At a glance
| Dates | Expected Sep/Oct 2027Late September to late October 2027 if the pattern holds (an autumn night event in Hwarang Forest each year checked since 2021; 24 September–24 October in 2026). Nothing announced as of 19 October 2026. |
|---|---|
| Next edition | 2027: Late September to late October 2027 if the pattern holds (an autumn night event in Hwarang Forest each year checked since 2021; 24 September–24 October in 2026). Nothing announced as of 19 October 2026. |
| Admission | Paid: ₩10,000 general (₩8,000 booked online), ₩8,000 for groups, ₩5,000 for daytime Expo Park visitors and The Show Silla audiences. The night event is ticketed separately from daytime park entry.General admission: ₩10,000 · Group: ₩8,000 · Preferential: ₩5,000 (2026 prices) |
| Venue | Hwarang Forest (Luminight), Gyeongju Expo Park경상북도 경주시 경감로 614 (천군동) |
| Nearest station | Gyeongju Station (KTX) (경주역), KTX, Gyeongbu high-speed line (formerly Singyeongju Station)Not walkable: about 30 minutes by taxi, or about 1 hour by city bus, to the Bomun area where Expo Park stands |
| From Seoul | about 2 h 45 min · KTX + TaxiLeave from Seoul Station · Same-night return is tightFull route · Festivals by travel time from Seoul |
| Organizer | Gyeongsangbuk-do Culture and Tourism Corporation (operator of Gyeongju Expo Park)경상북도문화관광공사 |
| Usual timing | About a month in autumn, covering Chuseok and Halloween: 2–31 October in 2021 (as Lumina Happy Halloween), from 23 September in 2023 (Lumina Neon Carnival) and 24 September–24 October in 2026. The park has run an autumn night event in Hwarang Forest every year it was checked since 2021; the name and theme change from year to year. Browse September / October festivals. |
| First held | 2021 |
| Last checked | 19 October 2026Checked against 23 sources · See sources |
What it is like
Gyeongju Expo Park, the grounds of the Gyeongju World Culture Expo at the entrance to the Bomun tourist complex, opened a lit night trail through its Hwarang Forest in 2019: a 2 km walking course, called the Lumina Night Walk or Luminight, decorated with LED lighting, holograms and lasers. Since 2021 the park has used the forest for ticketed seasonal night events. Summer brings a zombie horror walk (EX-HORROR, in its 6th season in 2026), and autumn brings a gentler event that has been Halloween-themed in most years: Lumina Happy Halloween in October 2021 and 2022, Lumina Neon Carnival from 23 September 2023, and EX Pumpkin Night under the park's EX brand by 2025.
The 2026 edition, "EX Pumpkin Night: Hwani & Wani x Twelve Zodiac Guardians", runs from Thursday 24 September to Saturday 24 October, 18:00–22:00 every evening, with last entry at 21:00. Its theme, given in English as "Guardians of Silla: Enter the World of Pumpkin Night", pairs the park's mascots with the twelve zodiac guardians carved on the stones around Silla royal tombs, redrawn as friendly characters for children, and adds pumpkins, ghosts and witches. Along the trail are 12 themed spaces, such as the Witch's Wardrobe and the Ghost's Cabin, each with its own lighting, decorations, activities and photo zones. There are also Halloween makeup and costume rental, face painting, hands-on and craft-sale booths, food and drink stalls, DJ sets and audience games on a mini stage, and a souvenir shop. The event hands out the Okjeok card in the park's 2026 "Timeless Kingdom" collection: visitors who gather all three Silla treasure cards, from the summer EX-HORROR, this event and the December winter event, go into a prize draw.
Tickets are ₩10,000 at the gate, ₩8,000 booked online or for groups, and ₩5,000 for daytime visitors to Expo Park and audiences of The Show Silla. KTO's listing says the event draws more than 15,000 visitors a year and is aimed at couples and families, with no age limit.
