[iNews24 reporter Kim Hyo-jin] On May 1, the first day of a long holiday stretch that starts with Labor Day and continues through Children’s Day, traffic snarled across highways nationwide.
Airports were packed with Koreans heading abroad and international visitors arriving, while mountains, amusement parks and resorts across the country were jammed with people.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said it expects 80,000–90,000 Japanese visitors and 100,000–110,000 Chinese visitors during this holiday period. 2026.5.1 [photo=Yonhap News]
The Korea Expressway Corporation estimated about 6.05 million vehicles traveled that day and warned a drive from the Seoul tollgate to Busan could take as long as 9 hours 10 minutes.
If congestion worsens, travel times could reach roughly 7 hours 30 minutes to Gwangju, 8 hours 10 minutes to Mokpo, and 6 hours 20 minutes to Gangneung.
The Korea Expressway Corporation predicted outbound routes would start to ease around 9–10 p.m., while inbound routes to Seoul would likely clear by about 10–11 p.m.
As of 6 p.m., heavy congestion was reported at several spots on the Gyeongbu Expressway: about 21㎞ (13.0 miles) near Anseong–Cheonan heading to Busan; about 12㎞ (7.5 miles) between the Independence Hall and Oksan Junction; and about 26㎞ (16.2 miles) near Namcheongju–Biryong Junction. On the Jungbu Naeryuk Expressway, backups stretched about 27㎞ (16.8 miles) from near Yeonpung Tunnel to the Mungyeong rest area, and about 10㎞ (6.2 miles) from the Yeoju junction to the Gamgok area.
Airports are expected to stay busy throughout the holiday. Airlines estimate roughly 1.3 million passengers (departures and arrivals combined) will use Incheon International Airport over the six-day period from the previous day through the 5th.
That averages about 217,000 travelers per day, exceeding the airport’s usual daily traffic of around 200,000.
People poured into amusement parks and hiking trails nationwide. Hikers crowded the Gwanaksan area in Seoul, prompting warnings from neighboring Gwacheon and Anyang city officials in Gyeonggi Province.
Anyang city warned that large crowds had gathered around the Yeonjudae summit on Gwanaksan, raising safety concerns, and urged people to avoid entering the mountain while asking hikers to take extra precautions.
A large crowd also swarmed Seongsu-dong in Seongdong-gu for the 30th-anniversary event celebrating the Japanese anime and game Pokémon. The event was paused over safety concerns, and police and firefighters were dispatched.
Seoul city estimated the crowd on Seongsu’s cafe street grew from about 26,000 at 10 a.m. to roughly 40,000 by noon.
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