Your Winter Guide To Everland
elcome to Korea’s largest theme park! If there’s anything South Korea does well, it’s theme parks and I would estimate there’s at least 10 major theme parks in South Korea alone. This is particularly amazing when you compare that to Australia, which only has about 6 theme parks and is a whopping 78 times bigger than Korea! As Korea’s largest themepark, Everland is also one of the 4 major theme parks in the world.
Everland’s sole aim is to make people happy, and it does. But is Everland always magical every day of the year? Let’s find out.
For those that don’t know, Everland has annual festivals much like Disneyland, where the park’s decorations, shows and parades all change to suit the new theme.
If you’re traveling in winter, there are two festivals in Everland:
- Nov – Dec: Winter Wonderland (formerly known as “Christmas Fantasy”)
- Jan – Feb: Snow Festival (previously known as “Winter Wonderland”)
As someone who went to both Winter Festivals, one greatly outshone the other. Let’s compare both experiences:
Everland’s Winter Wonderland Festival: Nov – Dec
hen I went to Everland the first time I went on December 17th during the Christmas Fantasy Festival (now called Winter Wonderland) and it was absolutely beautiful. I had never seen so many Christmas lights. Judging by the images online, the newly named ‘Winter Wonderland’ looks very much the same, just with a different name.
What you can expect during this festival is the entire park to be immaculately covered in lights, with a Christmas theme.
How it differs from the Snow Festival (Jan – Feb):
Everland Attractions Nov & Dec
FOUR SEASONS GARDEN
Millions of flowers welcome you in a magic garden all year round. Enjoy the fascinating themes of seasonal flowers, including the tulips and roses of spring, the lilies of summer, the chrysanthemums of autumn and the snowflakes of winter.
MAGIC IN THE SKY
Magic in the Sky is a winter night performance that includes lasers, searchlights and a snow machine. It’s an impressive winter night experience!
MOONLIGHT PARADE
A brilliant parade lights up the night of Everland.
LIGHTING Ceremony
The lighting ceremony takes the day garden and lights it up in spectacular fashion to welcome the night. In winter you can expect a winter wonderland of fairylights, decorated pine trees, and the central highlight – a giant Christmas Tree!
T EXPRESS
The steepest wooden roller coaster in the world presents sudden drops and sharp rises at 104 km per hour!
Welcome to Everland’s most thrilling experience. During the Winter Wonderland festival, the T Express is operational unless there is severe weather.
SNOW BUSTER Sledding
Sledding fun for the whole family!
Everland’s Snow Festival: Jan – Feb
oving Everland the first time, I decided to take Siree there when we traveled to Korea about two years later. We visited during Everland’s then “Winter Wonderland Festival”, now known as the Snow Festival. Unfortunately, it is probably the worst season to visit Everland. This is due to a couple of reasons:
- Many rides and food stalls were closed because of the cold – this included things like T Express and Safari Adventures – Both MAJOR park attractions.
- The park closed early and was not open at night.
- Due to point two, there is a lack of parades and shows, particularly those at night – The ‘Moonlight Parade,’ ‘Lighting Ceremony’ and ‘Magic in the Sky’ weren’t on during this festival. They were so magical the first time I went.
- The entire back section of the park was closed off. During other festivals, this section is completely decorated and lovely to walk through.
On the plus side, there are significantly less people during this time of year, so lines for rides are not as long.
Snapshot of a parade during Jan – Feb at Everland
Everland Attractions: Jan & Feb
Yes that’s right, there’s only TWO outdoor events. But in some cases, there may even be only one outdoor event available – when we visited the four seasons garden was closed off. The only way to see what will be open during your visit, is to check the Everland Schedule. Unfortunately it only shows the schedule for the current week, so you’ll only be able to check it within a week of your visit.
FOUR SEASONS GARDEN
Millions of flowers welcome you in a magic garden all year round. Enjoy the fascinating themes of seasonal flowers, including the tulips and roses of spring, the lilies of summer, the chrysanthemums of autumn and the snowflakes of winter. This attraction is closed in February.
SNOW BUSTER Sledding
Sledding fun for the whole family! During the Snow Festival the Snow Buster sledding is only available in February. It is closed in January.
Everland entrance gates
The T Express
The Verdict: Should you visit Everland in Nov & Dec OR Jan & Feb?
When it comes down to it, visiting Everland is always going to be fun no matter what season you visit, however you definitely get more value for money when you visit during March – December than you do in the months of January and February. The reason for this is that while the entrance fees stay the same price through out the year, the park during January and February is a little lack lustre. As mentioned in this blog post, during this time a lot of the major attractions are closed like the T Express & Safari Adventures, food stalls are deserted, the park closes early so you don’t get the opportunity to see the night shows and so on. Overall, if you’re visiting Everland in winter, plan to visit in November or December.
Everland General Information
Entrance Fees
- Day Ticket: Adult: 56,000 won | Child: 44,000 won
- Night Ticket (after 5PM): Adult: 46,000 won | Child: 37,000 won
- Two Day Pass: Adult: 87,000 won | Child: 69,000 won
Foreigners also get a special discount coupon: click here!! View more coupons here.
Opening Hours
Spring, Summer and Autumn: 10am – 10pm
Winter: 10am – 9pm and 10am-8pm (sometimes it’s even earlier, check the opening hours.)
Transportation:
This really depends on where you are travelling from, but if you are staying Seoul based, you want to catch a train to Gangnam Station (Line 2) then catch bus #5002 from Gangnam.
Map
Click on the map above to download the larger version from the official Everland website.
Updated 10 July 2018