The honest caveats: this is a themed walk on an outdoor forest trail rather than a festival with big stages, and viewing may be restricted in rain. KTO's listing says older people, pregnant women and anyone with a heart condition cannot join the experiences. Gyeongju's KTX station is outside the city centre, about 30 minutes by taxi, and the event closes at 22:00, so a same-day return to Seoul is tight; staying in Bomun is the easy option. The organizer's information is in Korean only.
Highlights
- A 2 km night walk through Hwarang Forest, the lit Luminight trail of LED lighting, holograms and lasers that opened at Gyeongju Expo Park in 2019
- 2026 theme "Guardians of Silla": the park mascots Hwani and Wani with Silla's twelve zodiac tomb guardians redrawn as friendly characters, plus pumpkins, ghosts and witches
- 12 themed spaces along the trail, such as the Witch's Wardrobe and the Ghost's Cabin, each with its own lighting, activities and photo zones
- Halloween makeup, face painting and costume rental, DJ sets on a mini stage, craft and food booths, and a souvenir shop
- Every evening 24 September–24 October 2026, 18:00–22:00, last entry 21:00
- ₩10,000 at the gate, ₩8,000 online; more than 15,000 visitors a year according to KTO
Who it suits. Best for families with children and couples who want an easy evening photo walk in Gyeongju, especially if they are staying in the Bomun resort area; less suited to anyone who wants a big festival with stages, or to day-trippers from Seoul, because the event runs until 22:00 and the KTX station is 30 minutes away. KTO says older people, pregnant women and people with heart conditions cannot join the experiences.
Getting there
From Seoul
KTX from Seoul Station to Gyeongju Station, the high-speed station outside the city centre that was built as Singyeongju: about 2 h 15 m. A 2024 guide gave the standard fare as ₩49,300, but Korail cut KTX fares by about 10% on average when KTX and SRT merged on 1 September 2026, and both are now booked in Korail's own apps and English site, so check the current fare. From the station a taxi to Gyeongju Expo Park takes about 30 minutes; city buses to the Bomun area take about 1 hour (a 2011 ministry guide named route 700 for the station–Expo run; check the current route). Express buses also run from Seoul Express Bus Terminal to Gyeongju Express Bus Terminal in about 3–4 hours; from the downtown terminals, routes 10, 18, 100 and 150 were listed in 2011 as reaching the Expo grounds in about 20 minutes.
Last leg from Gyeongju Station (KTX)
KTX, Gyeongbu high-speed line (formerly Singyeongju Station). Not walkable: about 30 minutes by taxi, or about 1 hour by city bus, to the Bomun area where Expo Park stands
Festival shuttle
No event shuttle was found in the 2026 announcements.
Getting home
EX Pumpkin Night closes at 22:00 (last entry 21:00), and Gyeongju Station is about 30 minutes away by taxi. The last KTX trains from Gyeongju to Seoul on the remaining festival evenings (22–24 October) were not checked for this record, so a same-day return is tight at best: arrive at the 18:00 opening, check the last train for your date in the Korail+ app (코레일+, where KTX and former SRT trains are now booked) or at the station and book the return in advance, or stay the night in Bomun.
How to switch Naver Map and Kakao Map to English
Google Maps shows train, subway and bus routes in Korea but not walking or driving directions yet, so for the walk from the station Naver Map or Kakao Map is more reliable.
Before you go
1330 · Travel hotline
The Korea Tourism Organization’s helpline answers in English, Japanese and Chinese around the clock, and in several other languages from 08:00 to 19:00. Dial 1330 from a Korean phone, or +82-2-1330 from a phone registered abroad.
112 / 119 · Emergencies
112 for police, 119 for fire and ambulance. Both are free from any phone. Police on 112 can add an English or Chinese interpreter to the call.
T-money card
Buy one at a convenience store such as GS25, CU or 7-Eleven and top it up there with cash. It pays for subways and buses in most cities, and for most taxis.
