Events
King Jeongjo's Royal Procession 2026 (Held Oct. 4): Times by Section, Closures and the Suwon Festival You Can Still Visit
AT A GLANCE
- Date
- Sunday, October 4, 2026 (ended)
- Still on
- Suwon Hwaseong Cultural Festival until Oct 11, including night programs
- Hours
- Seoul 9 a.m.–6 p.m., Suwon 9 a.m.–7 p.m., Hwaseong 9 a.m.–4 p.m. (official)
- Route
- Gyeongbokgung → Geumcheon → Anyang → Suwon → Yungneung in Hwaseong, 31.8 km
- Scale
- About 4,000 people and 108 horses (reported)
- Cost
- A street procession; I found no paid-entry notice
- Inquiries
- 02-120 (festival information)
The 2026 King Jeongjo royal procession reenactment ran on Sunday, October 4, covering 31.8 km from Gyeongbokgung Palace to Yungneung tomb in Hwaseong. The procession is over, but the 63rd Suwon Hwaseong Cultural Festival, which opened the same day, runs until Sunday, October 11, so you can still catch its night programs at Hwaseong Fortress. The section times and sizes below record this year’s official plan and can help if you go next year.
The hero image is AI-generated. It is not a photo of the real procession or its participants.
The procession is over, but the Suwon festival runs until October 11. Night programs: Yajo (Oct 7–11, 8 pm, Yeonmudae), Seonyumong (Oct 5–11, 7 pm, Yongyeon pond) and Haenggung Yahwa (Oct 3–11, 7, 8 and 9 pm, Hwaseong Haenggung). Entry to the festival grounds is free, but some programs need booking or a fee. A third-party guide lists ₩2,000 for Hwaseong Haenggung entry (Haenggung Yahwa) and ₩5,000 for paid Seonyumong seats. Check the official site, shfestival.com.
What is this procession?
A neunghaengcha (능행차) is a royal trip to visit an ancestor’s tomb. This reenactment is based on the 1795 journey of King Jeongjo, who visited the tomb of his father, Crown Prince Sado, with his mother, Lady Hyegyeong. The royal record of that trip is a UNESCO Memory of the World item.
Seoul City, Gyeonggi Province, Suwon and Hwaseong run it together. Each city reenacts its own stretch in turn, so you cannot watch the whole thing from one spot. Seoul festival page, News1, Oct. 1 (in Korean).
Hours and size by section
| Section | Hours | Participants | Main programs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seoul | 9 a.m.–6 p.m. | About 400 people, 20 horses | Departure ritual, citizen march, porridge offering, history concert |
| Suwon | 9 a.m.–7 p.m. | About 2,000 people, 70 horses | Welcome of King Jeongjo, Hwaseong parade, children’s procession |
| Hwaseong | 9 a.m.–4 p.m. | About 1,000 people, 8 horses | Modern, traditional and future marches, welcome ceremony, petition re-enactment |
Hours and sizes follow Seoul City’s official page. Reports put the total at about 4,000 people and 108 horses, and numbers by section differ between sources, so check the official site (kingjeongjo-parade.co.kr).
Reported timing along the route
The procession can run early or late. These times come from news reports, and the official notice on the day wins.
| Section | Reported time | Main points |
|---|---|---|
| Downtown Seoul | 8:30 departure ritual, then about 2 hours of walking | Gyeongbokgung → Gwanghwamun → Nodeul Island → Nodeul Naru Park |
| Geumcheon, Seoul | Afternoon | In front of Geumcheon District Office → around Siheung Haenggung |
| Anyang | Starts 10 a.m., 5.3 km | Seoksu Sports Park → Mananggyo Bridge → Anyang Station |
| Suwon | 1 p.m. start from Nosong Park, 3:30 p.m. Hwaseong parade | Nosong Park → Suwon Stadium → Janganmun Gate → Haenggung Plaza |
| Hwaseong | Morning to afternoon | Dongtan Central Park → Hyeonchung Park → Yungneung |
Some reports say a pre-show starts at Nosong Park in Suwon at 12:30 p.m.
Pick just one section. Some stretches run at the same time, so following it from start to finish in one day is hard. Seoul fits the morning, Suwon the afternoon.
What to see in each section
Seoul: the departure ritual and Nodeul Island. The start at Gyeongbokgung opens the day. Citizens who signed up in advance walk with the procession to Nodeul Island, where a history concert and a show about Jeongjo are planned, and a performance at Nodeul Naru Park shows the offering of porridge to Lady Hyegyeong.
Suwon: the biggest procession. It flows from Suwon Stadium through Janganmun Gate to Haenggung Plaza in front of Hwaseong Haenggung (the temporary palace). The 63rd Suwon Hwaseong Cultural Festival opens the same day and runs October 4–11, so you can follow the procession with the festival.
Hwaseong: the memorial rites. The reenactment is split into traditional, modern and future parts, and it ends at Yungneung with the royal procession arriving and the ancestral rites.
Road closures
These closure times were reported. For the details, check Seoul’s TOPIS traffic center and each city’s website.
- Seoul: 8:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. from Gwanghwamun intersection to Nodeul Naru Park, then parts of Geumcheon in the afternoon.
- Anyang: 9 a.m.–1 p.m. from Seoksu Sports Park to Anyang Station.
- Suwon: 9 a.m.–2:30 p.m. from Nosong Park to Suwon Stadium, and 1:30–6:30 p.m. around Wolgye intersection to Janganmun Gate.
- Hwaseong: 10–11 a.m. around Hanbit intersection and Central Park, and 11 a.m.–1:20 p.m. from Jinangol intersection through Byeongjeom to Hyeonchung Park.
Some downtown Seoul buses detour. Public transport is easier than driving.
Who it suits, and who it does not
A good fit
- You want an easy city outing on the last day of the holiday
- You want to see hanbok, horses and flags with children
- You want to pair it with the first day of the Suwon Hwaseong Cultural Festival
Not a great fit
- You must drive past Gwanghwamun or Suwon’s Janganmun on that day
- Crowds bother you (key points can get busy)
- You want to see the whole thing from start to finish
Check the day’s official notice for the rain plan. It also covers each section’s start time.
FAQ
Is there an admission fee? It is a procession watched from the street, and I found no paid-entry notice. Check the official site for individual performances.
Can I still join the procession? The procession ended on October 4. Citizen participants were recruited in advance, so for next year, watch the official site for the call.
How long does the Suwon Hwaseong Cultural Festival run? The 63rd festival runs October 4–11, so its night programs are still on until October 11.
Who can I ask? Call the festival hotline at 02-120.
More to read: the autumn festival calendar and Chuseok in Seoul: palace walks.
Written October 2, 2026, updated October 7. Times and closures can change. Also used: Naewoe Ilbo, Global Economic, Betanews.