Do not go gentle into that good night, old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light, though wise men at their end know dark is right, because their words had forked no lightning they, do not go gentle into that good night.
Seoul City Hall's free Sky Observatory to open Friday, Saturday nights
Visitors at Seoul City Hall's 8th-floor Sky Observatory soak in panoramic vistas of bustling Sejong-daero in central Seoul, July 8. Yonhap
By Jhoo Dong-chan
Seoul City Hall's free public viewing deck, known as the Sky Observatory, will extend its hours into the evening on Fridays and Saturdays starting this weekend, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said Wednesday, as the city looks to turn the building into a nighttime attraction.
The observatory, on the eighth and ninth floors of the west wing of Seoul City Hall's main building, has drawn more than 66,000 visitors since it opened to daytime crowds on July 6, according to the city government. Citing that response, officials said the deck — previously open only on weekdays until 6 p.m. — will now stay open until 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays through the fall, and until 9 p.m. from November through February.
Admission is free and no reservation is required. Visitors can reach the deck by taking a dedicated elevator directly to the ninth floor from the main entrance on the first floor, near a cafe staffed by robotic baristas.
From the observatory's floor-to-ceiling windows, visitors can see Deoksu Palace, a centuries-old royal palace, and the Seoul Anglican Cathedral at dusk, and after dark, the lit-up boulevard stretching from Gwanghwamun Plaza to Sungnye Gate, one of Seoul's historic city gates. Information panels on the floor identify the surrounding landmarks in both Korean and English.
The city has added benches, artwork and plants to the space, along with a model of Haechi, Seoul's official mascot — a mythical lion-like guardian creature — near the entrance.
After visiting the observatory, guests can walk down to Seoul Plaza, where City Hall and the nearby Seoul Metropolitan Library will be lit up nightly until 11 p.m. Officials described the project as part of a broader push to build a "nighttime economy" around City Hall, an area traditionally seen as an administrative rather than public space.
This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.