Bamdokkaebi Night Market to open next week
Citizens visit Bamdokkaebi Night Market in Seoul in this file photo from last year. / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government
By Kim Jae-heun
Seoul's annual, Bamdokkaebi Night Market, has grown in size and diversity this year.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Wednesday it will operate the market every Friday to Sunday from April 5 to Oct. 27.
This year, the night markets in Yeouido, Banpo and Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) will open on April 5 and then Cheonggye Stream a day later. The market at Oil Tank Culture Park will open in May.
Seoul City is also planning a Christmas Market in December at those locations.
Some 190 food trucks and 360 handicraft merchandisers will participate in the night event and citizens will be able to use credit cards to pay for purchases.
The city government encourages people to use “Zero Pay,” a mobile QR code-based payment system, and those using it will receive 1,000-won worth of points in return.
Each night market venue has its own concept including “world night market” on Yeouido, “romantic moonlight market” in Banpo, “youth runway market” in DDP and and “time tour market” at Cheonggye Stream. They will host various attractions from traditional performances to magic shows and street busking.
In Korean folklore, “bamdokkaebi” is a goblin-like creature that appears only at night. The local government named the weekend night markets after the mythical creature.
Last year, Seoul City earned 11.7 billion won in sales with the markets featuring 189 food trucks and 317 teams of small business.
The markets may be closed if there is rain or heavy fine dust, so citizens are advised to check the schedule before visiting at
or
, the city government said.