This guide covers Seoul Sky tickets and the Fast Pass, opening hours, what is on each floor including the glass-floored Sky Deck, the Sky Bridge Tour across the top of the tower, the best time to go, how Seoul Sky compares with N Seoul Tower, and how to pair it with a day at Lotte World. Prices and hours were checked in September 2026; treat them as the right order of magnitude and confirm on the official Seoul Sky site before you go. For how it compares with Seoul’s other paid attractions, see our guide to Seoul’s ticketed attractions.
Seoul Sky at a glance
| What | Detail (September 2026) |
|---|---|
| General ticket | ₩31,000 adults, ₩27,000 children |
| Fast Pass | ₩62,000, for immediate entry without waiting |
| Hours | Sunday–Thursday 10:30–22:00; Friday, Saturday and the eve of public holidays 10:30–23:00 |
| Last admission | One hour before closing; ticket sales stop at the same time |
| Floors | 117 to 123, reached from the entrance levels in the basement |
| Highlight | The glass-floored Sky Deck on the 118th floor |
| Sky Bridge Tour | A harnessed walk across an open-air bridge at 541 metres; ages 12 and up, 140 cm and taller; closed December to February |
| Getting there | Jamsil Station (Lines 2 and 8), connected underground |
| Time needed | One to one and a half hours |
| Best time | A clear evening, arriving before sunset |
The short version: check the air quality, book ahead for a weekend evening, arrive about 45 minutes before sunset, stay until the city lights come on, and combine it with Lotte World or a walk around Seokchon Lake. If you are only doing one observation deck in Seoul, decide between this and N Seoul Tower before you buy anything.
What you are paying for
Lotte World Tower opened in 2017. At 555 metres and 123 floors, it is the tallest building in Korea, and Seoul Sky occupies its top seven floors, from the 117th to the 123rd. It is the highest observation deck in the country, and because Jamsil sits on the flat land by the river, the view is uninterrupted in every direction: the Han River and its bridges, the apartment towers of Gangnam and Songpa, the Olympic Park, and on a clear day the mountains that ring the city, with N Seoul Tower on Namsan in the distance.
The experience begins in the basement, where the entrance levels hold the ticket office and some exhibits, and the Sky Shuttle, a double-deck lift with screens on its walls and ceiling, climbs the tower in about a minute. At the top, the observatory spreads over several floors of observation halls, with the glass-floored Sky Deck on the 118th floor, outdoor-feeling terraces, a shop and places for a coffee or a drink. The whole thing is sleek, well organised and very busy at weekends.
Seoul Sky tickets
A general ticket costs ₩31,000 for an adult and ₩27,000 for a child. The Fast Pass, at ₩62,000, lets you go straight up without waiting, which matters only on busy weekend evenings, when the queue for the lifts can be long. You can buy tickets online, by phone or at the ticket office. Ticket sales and last admission stop an hour before closing, at 21:00 from Sunday to Thursday and 22:00 on Fridays, Saturdays and the evenings before public holidays.
- Book ahead for weekend evenings. Sunset is the most popular time by far, and on Saturdays the evening is when the queues are longest.
- Look for platform deals. Booking platforms sell Seoul Sky tickets to foreign visitors, sometimes at a discount, and combos with Lotte World or the Lotte World Aquarium are often cheaper than buying each separately. As always, check whether you get a QR code or a voucher to exchange, and bring your passport.
- Skip the Fast Pass on weekdays. Doubling the price to skip a queue that barely exists on a Tuesday afternoon is poor value.
- Passes: if you hold a Discover Seoul Pass or another multi-attraction card, check its current list before buying separately; our discount passes guide explains how they work.
The Sky Deck: the glass floor
The Sky Deck on the 118th floor is the part of Seoul Sky that people remember. Its floor is made of glass panels, so you stand, or crawl, or refuse to move, nearly 500 metres above the ground, looking straight down past the tower’s facade to the streets of Jamsil below. When you step onto it, the glass is opaque; then it clears, and the ground appears beneath your feet. Children love it, adults are divided, and almost everyone takes a photograph of their shoes against the drop.
Practical tips: go at a quiet moment if you want a photograph without other people’s feet in it, and hold on to phones and cameras when you lean over for the downward shot. If you have no head for heights, the rest of the observatory has solid floors and plenty of view, and there is no obligation to step out onto the glass.
The Sky Bridge Tour
For the ultimate height, the Sky Bridge Tour takes small groups out onto an open-air bridge that links the two peaks at the very top of the tower, 541 metres above the ground. It is 11 metres long, and you walk it in a harness and helmet, clipped to a safety line, with nothing but the sky around you. The tour starts at the Sky Station on the 117th floor with a safety briefing, then climbs by escalator and stairs, some of them outdoors, to the bridge. The ticket includes Seoul Sky admission and two souvenir photographs.