Maps
Use Naver Map or Kakao Map for walking and bus directions; Google Maps does not yet give walking directions in Korea. Both apps can be switched to English. Naver Map: Menu (≡) → Settings → Language (Japanese and Chinese also available). Kakao Map: Menu (≡) → Settings → App settings → Language. If the option is missing, change your phone’s language and reopen the app. Small shop names and some reviews stay in Korean.
Trains and buses
Book trains on Korail’s English site and express buses on Kobus. Holiday weekends sell out first.
Checked 18 October 2026.
Tickets, prices and practical details
| Item | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| General admission | ₩10,000 | ₩8,000 when booked online |
| Group | ₩8,000 | Minimum group size not stated |
| Preferential | ₩5,000 | Daytime visitors to Gyeongju Expo Park and audiences of The Show Silla |
| Face painting and costume rental | — | Offered on site; prices not published |
- Booking
- Tickets are sold at the gate, or online in advance for ₩8,000; the 2026 online sales channel was not confirmed. Enquiries: 054-740-3950 (Gyeongju Expo Park).
- English on site
- No English information from the organizer was found; Herald Business published an English article on the 2026 edition.
- Crowds
- KTO counts more than 15,000 visitors a year. Holidays bring the crowds: in 2023 about 5,000 of the first 6,000 visitors came over the six-day Chuseok holiday.
- Best time to go
- A weekday evening soon after the 18:00 opening, when the trail is quieter; the last evenings in 2026 are Friday 23 and Saturday 24 October.
- What to bring
- Comfortable shoes for the 2 km trail, a warm layer for October evenings, a phone or camera for the photo zones, and a costume if you want one (rental is also available).
- Rain
- Outdoor event; viewing may be restricted when it rains. Call 054-740-3950 on wet days.
- Step-free access
- A 2 km outdoor forest trail. KTO's listing says older people, pregnant women and people with heart conditions cannot take part in the experiences; step-free and wheelchair access were not published.
Editions
| Year | Dates | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | Late September to late October 2027 if the pattern holds (an autumn night event in Hwarang Forest each year checked since 2021; 24 September–24 October in 2026). Nothing announced as of 19 October 2026. | expected | The theme and characters change every year; the 2026 edition was announced in September, shortly before it opened. |
| 2026 | 24 Sep – 24 Oct 2026 | ended | The Hwarang Forest trail (Luminight) inside Gyeongju Expo Park; entirely outdoors. |
| 2021 | 2–31 Oct 2021 | ended | The 2 km Luminight trail, in 12 themed zones such as Pumpkin Road and the Witch's Kitchen. |
Before or after the festival
Places you can fit in before or after the festival without missing the shuttle or the last train or bus back.
An 82 m tower in Gyeongju Expo Park whose open centre is shaped like the lost nine-storey wooden pagoda of Hwangnyongsa, the tallest wooden building of its time; the top-floor observatory looks over Bomun Lake, the resort and Gyeongju World. KTO lists the park's exhibition halls as open 10:00–18:00 (hours vary by month), so spend the afternoon in the park and walk to Hwarang Forest for the 18:00 opening: daytime park visitors pay ₩5,000 for EX Pumpkin Night instead of ₩10,000.
Getting there: Inside Gyeongju Expo Park, on foot from the Hwarang Forest trail
The art museum in Gyeongju Expo Park devoted to the painter Park Dae-sung, with more than 830 of his works in permanent and changing displays, in a building by the architect Seung Hyo-sang where a floor-to-ceiling glass wall lets daylight and shifting shadows into one gallery. It rated highest in the park's 2021 visitor survey. The exhibition halls close at 18:00 (KTO; hours vary by month), just as the night walk opens, so go in the afternoon.
