Christmas Day

🎄 🇰🇷 South Korea • December 25, 2026

Days off: 1 days • Falls on Friday

Today is
July 28, 2026
Tuesday
Next Holiday
150days
108 work days
Year Work Progress
58/261 work days
Christmas Day — holiday, South Korea (December 25, 2026)

Christmas Day Description

Christmas Day (크리스마스/성탄절) on December 25th is a public holiday in South Korea, though the Christian population is approximately 27-30% of the country (roughly evenly split between Protestant and Catholic). Christmas is celebrated both as a religious holiday and, increasingly, as a secular cultural event — especially among younger Koreans for whom it functions as a romantic couples' holiday similar to Valentine's Day. Churches hold Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services, with Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul being a notable focal point for midnight mass. Streets in major shopping districts such as Myeongdong, Hongdae, and Gangnam are decorated with elaborate Christmas lights and displays from late November. Department stores run major Christmas promotions. Government offices, banks, and schools are closed. Many private companies also observe the holiday, though retail, entertainment, and food and beverage businesses overwhelmingly remain open and busy. Restaurants, especially Western-style and fine dining, are heavily booked for Christmas Eve dinners. Bakeries sell Christmas cakes — a tradition adopted from Japan. Public transport operates on a holiday schedule.

📜 History & Origins

Christianity was introduced to Korea in the late 18th century when Korean scholars encountered Catholic writings from China, and grew rapidly through the 19th and 20th centuries, particularly after the arrival of Protestant missionaries in the 1880s. Christmas was first publicly celebrated in Korea in the late 19th century by foreign missionaries and Korean converts, and December 25th was designated a public holiday following the founding of the Republic of Korea in 1948. Today Christians (Protestant and Catholic combined) make up roughly 27-30% of the population. Over the decades, Christmas in Korea has evolved into both a religious observance and a broader secular cultural and romantic holiday, distinct from the family-centered Christmas common in the West.

🎉 How It's Celebrated

Churches hold Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services — Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul hosts a nationally notable midnight mass attended by political leaders. Streets in major shopping districts such as Myeongdong, Hongdae, and Gangnam are decorated with elaborate lights and displays from late November. Among younger Koreans, Christmas functions as a romantic couples' holiday akin to Valentine's Day — dinner reservations at upscale Western restaurants and hotel packages sell out weeks ahead. Department stores run major Christmas promotions and sales, and ice-skating rinks and light festivals open in central Seoul. Families with children exchange gifts, and Christmas carols play constantly in shops and cafés.

🍽️ Traditional Foods

The most iconic Korean Christmas food is the Christmas cake — a decorated sponge cake with cream and strawberries, a tradition adopted from Japan in the 1970s and now ubiquitous, with bakeries taking orders weeks in advance. Couples and families book Christmas Eve dinners at Western restaurants and hotel buffets, with roast turkey, steak, pasta, and wine being popular. For those spending Christmas at home, fried chicken from chains such as BBQ Olive and Kyochon has become a popular casual meal — a quirky Korean Christmas tradition also borrowed from Japan.

← Previous Hangeul Day