Myeongdong is famous in Seoul as a place where many couples gather on Christmas. In recent years, Shinsegae Department Store installed a large electronic billboard on the exterior wall of its main store, projecting Christmas-themed videos and emerging as a spot for "certification shots." However, contrary to this common belief, it turned out that the area with the most people in Seoul on Christmas Eve last year was around Hongdae.
According to Seoul's living population data on the 24th, as of 7 p.m. Dec. 24 last year, Seogyo-dong in Mapo-gu recorded the highest living population among Seoul's 425 administrative districts, with 124,156 people. This area includes the so-called "Hongdae front," as well as Hapjeong and Mangwon stations.
The second place, with an estimated 86,683 people, was Jongno 1,2,3,4 Ga-dong, including the right side of Gwanghwamun Square and the north side of Cheonggyecheon, as well as areas like Insadong, Ikseon-dong, and Gwangjang Market. Myeongdong came in third with 83,487 people. This was followed by Yeouido (Yeongdeungpo-gu Yeouido-dong) with 76,003 people in fourth place, and the area around Gangnam Station, Yeoksam 1-dong, with 74,291 people in fifth place.
However, Yeouido and Yeoksam 1-dong are also residential areas, so the crowd flocking to enjoy Christmas Eve is expected to be smaller than the living population. As of Dec. last year, the registered population of these two areas was between 33,000 and 34,000. Seogyo-dong, near Hongdae, had a registered population of 24,061, and more than 100,000 people were expected to have visited to enjoy Christmas Eve. Myeongdong attracted about 80,000 people.
Even considering the area size, Hongdae was more crowded than Myeongdong on Christmas Eve. Seogyo-dong covers an area of 1.18 square kilometers, with 15,217 people per square kilometer at 7 p.m. on Dec. 24 last year. Myeongdong covers 0.99 square kilometers, with 84,330 people per square kilometer at the same time. The area of Jongno 1,2,3,4 Ga-dong is 2.35 square kilometers, with a living population of 36,886 people per square kilometer, which is relatively small.
The most preferred place on Christmas Eve for short-term residents, such as foreign tourists staying in Korea for 90 days or less, was Myeongdong. The area with the most short-term foreign residents at 7 p.m. on Dec. 24 last year was Myeongdong (19,355 people), followed by the front of Hongdae (Seogyo-dong, 15,468 people), Sogong-dong in Jung-gu (7,250 people), Gwanghwamun-Ikseon-dong (Jongno 1,2,3,4 Ga-dong 6,757 people), and the area around Dongdaemun (Gwanghui-dong, 5,958 people).
Mapo-gu has set up a large tree and Santa air dome in front of Hongdae to celebrate Christmas and the year-end. It also hosts a jazz festival and small concerts. Jung-gu will deploy a total of 172 safety personnel on-site from the 21st and from the 24th to the 25th to prevent safety incidents in Myeongdong. In crowded areas, some street vendor operations will be closed to widen pedestrian paths, and vehicle access will be restricted.