP]

Traffic is expected to be relatively smooth on the final day of the holiday period, Feb. 18, though intermittent congestion may occur as return demand concentrates between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Airports are also expected to be crowded. Average daily passenger volume at airports nationwide during the holiday period is forecast to exceed 250,000.

The Korea Airports Corporation will implement special holiday transport measures from Friday through Feb. 18 at 13 airports nationwide, excluding Incheon and Muan. Passenger volume during the period is projected at about 1.49 million — 1.05 million on domestic routes and 440,000 on international routes — up 16.3 percent from the Lunar New Year holidays last year.

The number of flights is expected to total 8,448 during the period — 6,020 domestic and 2,428 international — averaging 1,408 flights per day, an increase of 12.3 percent from a year earlier.

The busiest day is expected to be Saturday, with about 254,000 passengers. Gimpo and Gimhae airports are forecast to see their heaviest traffic on Saturday, while Jeju Airport is expected to peak on Feb. 18, toward the end of the holiday period.

Crowds of travelers wait in line to depart at Gimhae International Airport ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays on Jan. 26, 2025. [JOONGANG PHOTO]

The corporation said it will expand ID and security screening checkpoints during anticipated peak hours and deploy additional staff to reduce wait times for check-ins. It will also work with the Ministry of Justice and airlines to open check-in counters and departure screening stations earlier to ease congestion.

The corporation is also conducting preholiday inspections of essential and passenger convenience facilities at airports nationwide. Acting President and CEO Park Jae-hee and other executives have been visiting major airports since Feb. 2 to check readiness for safety, security and emergency response.

To ease parking shortages, the corporation secured an additional 6,136 temporary parking spaces nationwide. Total parking capacity will reach 30,550 spaces, including 7,667 at Gimpo Airport, 5,735 at Gimhae Airport and 3,394 at Jeju Airport.

To improve passenger convenience, real-time information on boarding times and terminal congestion at Gimpo, Gimhae and Jeju airports will be provided through Naver and Kakao T. TMAP navigation will also provide voice guidance on parking congestion at the parking lots of Gimpo, Gimhae, Jeju, Daegu, Cheongju and Gwangju airports.

“We will do our utmost to ensure safe airport operations during the Lunar New Year special transport period so the public can travel safely,” CEO Park said.

Meanwhile, under the government’s holiday livelihood support measures, Korea Airports Corporation will waive parking fees in full from Sunday to Feb. 18, for domestic passengers from multi-child households — defined as families with two or more children with the youngest aged 18 or under — and for vehicles driven by people with disabilities.

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.
BY CHO MUN-GYU, PARK YOUNG-WOO [[email protected]]