Yeoju Ogoknaru Festival
여주오곡나루축제 · Yeoju, Gyeonggi
– Past
This edition has finished.
Korean festivals usually keep to roughly the same window each year, so the next
one should land near those dates — but the organizer publishes the confirmed
dates and they move, sometimes by weeks.
Last verified: 2026-10-19.
This page contains affiliate links. If you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we recommend.
A harvest festival built around Yeoju's Joseon-era role supplying the royal court with rice and grain via the historic Jopo ferry landing on the Namhan River.
Who it suits: Anyone interested in the Joseon-era river tribute system — Yeoju's rice and produce once reached the royal court by boat from here.
What to expect
The setting is the point. The festival is held at the Silleuksa National Tourist Site on the Namhan River in Yeoju. The Joseon-era story it tells is about grain: rice and other produce from this stretch of river travelled by boat to the royal court. What is on. The programme the city and the Ministry of Culture list includes a tribute procession (jinsang), a cauldron of Yeoju-rice bibimbap, a roasted sweet-potato ‘Guinness’ attempt, a path of wish papers and nakhwa-nori, the falling-sparks fire display. Farm produce is sold alongside food stalls and traditional-culture workshops and performances. New for 2026. The city said it was adding evening programmes called ‘Naru Nanjang’, a night performance and ‘Yeogang Goedam’ (river ghost tales), so the festival now has a daytime and a night mood. Last year’s layout split the site into three yards, which is useful for finding your way, but the 2026 food and programme lists were still being updated on the official site when we checked. Before you set out. Check the official site for shuttle information.When, where, how much
From the organizer
Organized by Yeoju city. These pages are the organizer's own and open on their site. They are usually Korean only — but that is where the confirmed programme, stage times and site map appear first, and times and prices read the same in any language.
Where it is
Where it is in the country — 67 km south-east of Seoul
About 120 km across — 6 other places we cover sit inside it. The pick of them is listed below.
67 km south-east of Seoul, in Yeoju, Gyeonggi (straight-line distance from Seoul City Hall, calculated from the venue's official coordinates).
We have not timed these connections ourselves, so rather than print a number we have not checked, here is the route on the two apps Koreans actually use — Silleuksa National Tourist Site, Yeoju as the destination, already filled in:
- Directions on Kakao Map — live bus and train times, and which platform
- Naver Map — the stronger of the two in English
From Seoul, journeys to Yeoju start at Seoul Station (KTX and regular rail) or the Express Bus Terminal. Which of the two wins depends on how many cities you are stringing together — our rail pass guide works through the break-even, and getting around Korea covers why these two apps beat Google Maps once you are on the ground.
Getting there and staying
For a bed near the festival, Klook's accommodation search for Yeoju is the quickest way to see what is left — festival weeks fill local rooms earlier than you would expect.
Outside the big cities, wifi is not something to plan around. Shuttle stops, stage times and the day's program are posted on the organizer's Korean-language page or a Naver Map pin, and they change on the day. A Korean eSIM is the cheapest way to have it working before you land.
Planning a trip around it
On at the same time
If your dates are fixed, these run within ten days of Yeoju Ogoknaru Festival and are worth checking before you commit to a route.
- Moonlight Tour at Changdeokgung Palace — 2026/09/10 – 10/17, Seoul, 2 km from Seoul.
- Jinju Namgang Yudeung Festival — 2026/10/03 – 10/18, Jinju, South Gyeongsang, 282 km from Seoul.
- Gangneung Coffee Festival — 2026/10/21 – 10/25, Gangneung, Gangwon, 175 km from Seoul.
- Chuncheon Makguksu & Dakgalbi Festival — 2026/10/14 – 10/18, Chuncheon, Gangwon, 74 km from Seoul.
- Gwangju Kimchi Festival — 2026/10/23 – 10/25, Gwangju, 268 km from Seoul.
- Sunchang Jangryu Festival — 2026/10/15 – 10/18, Sunchang, Jeonbuk, 245 km from Seoul.
Other festivals in Gyeonggi
Same province, different times of year — useful if you are choosing when to visit Gyeonggi rather than when to leave home.
- Yeoju Ceramic Festival — March, Yeoju, Gyeonggi
- Icheon Ceramics Festival — April, Icheon, Gyeonggi
- Suwon Hwaseong Festival — October, Suwon, Gyeonggi
- Bucheon International Comics Festival — September, Bucheon, Gyeonggi
- Siheung Gaetgol Festival — September, Siheung, Gyeonggi
Other museums within reach
- Mok-A Museum — Gangcheon-myeon, Yeoju, Gyeonggi, about 3 km away.
A mountain in the same trip
Korea's national parks charge nothing to enter, and these are close enough to pair with the rest of this trip rather than needing one of their own.
- Bukhansan Hiking — about 70 km away.
Quick answers
Is the Yeoju Ogoknaru Festival free?
Where is the festival held?
What are the hours?
Where this comes from: Ministry of Culture festival information; Inews24, 2026 festival renewal. Programmes and prices change; the organizer's own announcement decides.