Guided Han River tours Free tours making stops at historic sites near and around the Han River will run through November. The tours will start at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. daily, with each tour lasting about two hours. Reservations need to be made five days in advance for individuals and a month in advance for groups, at visit-hangang.seoul.kr. Text messages will be sent when reservations are made or if a tour is canceled. Each tour requires at least three participants, as well as good weather with

More than a library Throw yourself into the endless rows of bookshelves filled with various kinds of books. Located in Jung-gu, Seoul, near major transportation hub Seoul Station, Sohn Kee-chung Culture Library is a calm, peaceful library surrounded by a beautifully landscaped park and a walking track. In fact, you might even skip the library and just go for a leisurely stroll there. The library reopened in 2021 after an extensive renovation. The library, now spanning over 771 square meters, has

Four Seasons Hotel Seoul unveils new summer delicacy The Four Seasons Hotel Seoul, located in Jongno-gu, central Seoul, will serve three types of South Korea’s favorite iced dessert “bingsu” featuring Jeju apple mango, red bean and green tea. Bingsu is a national summer delicacy made with shaved ice, milk and condensed milk, and is often topped with sweetened red beans or fruits. The dessert will be available every day from May 1 to Sept. 30 at the lobby lounge. While the apple

Arts Council Korea announced Thursday an artistic director collective of three curators for the Korean Pavilion at next year’s Venice Biennale. The director collective consists of Chung Da-young, architecture curator at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea; Kim Hee-jung, curator at Seoul Metropolitan Government; and Jung Sung-kyu, director of TACT, an architecture firm. The collective will tackle the theme of “The House of Trees,” joined by architects and

Korail Tourism Development will launch seven new railway travel programs discovering different parts of Korea to celebrate the month of May. May, known as “family month” here, is when many Koreans schedule trips to enjoy public holidays and occasions like Children’s Day, Parent’s Day and Couple’s Day. All seven different railway travel programs leave on May 3 and 4. Two of them are overnight trips in North Gyeongsang Province under the concept of "rest." T

The bereaved family of a 37-year-old man who died recently had decided to donate his organs for those in need, the state-run organ agency said Thursday. According to the Korea Organ Donation Agency, Choi Seong-cheol's family decided to donate both his kidneys, liver, lungs, and both his eyes to respect his wishes to help others. Throughout most of his life, he suffered from an intellectual disability that he got as a result of severe school violence from when he was in high school. Choi had

It was almost a decade ago that the Kukje Gallery brought dansaekhwa artists to the Venice Biennale, a watershed moment for Korean contemporary art as it came under the global spotlight with the artists garnering international recognition. Lee Hyun-sook, founder of the Kukje Gallery, recalled why she pushed for the exhibition at the time – to present the authenticity of Korean art. The biennale’s collateral exhibition “Dansaekhwa” in 2015 showed works by Park Seo-bo, Chun

Grace Iriberri, a Filipina kindergarten principal, on how Korean language put her on an unintended but fascinating path

An exhibition showcasing products inspired by Hangeul, the Korean writing system, will take place at Korean Cultural Centers in 10 countries, starting with the one in Canada. A collection of over 50 items spanning jewelry, ceramics and household goods will be featured at the Special Exhibition on Korean Cultural Products in Ottawa, Ontario, from April 26 to June 28. A similar exhibition will be held in Turkey in May before exhibitions open in Germany and Mexico in June. The Special Exhibition on

The Corea Image Communication Institute is holding two contests to foster cultural exchange as part of the Cultural Communication Forum 2024 which convenes in June. The “New Korea Idea” contest takes ideas that offer a different perspective on Korea that could be used to represent Korea. The other contest, “AI Korea Image,” challenges contestants to create images that introduce Korean cultural contents such as food, film, music and tourism using an AI image program. Submi

The Culture Ministry will take the lead in combining Korea's major art events slated for September and promoting them nationwide under the "K-Art Festival" umbrella, according to the culture minister on Monday. Culture Minister Yoo In-chon said the ministry will step up its support to foster collaboration between major players in the art world, including the organizers of biennales, museums and commercial art fairs. “(Declaring cooperation) is the first step in forging coll

Online reservations for the biannual nighttime tours of Gyeongbokgung will open on April 30 at 10 a.m. This special opportunity to take a moonlight stroll around Seoul’s main Joseon-era (1392-1910) palace will be available from May 8 to June 2, except for Mondays and Tuesdays. Tours will take place between 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. While the tours will not include guides, the palace’s gates, halls, pavilions and garden will be open to visitors. One person can buy up to four tickets at tic