Chuseok 2025 is seeing 32 million South Koreans travelling; packed trains, airports, and rising gift spending mark the country’s biggest holiday.

Seoul

South Korea is experiencing record travel as millions of people journey to celebrate Chuseok, the country's most significant annual holiday. Trains and highways are filled to capacity, and airports have seen unprecedented crowds as families gather to honor ancestors, share meals, and reconnect after time apart.

This year, Chuseok is notable not only for its cultural significance but also for its economic impact. Gift spending has increased by over 26 percent, and the government anticipates about 32 million people—roughly 60 percent of the population—will travel during the holiday period, an 8 percent rise from the previous year. While officials encourage domestic travel to support the economy, at least two million South Koreans are traveling abroad. The holiday also serves as a poignant reminder of families separated by the Korean border.

South Koreans hit the road for Chuseok celebrations amid record travel

Trains filled to capacity and more than six and a half million cars jamming South Korea's highways on the main day of the mid-autumn harvest festival known as Chuseok. Some airports also saw record-breaking numbers. Despite its rice farming origins, South Koreans still see Chuseok as the most important annual holiday. In Korea, Chuseok is a holiday when families and relatives gather to honor their ancestors, pray for health and well-being, share delicious food, play fun games and spend time talking together after a long while apart. This year, the holiday is not only about family, it's about fueling the economy. Spending on gifts has jumped more than 26 percent. Because the break is quite long, it's a good chance to spend a bit more money. That's welcome news for the government, which is hoping Chuseok can deliver a much-needed boost to the sluggish economy. The government expects about 32 million people, which is about 60 percent of the population, to travel during the Chuseok holiday period, a rise of about eight percent compared to last year. In his holiday address, President Lee Jae-myung struck an optimistic tone. I will spare no effort to help our industry and nation grow and make a great leap forward. While officials have been urging people to spend their holidays and money at home, at least two million South Koreans chose to head abroad. These days of ancestral rites have disappeared a lot. So many families are understanding. But for those who are not, just the act of leaving on a trip itself is difficult. Yet somehow people seem to gather the courage to go. For people with family on the other side of the demilitarized zone, the holiday brings more heartache than celebration. Having come down here to the South, I live free, happy and peaceful. But when I think about my father, my heart aches. As South Koreans celebrate with food, family and spending, Chuseok also remains a bittersweet reminder of both the ties that bind and the border that still divides. Jack Barton, Al Jazeera, Seoul.

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