SetPaying for Seoul transport
Hi, I’m SeoulAslanN Seoul Tower at Night: Last Entry, Cable Car, Locks (2026)
Checked Oct 12, 2026
The observatory at N Seoul Tower (N서울타워) is open every day until 22:30 on weekdays and until 23:00 on weekends and public holidays. It stops letting people in 30 minutes before closing, so the last entry is about 22:00 on weekdays and 22:30 on weekends; the subtraction is mine. An adult ticket is 29,000 won and needs no reservation. The cable car sells its last tickets at 22:30 for a round trip and 22:45 for one way, and its service runs until 23:00. Buses 01A and 01B are listed as running until 23:00, but I found no last departure time for the tower stop, so don't count on the last minutes. All of this comes from the tower's and the cable car's own pages, checked on Oct 12, 2026.
I'm from Korea, and the Namsan I remember is a daytime climb. Years ago, in winter, I went up the stairs with my uncle, panting the whole way, and on the way down a small snack shop on the stairs path boiled ramyeon. I remember the ramyeon, not the view. This guide is about the other end of the day, so I built it from the tower's own pages, the cable car's pages and Seoul city's notices, and I tell you which numbers are mine.
It answers what I'd want to know before going up after dark: when the tower closes, what the last entry is, what it costs, what the coloured lights mean, what the love locks are, and how you get down when it's late.
Jump to: Closing time and last entry · Cost · Views · Light colours · Love locks · Getting down late · When to go up · FAQ
What time does N Seoul Tower close, and what is the last entry?
The observatory is open 365 days a year. The tower's English and Korean pages give the same hours: 10:00 to 22:30 from Monday to Friday, and 10:00 to 23:00 on weekends and public holidays. Korea Tourism Organization's listing for the tower shows the same times. The pages say entry to the observation deck closes 30 minutes before closing time. That is where my last-entry times come from, so treat them as a calculation and not as a printed time.
| Day | Opens | Closes | Last entry (my subtraction) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday to Friday | 10:00 | 22:30 | 22:00 |
| Weekends and public holidays | 10:00 | 23:00 | 22:30 |
The tower's FAQ also says the observatory can close temporarily because of weather or a vehicle restriction. If your night is tight, the tower's information desk number on its pages is 02-3455-9277 or 02-3455-9288.
If you want dinner at the tower first, the restaurants stop taking orders well before the observatory closes. The tower's hours table lists the last order at 20:00 for n.GRILL and Hancook, and at 21:00 for The Place Dining and Durumi Bunsik.
How much does it cost to go up at night?
The price is the same at night as in the day. From the tower's English and Korean fare pages on Oct 12, 2026:
| Ticket | Adult (13+) | Child 3–12 and age 65+ |
|---|---|---|
| Observatory | 29,000 won | 23,000 won |
| Cable car, round trip | 15,000 won | 11,500 won (child 36 months–12) |
| Cable car, one way | 12,000 won | 9,000 won |
| Bus 01A or 01B, one ride | 1,500 won (transportation card only) | - |
Children under 36 months go up free, one per caretaker. On the cable car, people aged 65 and over pay the child fare on showing ID. You buy the observatory ticket on the day at the Tower 1F booth or the Plaza 5F information desk, and the FAQ says no reservation is needed. Cable car tickets are sold on site only.
My sums for one adult, before the subway to get to the hill:
- Observatory + cable car round trip: 29,000 + 15,000 = 44,000 won
- Observatory + bus up and bus down: 29,000 + 3,000 = 32,000 won
- Cable car up, bus down, observatory: 12,000 + 1,500 + 29,000 = 42,500 won
One warning if you search for prices: Seoul city articles from 2023 to early 2025 give the adult ticket as 21,000 won and the child ticket as 16,000 won. That was the price then. Check the date of any price you read, and go by the tower's own fare page. To get a transportation card, see T-money vs Climate Card vs WOWPASS.
What can you see from the observatory at night?
The tower says the observatory is about 400 m above sea level. On a clear day, its FAQ says, you can see up to 50 km, and it lists what lies in each direction: to the east, Achasan and Ttukseom; to the west, Yanghwa Bridge, Nanji Island and Ilsan; to the south, Gwanaksan and the National Museum of Korea; to the north, Bukhansan and the area toward the border. The FAQ doesn't separate day from night, so use the list as a map of directions, and expect haze to decide how far you see.
