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Seoul in May
Good month: May is at the end of the recommended season (April – May, September – November). Lotus Lantern Festival (Yeondeunghoe) can fall this month.
The season ends with May. Jangma: the Summer Monsoon usually starts in July, 2 months away.
4 days in Seoul in May · from ₹43,407 for two
Stay, food & local travel; getting there extra
What’s on in May
Timing a trip around these changes what you pay and what you can book.
Lotus Lantern Festival (Yeondeunghoe)dates shift yearly
Before Buddha's Birthday, a lantern parade of tens of thousands runs down Jongno from Dongdaemun to Jogyesa on a Saturday evening; temples across the country hang lanterns for weeks. Jogyesa's lantern canopy in Insadong is free to see.
What it costs
For two sharing a room; 4 days on the ground, getting there not included.
Budget
₹43,407 for two
- Room a night₹5,040
- Food a day, each₹2,808
- Main sight entry, each₹220
Mid-range
₹1,00,232 for two
- Room a night₹11,520
- Food a day, each₹6,480
- Main sight entry, each₹220
Luxury
₹2,32,683 for two
- Room a night₹27,360
- Food a day, each₹15,120
- Main sight entry, each₹220
Totals cover the room (taxes included), food, local transport, entry and a 10% buffer: the figures the planner opens on. These are typical rates; Tourisma has no month-by-month rates for South Korea yet, so they don't move with the month.
Getting there
Fly into Seoul (ICN)
Flights from India: from 8 cities, one way from ₹25,000
Fly into Busan (PUS), 326 km away
Then: Train · 3h (KTX from Seoul Station / SRT from Suseo)
Flights from India: from 4 cities, one way from ₹28,000
Routes compared
Entry rules
Visa needed before you fly for up to 90 days, about ₹4,500
- Apply for a C-3-9 short-term tourist visa at the Korea Visa Application Centre (run by VFS Global) for your state, about a month before you fly: ₹3,400 visa fee plus ₹1,100 service charge. Allow about 10 working days; express processing is not offered at the Delhi and Kolkata centres.
- Before you land, fill in the free e-Arrival Card online (or the paper card handed out on the plane). Use only the official Korean government site.
- At immigration in Incheon or Busan, show your passport with the visa; your fingerprints and photo are taken. You can stay up to 90 days on a single-entry tourist visa.
Carry: Passport valid for at least 6 months, with blank pages; Visa application form and a recent 35 x 45 mm photo on a white background; Bank statements for the last 6 months and income-tax returns (ITR); Letter from your employer granting leave, or proof of your business or studies; Confirmed return flight, hotel bookings and a day-by-day itinerary.
Most Indian tourists need a visa before they fly: there is no e-visa or visa on arrival for a regular tourist trip, and the K-ETA is not for Indian passports. Tour groups booked through designated agencies have the visa fee waived until 31 December 2026. Jeju Island has its own visa-free rule for direct international arrivals, which one source says covers Indians; confirm with the Korean Embassy before relying on it.
Checked 2026-10; confirm with the embassy before you fly.
Elsewhere in South Korea in May
Also in season this month.
- Busan · great month
- Jeju City · great month
- Seogwipo · great month
- Tongyeong · great month
- Yeosu · great month
- Andong · good month
- Daegu · good month
- Gangneung · good month
Nearby in Seoul & Around:
Want this as a real plan?
Seoul in May, day by day, priced for your group.