More than a million people are expected along the Han River on Saturday, when the country's largest fireworks display returns to Yeouido about three weeks earlier on the calendar than last year.
Seoul International Fireworks Festival 2026 will run from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday at Yeouido Hangang Park, with the main fireworks show beginning at 8 p.m.
Event organizer Hanwha Group said it moved the date forward from late September because of the Chuseok holiday and the volume of foreign visitors traveling to Korea in early autumn.
Hanwha Group has hosted the festival since 2000 as a corporate giving initiative, and it now draws crowds of more than 1 million each year. Admission is free.
This year's theme is "Your Infinite Colors." Hanwha said the sequences were built around ideas of hope and collective light.
Teams from three countries are taking part, with Hanwha representing Korea alongside squads from the US and UK.
The main additions this year center on Wonhyo Bridge. A so-called tower fireworks setup will fire from the bridge itself. Fireworks will also launch symmetrically on both sides of the river above Wonhyo Bridge. The wide framing is designed to give spectators watching from farther back a full view of the display.
Hanwha is working with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Tourism Organization on viewing zones and participatory events inside the festival area.
Roughly 5,000 safety and crowd control personnel will be deployed, the largest number in the festival's history.
The company said it will use Orange Safety, a system developed with mobile carriers that measures crowd density in real time, to help disperse congestion.
The show will be streamed live on Hanwha TV, the company's official YouTube channel.
Traffic controls take effect around the 63 Building from 3 p.m. Saturday until midnight.
Yeouidong-ro between the southern end of Mapo Bridge and the 63 Building will be fully closed to all. Controls on Olympic-daero and the approach from Nodeul-gil to the 63 Building will be applied flexibly depending on conditions on the day.
The Yeouido Hangang Park parking lot in front of the 63 Building is closed from 6 p.m. Friday through midnight Saturday, and organizers are urging spectators to use public transit.
Departing after the show is likely to be the hardest part of the night. Yeouinaru Station may be temporarily closed to control crowds, and buses will be rerouted through surrounding areas. Walking to Yeouido, Saetgang or Daebang stations is the fastest option.
yoohong@heraldcorp.com
