Overseas Places Sold Out in Five Minutes! The Running Traveller’s Seoul—December’s Hangang Citizen Marathon Still Open, the 2027 Seoul Marathon Overseas Entry Steps, Free English-Speaking Crews and Runner Stations With Showers [Things Worth Doing in Korea #25]

Seoul staged 155 running events in 2024, three times the 50 of 2021. Marathon entries nationwide passed a million, and along the Han River the lines of headlamps keep moving at nine at night. Here’s the thing: you can join all of this for nothing—the English-speaking crews welcome guests, and the city runs free runner stations with showers.

This guide separates the races you can still enter from those that have closed as of 6 September 2026, walks through overseas entry for the Seoul Marathon in March 2027, lists crew meeting times and places, the shops for shoes, and even the first subway train on race morning—only what a running traveller actually needs.

“So which one do I sign up for?” The short version: for a race, the 2027 Seoul Marathon (entries close 30 November) or December’s Hangang Citizen Marathon; for a run, Seoul Flyers on a Tuesday or Wednesday evening. Either way you will end up in Yeouido or Ichon Hangang Park. Let’s get into it.

Act on 1 October! Races You Can Still Enter, and How to Get Into the 2027 Seoul Marathon From Abroad

✔ First, what has closed
Closed: the JTBC Seoul Marathon on 1 November filled its 32,000 domestic places by lottery in April and closed overseas entries on 4 September. Fees rose 50 percent to 150,000 won for the full and 100,000 for the 10K, and bibs are no longer posted—runners collect them in person with a passport at the Korea Running Expo at SETEC on 29–31 October, a change that drew criticism (organiser JTBC filed for corporate rehabilitation in June). Seoul Race (11 October) and the Chuncheon Marathon (25 October) are also closed.

Open: the Hangang Citizen Marathon (Saturday 5 December, Yeouido Hangang Park; half, 10K and 5K at 50,000 won each; entries until 28 October, bibs by post), Hangang Run (28 December, Anyangcheon, 50,000 won, until 12 December), FILA Run & Espresso 10K (15 November) and New Balance Run Your Way 10K (4 October). December in Seoul hovers around freezing, but the air is the cleanest of the year.

2027 Seoul Marathon (97th Dong-A Marathon, Sunday 21 March, 7:30, Gwanghwamun to Jamsil, 20,000 places each for the full and 10K): domestic entry closed in June, and overseas residents apply on a dedicated English page (en.seoul-marathon.com/93) by submitting a finishing certificate between 1 October and 20 November. Requirements: a full marathon under 4:59:59 from a certified race between 1 January 2024 and 30 November 2026, and a name matching your passport exactly. Via World’s Marathons the fee is €129 for the full and €86 for the 10K, until 30 November. The 2026 overseas allocation sold out in five minutes, so act on 1 October. The Gyeongju Cherry Blossom Marathon (early April) usually opens entries in late December and has an English page.

Major races in and around Seoul — dates, fees, foreign entry (checked 6 September 2026)

Race	Date and course	Distances	Fee	Foreign entry / status
JTBC Seoul Marathon 2026	Sun 1 Nov, World Cup Park → Olympic Park	Full, 10K	Full 150,000, 10K 100,000 won (up 50%)	Overseas entries closed 4 Sep. Bibs collected in person with passport at the SETEC expo, 29–31 Oct (no mail, no proxy)
2027 Seoul Marathon (97th Dong-A)	Sun 21 Mar 2027, 7:30, Gwanghwamun → Jamsil	Full, 10K	Overseas portals: full €129, 10K €86	Overseas residents submit a certificate on the English page 1 Oct–20 Nov (full under 4:59:59, name matching passport); World’s Marathons until 30 Nov. Domestic entry closed
Seoul Race 2026	Sun 11 Oct, Seoul Plaza and Cheonggyecheon	Half, 11 km	Half about 80,000, 11 km about 70,000 won	Closed (English site exists)
Chosun Ilbo Chuncheon Marathon	Sun 25 Oct, 9:00, Gongjicheon	Full, 10K	Full 150,000, 10K 100,000 won (confirm officially)	Closed
Hangang Citizen Marathon (23rd)	Sat 5 Dec, 9:00, Yeouido Hangang Park	Half, 10K, 5K	50,000 won each	Open until 28 Oct, bibs by post
Hangang Run 2026	28 Dec, Anyangcheon	Half, 10K, 5K	50,000 won	Open until 12 Dec
FILA Run & Espresso 10K	15 Nov	10K	—	Open
Gyeongju Cherry Blossom Marathon (34th)	early April 2027 (entries usually late Dec–mid Feb)	Half, 10K, 5K	—	English page available

✔ This one comes first, in order. Skim “The Han River Script—Ramyeon, Chicken and a Sunset” and the rest of this page lands better.

Guests Pay Nothing! Free Running Crews: English Welcome, With Meeting Times and Places

✔ Seoul Flyers is the biggest English-speaking group
Seoul Flyers (1,059 members): Tuesday 19:00 track sessions at Sinbanpo or Yonsei University, Wednesday 19:00 Namsan runs from Namsan Library, Saturday and Sunday 8:30 at Ichon Hangang Park. Group runs are free and announced on a KakaoTalk open chat and Instagram (@seoulflyers); the 50,000-won annual fee is for full members, not guests.

