Last checked: October 16, 2026 · Sources: Seorak Cable Car operator site, Korea National Park Service, Sokcho city bus system, Korea Heritage Service and VisitKorea, linked below.
You can’t book the Seoraksan cable car online, as a foreigner or as a local. Tickets are sold only at the counter at Sogongwon, the main entrance of Seoraksan National Park, on the day you ride. A return ticket is 16,000 won for adults and 12,000 won for children, and there’s no one-way ticket. The ride takes about 5 minutes up to Gwongeumseong, about 700 m above sea level. Hours change daily with the season and the weather. Strong wind can stop it, so check the live status on the operator’s site before you leave.
How much is the Seoraksan cable car?
All fares are for a round trip. There’s no hiking trail between the stations, so everyone rides back down.
| Ticket | Who | Won |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | Middle school age and up | 16,000 |
| Child | 37 months to elementary school | 12,000 |
| Infant | Under 36 months | Free |
The operator also lists discounts for Korean disability and national-merit card holders, Sokcho residents, seniors 65+ and school trips. It says discounts apply “only to eligible domestic visitors”, so as a foreign visitor, plan on the full fare. There are no group discounts.
Refunds: you get your money back in full up to 10 minutes before the boarding time on your ticket. After that, a refund or a new boarding time costs 20% of the fare. If the cable car stops for strong wind or bad weather, unused tickets are refunded in full. Lost tickets aren’t reissued.
Can foreigners book the cable car online?
No, and nobody else can either. The operator says it takes no reservations because the weather always affects service. You buy at the ticket office on the first floor of the lower station on the day.
How it works on the day:
- Walk through the Sogongwon entrance. The cable car building is about 5 minutes on foot from the park entrance.
- Buy tickets at the 1st-floor ticket office. Your ticket can carry a boarding time, and on busy days there may be a wait.
- Go up to the 2nd-floor platform 5 minutes before that time.
- At the top, stay as long as you like, then queue for a car down in order.
The operator’s site has an English version. It doesn’t say which payment methods the ticket office takes, so whether foreign cards work there is not officially confirmed — check before you go, and bring some cash as a backup.
What are the cable car hours?
There is no fixed timetable. Every day the operator posts the next few days’ hours on its home page, and they move with the season and the weather. Its FAQ warns that if you take the last ride up, you’ll only have about 20 minutes at the top.
In mid-October 2026 the operator posted 08:00 – 17:30 for the coming days, and on Friday, October 16 it switched that day to “ticket sales sold out” in the afternoon. Hours change often, so check the operator’s home page for your date.
The same box on the home page shows the current wait, a weather notice and when ticket sales close. It’s the only official source for how long the line is right now. When we checked it at 16:31 on Friday, October 16, 2026, it showed a 53-minute wait, and by 16:37 the operator had marked that day’s ticket sales as sold out, on a weekday afternoon in foliage season.
How long is the queue in autumn?
The operator doesn’t publish typical wait times. What it does say: most weekends are busy, waits are possible, and when it’s crowded a car leaves about every 5 minutes (every 10 to 15 minutes when it’s quiet).
Our math, using the operator’s figures: it runs cars with 50 people each. At one car every 5 minutes, that’s about 600 people an hour going up. If a few thousand people arrive before you on a foliage Saturday, you’re looking at hours, not minutes. The operator’s 2026 peak periods, when it suspends its senior discount, are July 18 to August 23 and September 19 to November 15. Our fall foliage 2026 guide has the forecast for Seoraksan.
How to cut the wait:
- Go on a weekday. The operator’s own FAQ says weekends are usually busy.
- Be at the ticket office when it opens. In mid-October 2026, for example, the posted opening was 08:00.
- Buy first, then explore. If your boarding time is far off, walk to Sinheungsa Temple or along the valley below and come back 5 minutes before your time.
- Use the toilet at Sogongwon before you buy. The toilet at the top uses foam instead of water, and the operator suggests the lower toilets.
- Check the live view. The national park service runs a live camera at Gwongeumseong, so you can see clouds or fog before you pay.
Our view: on an autumn weekend, ride first thing in the morning or skip it. Waiting with a ticket for a time slot hours away wastes the best part of the day. You could spend those hours walking to Biseondae or Ulsanbawi from the same entrance instead.
What’s at the top?
The line is 1,128 m long and ends at the upper station, 699 m above sea level, at Gwongeumseong, the remains of a mountain fortress. What you’ll find there:
- Bonghwadae, the highest point, with views over Outer Seorak, Sokcho city and the East Sea on a clear day.