Getting there: Inside Gyeongju Expo Park, on foot
The lakeside resort area around Bomun Lake that Expo Park belongs to, with Gyeongju's main cluster of hotels. Staying here is the easy way to see the trail after dark: the walk ends at 22:00 and Gyeongju Station, for the last KTX, is about 30 minutes away by taxi. Tip: book a room ahead for Friday 23 and Saturday 24 October, the last two evenings.
Getting there: Expo Park stands at the entrance to the complex; the hotels are a short taxi ride away
Questions travelers ask
When is EX Pumpkin Night 2026?
24 September to 24 October 2026, every evening 18:00–22:00 with last entry at 21:00, in Hwarang Forest (Luminight) at Gyeongju Expo Park in Gyeongju. As of 19 October the remaining evenings are 19–24 October.
How much are tickets?
₩10,000 at the gate or ₩8,000 booked online; groups pay ₩8,000, and daytime Expo Park visitors and The Show Silla audiences pay ₩5,000. Face painting and costume rental are extra, with prices not published.
Is it scary? Is it suitable for children?
It is a family Halloween walk with friendly characters, pumpkins, ghosts and witches, open to all ages; the park's zombie horror walk is the separate summer event, EX-HORROR. KTO's listing still says older people, pregnant women and people with heart conditions cannot join the experiences.
How do I get there from Seoul?
Take the KTX from Seoul Station to Gyeongju Station (about 2 h 15 m), then a taxi to Gyeongju Expo Park (about 30 minutes) or a city bus to the Bomun area (about 1 hour). Because the event runs until 22:00, staying overnight in Bomun is easier than a day trip.
What if it rains?
The whole event is outdoors on a forest trail, and the organizer warns that viewing may be restricted in rain. Call 054-740-3950 before setting out on a wet day.
Is EX Pumpkin Night the same as the Luminight?
Luminight is the lit 2 km trail through Hwarang Forest that opened in 2019. The park uses it for seasonal night events with their own tickets and hours: EX-HORROR in August (20:00 to 22:30 or 23:30 in 2026) and the autumn Halloween event, now EX Pumpkin Night, in September and October.
Will it be held again in 2027?
Nothing has been announced. The park has held an autumn night event in the forest every year checked since 2021, usually from late September or early October to late October, so expect a similar window in 2027.
Sources and verification
Facts checked
19 October 2026, against the sources listed below.
This page is desk research from the sources below, not a firsthand report of the 2027 edition. Confidence in the current facts: medium.
- KTO TourAPI listing EX펌킨나잇：화니&워니x십이지신 (contentId 3536325)kto — 24 Sep–24 Oct 2026; 18:00–22:00, last entry 21:00; general ₩10,000 (₩8,000 online), group ₩8,000, preferential ₩5,000 (daytime Expo visitors and The Show Silla audiences); 2 km Hwarang Forest trail; more than 15,000 visitors a year; couples and families, all ages; may be restricted in rain; address 경감로 614; coordinates 35.8340/129.2895; organizer 경상북도문화관광공사; 054-740-3950; cultureexpo.or.kr
- KTO tourist data — EX-펌킨나잇 (ktriptips mirror, contentId 3536325)kto — Listing first posted 12 Sep 2025 under the title EX-펌킨나잇 : 매직킹덤, updated 15 Sep 2026; 2026 dates, hours and fees; face painting, costume rental, souvenir shop; older people, pregnant women and heart conditions excluded from experiences; Jureong Jureong Bomun about 68 m away