SRC (Seoul Running Crew): Tuesdays and Thursdays at Yeouido Hangang Park—search #GUEST_RUN on Instagram to join. PRRC (Private Road Running Club, @prrc1936): founded 2013, a weekly 7–12 km open run, overseas guests welcome. Eighty Eight Seoul: Thursday and Sunday 21:00 in Itaewon, apply by DM. JSRC: Friday 20:00 at Olympic Park, invitation after five guest runs. adidas Runners Seoul and Nike Run Club Seoul: free sessions booked through the apps and Facebook groups.

The city’s own 7979 Seoul Running Crew runs every Thursday 19:00–21:00 from 16 April to October—beginners at Gwanghwamun, intermediate at Banpo, advanced at Yeouido—with 60 places per session and medical pacers; 5,013 people took part in 2025. It is Korean-language, but sign-up is on the city website. Two unwritten rules to know: Seocho-gu has required groups of five or more to keep two metres apart since October 2024, and the city is running a “Run Ticket” etiquette campaign.

The City Runs the Showers for Free! Routes, Seasons and the Han River Runner Stations

✔ Best seasons: late September–October and April
Routes: Yeouido Hangang Park (4.5, 18,352 reviews) is flat and well lit, ideal for 5K loops. Ttukseom Hangang Park (4.6, 772) to Jamsil is 7 km each way, and the Namsan north loop is 3.5 km of gentle climb with a night view. For track work use Jamsil Auxiliary Stadium (4.0, 177). Best seasons are late September to October and April to early May. July and August bring the monsoon and heat (414 mm of rain in July), and March–April has the year’s worst PM2.5 (30–45)—check the Misemise or AQICN app. June to September has the cleanest air.

Free runner stations (run by the city) are worth using to the full: the Runner Station at Yeouinaru Station has changing rooms, a powder room, 16 lockers and a treadmill, open 05:00–24:00. The Fit Station at Ttukseom Station has showers and towels, booked on Naver. Runners Bases at Gwanghwamun, Hoehyeon and World Cup Stadium stations offer lockers and stretching space. Showers at the Yeouido Hangang Park information centre and the Namsan office (06:30–22:00) are free too; the Enduro Run Base at Banpo charges 3,000 won. Bring your own towel.

Shoes and kit: Nike Seoul (Noon Square, Myeongdong; 4.3, 359 reviews; a three-floor Nike Rise store), Goodrunner Company Bukchon (56 Bukchon-ro; 5.0, 238; Tue–Fri 10:30–19:00, Sat–Sun 11:30–19:00, closed Mondays), a specialist shop that doubles as a crew-run start point, with a Seoul Forest branch (4.3, 44). The New Balance Bukchon Run Hub rents shoes and kit for 3,000 won, so you can run even if you packed nothing.

Bibs in Person, Passport in Hand! Race-Day Logistics: Bib Collection, First Trains, Bag Drop

✔ The boom is real
The 2026 talking points: JTBC’s 50 percent fee rise and the switch to in-person bib collection, criticism of recruiting 2,800 volunteers with a “30,000 won discount”, and the 2026 Seoul Marathon’s overseas places selling out in five minutes. The “ten million runners” figure is an industry estimate—survey-based counts put actual runners at about 3.65 million—but the boom is real: 254 races nationwide in 2024 with 1,008,122 entries (about 9,000 in 2020), and a running-shoe market past one trillion won.

Centred on Yeouido Hangang Park! On the Map: Routes, Runner Stations and Shops

✔ The Runner Station is inside the station
The map is centred on Yeouido Hangang Park. The Runner Station is inside Yeouinaru Station and the Fit Station connects directly to Ttukseom Station. Ratings as of 6 September 2026.

• Yeouido Hangang Park (SRC; Hangang Citizen Marathon venue) — Google 4.5 (18,352)
• Ttukseom Hangang Park (Fit Station) — Google 4.6 (772)
• Jamsil Auxiliary Stadium (track) — Google 4.0 (177)
• Goodrunner Company Bukchon — Google 5.0 (238)
• Nike Seoul (Myeongdong) — Google 4.3 (359)

FAQ

Which Seoul races can I still enter in September?

The Hangang Citizen Marathon (5 Dec, entries to 28 Oct), Hangang Run (28 Dec, to 12 Dec) and the FILA 10K (15 Nov), among others. The JTBC Seoul Marathon, Seoul Race and Chuncheon Marathon have closed.

How do I enter the 2027 Seoul Marathon from abroad?

Submit a finishing certificate (full under 4:59:59, name matching your passport) on the overseas-residents English page between 1 Oct and 20 Nov, or via World’s Marathons until 30 Nov. The 2026 allocation sold out in five minutes, so apply on day one.

Do I need my passport?

Big races record your passport number at entry and require the original when you collect your bib. From 2026 JTBC stopped posting bibs and moved to in-person collection at the expo.

Do running crews charge?

Seoul Flyers, SRC guest runs and the city’s 7979 crew are free. Check the Instagram announcement and turn up at the meeting point.

Where can I shower?

The Yeouinaru Station Runner Station (05:00–24:00), the Ttukseom Station Fit Station (book on Naver) and the Yeouido Hangang Park information centre (06:30–22:00) are all free. Bring a towel.

When is the best time of year to run in Seoul?

Late September to October and April to early May. July–August is monsoon and heat, and March–April has the worst fine dust, so check the morning air before heading out.