The tower's own tip is to look toward Yongsan-daero, where it says the lights and the roads form the shape of a star. There are digital telescopes on the Tower 2F roof terrace and on 4F and 5F; the Korean page says they zoom up to 36 times optically. I did not find a price for the telescopes.
The tower itself is part of the night view too. From across the Han River, the tower is a lit spot on top of Namsan.
What do the colours of the tower lights mean?
They show the fine-dust level over Seoul. Seoul city's articles say the tower's lights give the air quality of the day, and that the colour is updated twice a day, at 18:00 and 21:00. That means the colour you see before 21:00 may not be the one you see after it.
| Light | Fine dust (PM2.5) |
|---|---|
| ● Blue | Good · 15 µg/m³ or lower |
| ● Green | Moderate |
| ● Yellow | Bad |
| ● Red | Very bad |
I give the number only for blue. Seoul's 2023 and 2024 articles list different cut-offs for the other colours, so I won't print one. I also found no published time at which the lights go off for the night.
What are the love locks, and can you hang one?
Couples lock a padlock to a railing at the tower and keep the key. The tower's FAQ says there is a "Love Tree" in the plaza, and that various locks are sold at N Gift, the tower's gift shop (02-3455-9256). A Seoul citizen-reporter article from Jan 2025 calls the railings the "Love Lock Plaza" (사랑의 자물쇠 광장) and says you can hang a lock bought there or one you bring from elsewhere. I found no written rule from the tower or the city on how many locks, or where, so I won't give you one.
The locks don't stay forever. A 2023 article in Money S says Seoul city officials wash the locks once or twice a quarter and remove old ones only after a public notice. For the story of how the locks started, see N Seoul Tower: history, hours, tickets and how to get there.
Where the shop sits is confusing. The tower's floor guide lists N Gift on Tower 1F and 5F, while its hours table puts it on Plaza 5F. So I won't give shop hours. Ask at the information desk.
How do you get down when it's late?
This is the part of the night to plan, because the observatory stays open as late as the cable car does.
| Way down | Hours | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Cable car | 10:00–23:00. Last tickets 22:30 round trip, 22:45 one way. The page says it may close early, and strong wind can stop it. | 12,000 won one way (adult) |
| Bus 01A / 01B | Listed 06:30–23:00. 01A every 9 minutes, 01B every 14 minutes. I found no last departure from the tower stop. | 1,500 won, card only |
| Namsan Oreumi (incline elevator, covers the lower stretch only) | 09:00–23:00. Monday 09:00–14:00 is maintenance. | Free |
The cable car's page also notes that waits are longer on weekends and holidays. On a weekend the observatory closes at 23:00, the same time the cable car's service ends, and the last one-way cable car ticket is 22:45. So the last entry is not a plan for getting home. My advice, not an official rule: if you'll ride the cable car down, leave the observatory by about 22:00, and if you'll take the bus, leave with more margin than the 23:00 listing suggests.
The cable car's page also lists a free shuttle bus between Myeongdong Station Exit 1 and the cable car. Its timetable has changed between versions of the page, so I wouldn't plan a late return around it. The walk from Myeongdong Station Exit 3 to the cable car station takes 10 to 15 minutes, according to the tower's page. Buses 01A and 01B stop at Chungmuro Station Exit 2 and Dongguk Univ.; 01A also stops at Namdaemun Market (Exit 8), Sungnyemun Gate and Baekbeom Square.
If you miss the last cable car and the last bus, you're on a hill with no general traffic: general vehicles have been restricted on Namsan since May 1, 2005. I did not find a source for taxi access to the tower, so I won't promise one. For what runs after midnight in the city, see Arriving Late in Seoul: Getting Around After Midnight, and Seoul taxi fares and tips for visitors for fares once you're at street level.
When should you go up?
If you want to see the city in daylight and then in the dark, go up before sunset. I calculated sunset for central Seoul with the NOAA solar formula, because I couldn't get the national observatory's page to give me a table. Check it against an official source for the exact minute.
| Date (2026) | Sunset in Seoul (my calculation) |
|---|---|
| Oct 12 | about 18:00 |
| Oct 23 | about 17:45 |
| Oct 31 | about 17:36 |
| Nov 6 | about 17:30 |
| Nov 14 | about 17:23 |
My suggestion: get to the top 30 to 60 minutes before those times. Remember that the fine-dust colour of the lights is updated at 18:00 and 21:00.
