Check which outfits qualify for free palace admission
Free entry for hanbok has run since 2013, and the Royal Palaces and Tombs Centre publishes the definition. The clothing requirements cover the top and bottom of the outfit:
| Counts | Does not count | |
|---|---|---|
| Style | traditional (전통한복) or modern everyday (생활한복); fusion is fine | — |
| Top | a jeogori jacket (저고리) with a collar that wraps across — ties, knot or zip, it does not matter | a pullover or T-shirt-style top sold as hanbok; a durumagi overcoat (두루마기) on its own |
| Bottom | any skirt, wrapped or closed; trousers in the traditional sapok (사폭) cut, zip waist and no ankle ties allowed | jeans under a jeogori; hanbok trousers under a T-shirt |
| Dresses | a waist skirt (허리치마) with a jeogori that reaches the waist | a one-piece dress with no separate jeogori |
Foreigners are explicitly included — the stated purpose is to spread hanbok abroad. The guideline also asks for dress in keeping with the palace and no excessive exposure, with no published test attached. Confirm the palace’s full clothing requirements as well as the shop’s description — “Hanbok and free palace entry” has the background.
What it saves, and what it does not
Free entry applies at Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Changgyeonggung, Deoksugung, Jongmyo and the Joseon royal tombs — ₩3,000 or ₩1,000 a gate, so rent an outfit because you want to wear it, rather than expecting the admission saving alone to cover the rental price. Two things it does not cover: Huwon (후원), Changdeokgung's garden, is a separate ₩5,000 ticket with its own short free list that hanbok is not on, booked first-come six days ahead or at the gate at 09:00 — “Palace and museum tickets”; and the ₩6,000 combined palace pass excludes Huwon too. Admission prices, frozen since 2005, rise from 1 January 2027; the new figures are published in November 2026.
What a rental costs
Shops cluster in the lanes by Gyeongbokgung Station (경복궁역) exit 4, around Anguk (안국) at the mouth of Bukchon (a hillside district of traditional houses between Seoul's two main palaces), and in Samcheong-dong (삼청동). From two shops' own price lists:
| Shop | For | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Byulgungteo (별궁터한복), Anguk and Gyeongbokgung | 2 hours, women | ₩20,000 plain skirt · ₩30,000 fusion or premium · ₩35,000 gradient skirt |
| 2 hours, men | ₩25,000–₩35,000 by set | |
| 4 hours | +₩5,000 on any set | |
| full day, back by 18:30 | ₩40,000–₩70,000 | |
| children, 2 hours | from ₩20,000 | |
| Seohwa Hanbok (서화한복), Gyeongbokgung exit 4 | 4 hours | ₩24,000 |
| full day | ₩32,000 | |
| overnight | ₩40,000 | |
| each extra hour | +₩6,000 |
Byulgungteo includes the skirt, jeogori, underskirt, a braid or headband, a handbag and a locker; Seohwa includes hair ornaments, a pouch and undergarments, and charges ₩4,000 for a royal hat or a formal belt. Seohwa takes its last rental at 15:00 although it is open until 19:00. Ask your chosen shop which payment methods it accepts and whether it requires a deposit.
Many shops accept walk-ins, but booking can be useful if you need a particular size, outfit or appointment. Ask when the rental period starts and allow time for choosing and fitting the clothes. Weekend demand can reduce the available choice.
Two checks before you leave the shop
- Is the top a separate piece, with a collar that wraps across? If the outfit goes on over your head in one piece, it does not qualify.
- Is there a separate skirt or trousers under it?
Check the rest of the palace’s clothing requirements too; staff at the entrance decide whether the outfit qualifies. Ask: 저고리랑 치마가 따로 있어요? (are the top and the skirt separate pieces?)
