‘Bukchon Special Management Area Red Zone’ Entry Restricted to 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Exceptions Introduced to Protect Residents and Merchants
Starting from the 1st of next month, the ‘visiting hours restriction policy’ for certain areas of Bukchon Hanok Village, which is popular among tourists, will be fully enforced. Violators will be fined 100,000 KRW.
Jongno-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Jeong Munheon) announced on the 28th that it will implement the ‘visiting hours restriction policy’ in the ‘Bukchon Special Management Area Red Zone,’ established to alleviate residents’ inconvenience caused by excessive tourism in the Bukchon area and to establish a sustainable tourism culture.
The district office conducted a pilot operation of the visiting hours restriction policy for four months starting from November last year. After a guidance period, from the 1st of next month, tourist visits will only be allowed from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Entering the area for tourism purposes outside these hours will result in fines based on relevant laws and ordinances.
However, residents registered as living in the Red Zone, their families and acquaintances, customers using shops within the Red Zone, merchants, guests staying overnight, passersby simply passing through the Red Zone without engaging in tourism activities, and vehicles not for tourism purposes are exempt from fines.
Jongno-gu allows entry for shop customers and overnight guests considering not only the maintenance of a peaceful residential environment but also minimizing business losses for merchants and the convenience of tourists. However, even if they fall under the exemption category, fines will be imposed if ‘tourism activities’ are confirmed.
‘Tourism activities’ refer to all activities conducted within the Red Zone for tourism purposes. Typical examples include taking photos or videos, lingering while observing the surroundings, and wandering the streets for tourism purposes unrelated to shop use.
The district office has adopted a flexible management approach that identifies residents and tourists by appearance or behavior to maximize the guarantee of residents’ daily activities and enhance the policy’s effectiveness. During the pilot operation period, it was judged to be the optimal method to ensure residents’ free access and minimize unnecessary interference.
Fines will be imposed by Bukchon Security Officers (public officials dedicated to fine enforcement) who will inform tourists violating the restricted hours of the violation and related regulations, issuing a warning first and imposing fines if non-compliance continues. The same applies to foreign tourists, who will be guided to pay fines on-site or complete payment before departure to encourage compliance with the regulations.
Meanwhile, despite being a residential area, Bukchon has long experienced residents’ inconvenience from early morning to late evening due to numerous domestic and international tourists visiting. In response, since 2018, Jongno-gu has formed Bukchon Keepers composed of residents to guide village visiting hours (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) around Bukchon-ro 11-gil.
However, voluntary guidance activities alone proved ineffective, and as visitor numbers continued to increase causing ongoing inconvenience to residents, it was deemed necessary to take effective measures. Consequently, Bukchon was designated a special management area on July 1 last year, and the tourist visiting hours restriction policy was implemented on November 1.
Additionally, to resolve illegal parking of charter buses and traffic congestion, Jongno-gu will implement a ‘charter bus traffic restriction’ starting January 2026, following a fine grace period beginning July next year. The target area is approximately a 2.3 km section from Bukchon-ro, Bukchon-ro 5-gil to Changdeokgung 1-gil. The traffic restriction will be applied at all times, including weekends and holidays, with exceptions for commuter buses, school buses, and village buses for residents’ convenience.
Detailed Red Zone locations can be checked on the ‘Smart Seoul Map,’ and the detailed implementation contents and exemption regulations of the policy can be found in the ‘Guidelines for the Application Scope of Fines for Tourist Visiting Hours Restriction.’
District Mayor Jeong Munheon stated, “We hope Bukchon residents can enjoy a more stable daily life, and the majority of tourists passing through Jongno and Bukchon will practice proper tourism culture within the designated hours.” He added, “We fully understand the difficulties faced by merchants in the area and will consider additional measures to alleviate them.” Mayor Jeong emphasized, “Our goal is to establish a sustainable tourism model where residential life and tourism harmonize and ultimately lift the special management area designation.”
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