- KTO tourist data — EX-펌킨나잇 (여기유.com mirror)kto — Thu 24 Sep–Sat 24 Oct 2026, 18:00–22:00, last entry 21:00; held every year with more than 15,000 visitors; aimed at couples and families; outdoor, may be restricted in rain
- Popga — EX Pumpkin Night: Hwani & Woni x Twelve Zodiac Animals (2026 listing)other — 24 Sep–24 Oct 2026 (31 days), 18:00–22:00 daily, last entry 21:00; fees as KTO; no transport information
- 경북매일 — 2026 EX펌킨나잇: 화니워니X십이지신 (21 Sep 2026)news — 24th to 24 Oct 2026 at Hwarang Forest (Luminight); theme 신라의 수호신; Hwani and Wani with the twelve zodiac guardians of Silla royal-tomb stones as children's characters; 12 themed spaces (마녀의 옷장, 유령의 오두막); makeup, costumes, booths, DJ mini stage; Chuseok hanbok Pumpkin; Okjeok card of three, Hwaju in December; calendar May, Aug, Sep–Oct, Dec
- Herald Business — Gyeongju Expo Grand Park to open EX Pumpkin Night on Thursday (22 Sep 2026)news — English name EX Pumpkin Night; English theme 'Guardians of Silla: Enter the World of Pumpkin Night'; opens Thursday and runs through 24 Oct; twelve themed zones; organizer North Gyeongsang Province Culture and Tourism Corporation; English-language coverage
- 경북매일 — 경주엑스포대공원 1~7월 관람객 (13 Sep 2026)news — EX-펌킨나잇 from the 24th to 24 Oct 2026 as a seasonal night programme; EX-HORROR drew 24,857 visitors in August 2026
- Nocut News — EX-HORROR 시즌6 8월 개막 (29 Jul 2026)news — EX-HORROR season 6 (6th year), 1–30 Aug 2026 in 화랑숲(루미나이트); 20:00–22:30 Mon–Thu, 20:00–23:30 Fri–Sun and holidays; park calendar with Halloween content in October and winter content in December
- 경북매일 — 경주엑스포대공원 EX-RIDE (19 Jun 2025)news — EX-펌킨나잇 named as the park's 2025 autumn festival, after EX-HORROR; park to run as a year-round festival-style site
- 경북매일 — 루미나 네온 카니발 (5 Oct 2023)news — Opened on 23 Sep 2023 in Hwarang Forest; 1.6 km course of about 40 minutes; 16 themed stops with neon landmarks and alien characters; about 5,000 visitors over the six-day Chuseok holiday, about 6,000 since opening
- 경북매일 — 루미나 호러나이트 시즌2 (16 Aug 2022)news — Lumina Horror Night season 2 from 30 Jul 2022 in Hwarang Forest; Lumina Happy Halloween season 2 planned for October 2022
- 경북매일 — 루미나 해피 할로윈 (13 Oct 2021)news — Lumina Happy Halloween from the 2nd to the 31st (October 2021), first in the region; 2 km Luminight course in 12 themed zones incl. Pumpkin Road and Witch's Kitchen; Korea's first night experiential walking course
- 경북매일 — 경주엑스포대공원 연중 개장 (24 Nov 2019)news — Lumina Night Walk launched with the 2019 Gyeongju World Culture Expo; 2 km Hwarang Forest route lit with 3D holograms, lasers and LED; 17:00–22:00; ₩5,000 separate from park admission
- 경북매일 — 경주엑스포대공원 방문객 설문 (6 Oct 2021)news — 2021 visitor survey of Expo Park: Solgeo Art Museum (6.2) and Gyeongju Tower (6.17) among the top-rated contents
- 경북매일 — 포항공항–경주 1000번 버스 (22 Mar 2022)news — Gyeongju Expo Park is one of the stops inside the Bomun Tourist Complex
- 경북매일 — 신경주역세권 공원·녹지 (10 May 2026)news — The Singyeongju station area is built around the KTX·SRT Gyeongju Station (경주역)
- Trip.com — 경주 기차여행 guide (13 Sep 2024)blog — KTX Seoul–Gyeongju about 2 h 13 m–2 h 15 m; standard fare ₩49,300 (before the 2026 fare change); KTX uses the former Singyeongju station; Bomun from the KTX station about 1 hour by bus, about 30 minutes by taxi; express bus Seoul–Gyeongju about 3–4 hours
- Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism student reporter — 경주세계문화엑스포 가는 길 (30 Aug 2011)ministry — Bus 700 from KTX Singyeongju Station to the Expo grounds; buses 10, 18, 100 and 150 from the terminals, about 20 minutes (2011)