Seoul is running the Namsan Night Festival from Oct 23 to Nov 14, 2026, with booking in advance. The details for visitors are in the Namsan Night Festival guide. If you're planning a longer day on this side of the city, Namsan, Myeongdong and Namdaemun in one day puts the pieces in order.
Naver Map pins
| # | Place | Naver Map |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | N Seoul Tower (N서울타워) | Open |
| 2 | Namsan Cable Car (남산케이블카) · boarding station | Open |
| 3 | Myeongdong Station, Exit 3 (명동역 3번 출구) | Open |
| 4 | Chungmuro Station, Exit 2 (충무로역 2번 출구) · bus 01A / 01B | Open |
New to Naver Map? Naver Map vs Kakao Map vs Google Maps explains it.
FAQ
What time does N Seoul Tower close?
The observatory closes at 22:30 from Monday to Friday and at 23:00 on weekends and public holidays, on the tower's pages on Oct 12, 2026.
What is the last entry to N Seoul Tower?
The pages say entry stops 30 minutes before closing. That gives 22:00 on weekdays and 22:30 on weekends and holidays. The subtraction is mine.
Can I buy N Seoul Tower tickets on the night I go?
Yes. The FAQ says the observatory needs no reservation. Same-day tickets are sold at the Tower 1F booth and the Plaza 5F information desk.
Is bus 01A or 01B running late at night?
Both are listed as running 06:30 to 23:00. I did not find a last departure time for the tower stop, so leave with margin.
What do the colours of N Seoul Tower mean?
They show Seoul's fine-dust level. Blue means good, with PM2.5 at 15 µg/m³ or lower. The colour is updated at 18:00 and 21:00.
Can I hang a love lock?
Locks are sold at N Gift, and a 2025 Seoul citizen-reporter article says you can hang one you bring. I found no official rule on numbers or places.
Is it cheaper in winter?
Sometimes it was. In the winters of 2023-24 and 2024-25 the tower took 20% off the observatory ticket on days when Seoul's PM2.5 at 9:00 was good. That was between Dec 1 and Mar 31. I haven't seen an announcement for this winter.
Cable car hours and fares are in our Namsan Cable Car guide.
Fare changes, the last bus and lights-out
I'll watch the tower's fare page for a price change and for a winter fine-dust discount this year, and I'll look for a last bus time at the tower stop and a lights-out time. If a fact on the tower's pages changes, I'll fix this page.
More Namsan & nearby
- N Seoul Tower: History, Hours, Tickets, How to Get There (2026)
- Namsan Night Festival 2026: Dates, Booking for Foreigners
- Namsan Cable Car (2026): Fares, Hours, How to Get There
- Namsan fall foliage and walking trail (2026)
- Namsan, Myeongdong and Namdaemun in one day
- Namdaemun Market Guide: Eat, Buy, Closed Days (2026)
Sources
- N Seoul Tower, official site, checked Oct 12, 2026: hours · fares · FAQ · getting there · hours (Korean) · fares (Korean)
- Namsan Cable Car, official site: fares, hours, directions · FAQ
- Korea Tourism Organization, TourAPI listing for N Seoul Tower (content ID 126535), data modified May 20, 2026
- Seoul Media Hub, fine-dust discount and light colours, Dec 5, 2024 (Korean)
- Seoul Metropolitan Government, fine-dust discount and light colours, Nov 29, 2023 (Korean)
- Seoul Media Hub, N Seoul Tower, garden and Sky Forest Trail article, Nov 2025 (Korean)
- Seoul Media Hub, Namsan Palgakjeong article, Jan 7, 2025 (Korean)
- Money S, article on Namsan love locks, Jul 2023 (Korean, republished by Sidae)
- Bus 01A timetable: bustrain.kr (Korean)
- Sunset times: my own calculation with the NOAA solar position formula for 37.55 N, 126.97 E
- Photos: Korea Tourism Organization photo gallery, Korea Open Government License Type 1 (credited; cropped to size)
— SeoulAslan
Comments
Post a Comment