- Ulsanbawi, the big rock ridge of Outer Seorak, in view on a clear day.
- Anrakam, a small hermitage, and Muhaksong, an old pine among the rocks.
The upper station has an observation deck, a cafe, toilets and a rest area. The lower station has a restaurant and a cafe. You can’t walk down; you must take the cable car both ways.
Bring a jacket. The cabins have no power supply, so there’s no heating or air conditioning. Strollers can’t go on board, but there’s free stroller storage outside the building, on the right. Wheelchair users can reach the platform by elevator. All of Seoraksan National Park is non-smoking.
How do I get to the cable car?
The cable car is at 1085 Seoraksan-ro, Sokcho, inside the Sogongwon area of the park.
By bus from Sokcho: city bus 7 or 7-1 runs from the Sokcho bus terminal area to the last stop, Seoraksan Sogongwon. VisitKorea and the operator both give these two routes. The adult fare is 1,530 won by card (T-money works) or 1,700 won in cash, and a card gives you one free transfer within 1 hour 30 minutes of getting off. Check times and live arrivals on Sokcho’s bus site (bis.sokcho.go.kr, linked below).
From Seoul: take an express or intercity bus to Sokcho; the operator puts the ride at about 2 hours 10 to 2 hours 30 minutes. How to book those seats is in our express bus booking guide (our Seoul to Seoraksan bus guide is coming soon).
Is there a park entrance fee or parking fee?
- National park entry: free. Korea’s national park entrance fee was abolished in January 2007.
- Temple heritage area: the cable car operator’s Korean boarding guide says there is no admission fee at the cultural heritage area entrance (Sinheungsa) that you pass on the way in. Since May 4, 2023, Jogye Order temples have waived their heritage viewing fee with government support. Questions about the heritage area: 033-636-8755.
- Parking: the cable car has no car park of its own. You park in the paid Sinheungsa / Sogongwon lot. Neither the operator nor the park service publishes the price; they only give the parking office number, 033-636-4050. Parking fees are not officially confirmed — check before you go.
When is the cable car closed?
- Wind and bad weather: the operator stops the cable car in strong wind or bad weather, sometimes with no notice. Its FAQ says it can’t predict when fog will lift or wind will drop. Unused tickets are refunded.
- Maintenance: the cable car closes for safety inspections. In 2026 it closed for 7 days, June 10 to 16, for a detailed safety inspection of the lift.
- Fire-prevention trail closures: the upper Seoraksan trails close in spring and late autumn (VisitKorea lists March 2 to May 15 and November 15 to December 15; the park service hadn’t posted its autumn 2026 closure notice when we checked on October 16). The operator hasn’t said whether this affects the cable car. Shelter and trail dates are in our Seoraksan shelter booking guide.
If the cable car isn’t running
It stopped for wind after I bought tickets.
Take your unused ticket back to the ticket office for a full refund. Then use the same entrance for a valley walk: Sogongwon to Biseondae is an easy route.
I missed my boarding time.
Go to the ticket office. A new time costs 20% of the fare.
The posted hours show it’s closed today.
Check the live camera and the home page the evening before. If you’re planning a bigger hike instead, park trails and shelters are booked on the park service site; see our KNPS English booking guide.
I lost my ticket.
It can’t be reissued. Keep it somewhere safe until you’re back down.
Questions: Seorak Cable Car 033-636-4300. Trails and park: Seoraksan National Park office 033-801-0900.
Read next
Sources
- Seorak Cable Car — Home (live hours, wait and status box; before-you-visit notes), checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean / English)
- Seorak Cable Car — Guide: fares, discounts, refunds, hours, boarding steps, directions, parking, FAQ, checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean / English)
- Seorak Cable Car — About and safety system (route length, capacity, weather rules), checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean)
- Seorak Cable Car — Facilities at the lower and upper stations, checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean)
- Korea National Park Service — Seoraksan National Park page, checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean)
- Korea National Park Service — Gwongeumseong live camera, checked Oct 16, 2026
- Korea Heritage Service — Temple heritage viewing fees free from May 4 (May 1, 2023), checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean)
- Sokcho BIS — City bus fares and transfers, checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean)
- Sokcho BIS — City bus timetables (routes 7 and 7-1), checked Oct 16, 2026 (Korean)
- VisitKorea — Reach New Heights with Korea’s National Parks (Seoraksan, buses 7 / 7-1, fire-prevention closures), checked Oct 16, 2026