- NOL World — Gyeongju Expo Parkother — Park about a 12-minute walk from Gyeongju World; Lumina Night Walk with lights and holograms after sunset
- Korail press release: 코레일-에스알 9월 1일 하나로…안전 최우선, 더 편리한 고속철도의 시작 (31 Aug 2026)official — Integration and integrated running from 1 Sep 2026; KTX and SRT merged into KTX; average KTX fare cut about 10%; Suseo-axis seats up about 30%; 5% mileage; Korail+ app (Korail Talk + SRT app) launched 3 Aug
- Korail Tickets (English booking site)official — English booking site; letskorail.com redirected to korail.com; Suseo is in the KTX station list; language menu has English, Japanese, Chinese (simplified/traditional), Vietnamese, Thai and Indonesian
- Hankyung Magazine 2022-12-23 (updated 2023-10-05) — 전시·체험·공연까지 한 번에…‘경주엑스포대공원’news — Gyeongju Tower 82 m, modelled on the nine-storey wooden pagoda of Hwangnyongsa with an open centre; top-floor observatory over Bomun Lake, the resort and Gyeongju World; Solgeo Art Museum holds more than 830 works by Park Dae-sung, building by Seung Hyo-sang with a floor-to-ceiling glass wall
- KTO tourist data — 경주엑스포대공원 (ktriptips mirror, updated 2025-11-14)kto — Park 10:00–22:00, exhibition halls 10:00–18:00, hours vary by month; open all year; free parking; Gyeongju Tower, Solgeo Art Museum and Luminight inside the park
What we could not confirm
- 2025 edition dates, and whether "Magic Kingdom" (매직킹덤) was its theme: only the title kept by KTO-data mirrors suggests it
- Whether an autumn edition was held in 2024, and under what name; no source was found
- First year: 2021 (Lumina Happy Halloween) is the earliest autumn edition found; the trail opened in 2019, and nothing was found for autumn 2020
- Whether the Luminight trail opens at night outside the seasonal events: it launched in 2019 as a nightly 17:00–22:00 walk, but recent reports describe only the event seasons
- Where to buy the ₩8,000 online ticket for 2026, and the minimum size for the group rate
- Seoul–Gyeongju KTX fare after the 1 September 2026 fare change, and the last trains from Gyeongju Station to Seoul on 22–24 October (Korail not checked)
- Current city bus routes and times from Gyeongju Station and the downtown terminals to Expo Park (the route numbers come from 2011)
- Evening parking at Gyeongju Expo Park and its fee
- Whether the night ticket requires daytime park admission (KTO treats daytime visitors as a discount group, implying separate tickets)
- Official Japanese and Chinese names not found
- The organizer's own page at cultureexpo.or.kr was not opened; the 2026 facts come from KTO's listing and news reports
- Gyeongju Expo Park daytime admission price and its October hours were not checked (KTO data: park 10:00–22:00, exhibition halls 10:00–18:00, varying by month).
- The 2026 ticket prices come from KTO's listing and news reports; the organizer's own notice was not opened.
Changes: 2026-10-19 — Added to the site: fact-first record (dates, hours, prices, getting there, sources). · 2026-10-19 — Added a Wikimedia Commons photograph of Gyeongju Expo Park and Gyeongju Tower, the venue (Julien Ambrosiano, CC BY-SA 3.0). · 2026-10-21 — Tense: the Japanese text of the usual window no longer describes the running 2026 edition as over. · 2026-10-22 — Nearby rewritten as 'Before or after the festival' (shuttle and last-train fit); transport: no clock times in the transport text to check; last-train advice now names the remaining dates and the Korail+ app (코레일+); prices: none changed.
