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'Largest scale ever': 2026 Seoul Int'l Garden Show opens May 1

Published: 22 Apr. 2026, 17:39 Updated: 22 Apr. 2026, 18:25

An image of the Seoul International Garden Show, set to open on May 1 across the Seoul Forest, Han River and surrounding neighborhoods [SEOUL METROPOLITAN CITY]

The 2026 Seoul International Garden Show will open on May 1 on a record scale, as it will take place across the Seoul Forest, Han River and the surrounding neighborhoods, according to the city government on Wednesday.

The festival, set to run through Oct. 27, spans 710,000 square meters (175 acres). Its main highlight is 167 gardens built across a total area of 90,000 square meters — roughly 4.5 times larger than last year’s event — linked along a roughly 10-kilometer (6.2 mile) route from Seoul Forest through the Han River, Seongdong District and Gwangjin District in a single linear garden.

“In the midst of complex urban life, gardens offer a space of comfort,” Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said at a press briefing held at City Hall in Jung District, central Seoul. “The city has created 1,100 pocket gardens with the goal of becoming a ‘five-minute garden city,’ and this expo will allow people to experience that vision.”

Renowned domestic and international designers and companies are participating. French landscape architect Henri Bava, known for large-scale urban public space projects such as the Grand Parc des Docks park on the Seine River, will present his work, “Garden Beneath the Flowing Forest,” at the eastern lawn of Seoul Forest.

Works by Hwang Ji-hae, a three-time gold medalist at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, and Lee Jae-seok, known as the real-life figure behind the K-drama “Ad Genius Lee Tae-baek” (2013) will also be featured.

A small "pocket" garden created near Exit 5 of Seoul Forest Station[SEOUL METROPOLITAN CITY]

To improve visitor convenience, the city said it has installed 4,620 seats including benches and chairs, about double the amount from the previous expo. Docent tours tailored for foreign visitors and people with disabilities will be offered regularly across Seoul Forest and Seongsu-dong, with QR codes at each garden providing information in nine languages. The number of food truck zones has been increased to five, as the city has eased restrictions to allow limited commercial activity during cultural and arts events in urban parks.

In addition, a special Chungnam zone will be set up in Seoul Forest in connection with the Taean International Horticulture and Healing Expo set to open Saturday in South Chungcheong, showcasing gardens from participating companies.

"We hope the gardens, created on the largest scale ever, will serve as an urban oasis that heals citizens’ daily lives,” Oh said. “We expect it to become a milestone in establishing Seoul as a ‘garden city’ visited by millions, including people from around the world.”

BY HAN EUN-HWA [[email protected]]