Cheong Wa Dae Road & Seochon

Cheong Wa Dae was used as the office and residence of the President of the Republic of Korea from 1948 until 9 May 2022. It has been open to citizens since the next day, 10 May 2022, and its address is 1 Cheongwadae-ro, Jongno-gu. The site covers 253,505㎡, and there is no separate parking facility.

When the road in front of Cheong Wa Dae opened in February 1996, an exhibition hall, “Hyojadong Sarangbang”, opened beside it. It stands where the presidential secretariat residence used to be. On 5 January 2010 this hall reopened under its present name, Cheongwadae Sarangchae.

On the Seochon side, a house built around 1937 by the architect Park Gil-ryong still stands. The painter Park No-soo lived there for more than 40 years; it became Seoul City Cultural Heritage Material No. 1 in 1991, and in September 2013 it opened as the first district art museum set up by Jongno-gu.

The easiest way is to walk from Exit 4 of Gyeongbokgung Station on Line 3. There is no separate parking facility at Cheong Wa Dae and parking is not possible in Seochon, so it is better to leave the car behind.

Cheongwadae Sarangchae is open 09:00–18:00 (last entry 17:30) and closed on 1 January and every Tuesday. If Tuesday is a public holiday, it closes on the first weekday after the holiday. You cannot bring in food or drink, and the only pets allowed are guide dogs for the visually impaired.

The Sarangchae guide states that a separate Cheong Wa Dae visit reservation is required to look around inside Cheong Wa Dae. Please check the reservation method, visiting hours and fees directly in the official guide of the institution that runs Cheong Wa Dae.

The Korea Tourism Organization’s Sarangchae course guide suggests walking from Sarangchae through Tongin Market and the Park No-soo Museum of Art into the Seochon alleys, or following the Gyeongbokgung stone wall to Samcheong-dong and Bukchon Hanok Village.