There are strict requirements. You must be at least 12 years old, at least 140 cm tall and under 120 kg, under-14s need consent from a parent or guardian, and you need your passport. The tour runs only in good weather and closes entirely from December to February. It is priced as a premium experience, well above a standard ticket, so check the current price on the official site. For thrill-seekers it is one of the most memorable things you can do in Seoul; for everyone else, the Sky Deck gives you most of the height for a fraction of the cost.
When to go
The best time is a clear evening, arriving about 45 minutes before sunset, so you see the city in daylight, watch the sun go down over the river, and then see the lights come on. Seoul’s sunset moves from about 17:15 in December to about 19:55 in June; our N Seoul Tower guide has a month-by-month table that works just as well here. Stay for the lights: the view after dark, with the bridges lit and the traffic flowing through Gangnam, is the one most people come back with.
Three other things decide the quality of your visit:
- Air quality. Seoul’s air varies a lot, and on days of fine dust, especially in spring, the view from the top is a grey blur. Check an air-quality forecast before you buy, and if the day is hazy, move your visit. Autumn usually has the clearest air.
- Crowds. Weekend evenings are the busiest; weekday afternoons and late evenings are the quietest. On Fridays and Saturdays the observatory stays open until 23:00, and the last hour is often calmer than sunset.
- Weather. Low cloud can hide the view entirely at this height, even when it is dry at street level. If the top of the tower is in cloud when you arrive, come back another day.
What you can see from the top
The observation floors wrap around the whole tower, so you can walk a full circle. On a clear day, this is roughly what you are looking at:
- North: the Han River directly below, with its bridges stepping across towards the north bank, and beyond it the hills and, on the clearest days, the granite peaks of the mountains that frame the city.
- West: the river curving away towards central Seoul, the towers of Gangnam and the COEX area, the Olympic stadium by the river, and, far off on its wooded hill, N Seoul Tower.
- South: Seokchon Lake and the castle of Lotte World’s Magic Island at the foot of the tower, then the vast apartment districts of Songpa stretching towards the mountains south of the city.
- East: the green expanse of the Olympic Park and the river continuing upstream towards the eastern hills.
Screens around the observatory identify landmarks, and it is worth spending a few minutes with them to get your bearings on Seoul’s geography, which makes much more sense from here than from the subway.
Seoul Sky vs N Seoul Tower
Most visitors need only one observation deck, and these are the two contenders. They are genuinely different experiences.
| Seoul Sky | N Seoul Tower | |
|---|---|---|
| Height | Top of a 555-metre tower, nearly 500 metres up | A shorter tower on a mountain, almost 480 metres above sea level |
| Adult ticket | ₩31,000 | ₩21,000, and the terraces are free |
| The view | South-east Seoul, the Han River, Gangnam and Jamsil | Central Seoul, the palaces and the old city, with the mountains all round |
| Atmosphere | Sleek, modern, indoor, busy | Romantic, outdoors, on a wooded mountain |
| Getting there | Straight from the subway at Jamsil | Bus, cable car or a walk up Namsan |
| Thrills | The glass-floored Sky Deck and the Sky Bridge Tour | The love locks and the walk |
| Hours | To 22:00, or 23:00 on Fridays and Saturdays | To 22:30 on weekdays, 23:00 at weekends |
| Best for | Height, the glass floor, a Lotte World day, Gangnam hotels | Atmosphere, sunsets, couples, budgets, central Seoul hotels |
Our verdict: choose Seoul Sky for the sheer height, the glass floor and the modern experience, especially if you are spending the day at Lotte World or staying in Gangnam or Jamsil. Choose N Seoul Tower for atmosphere, sunset among the trees and the option of paying nothing, especially if you are staying in central Seoul. The two views are different enough that keen photographers do both, but most visitors are happiest with one, chosen for a clear evening. Our N Seoul Tower guide covers the other half of the decision.
Pairing Seoul Sky with the rest of Jamsil
Seoul Sky sits at the heart of the densest cluster of attractions in Seoul, which makes it easy to build a day around.
- Lotte World and Seoul Sky. The classic combination: a day at the theme park next door, then the tower at sunset. Combo tickets often make it cheaper. Our Lotte World guide covers the park, including the cheaper After-4 ticket, which pairs well with an afternoon at the tower.
- Seokchon Lake. The lake at the foot of the tower has a walking loop of about 2.5 kilometres, and in early April it is one of the best cherry blossom walks in the city; our cherry blossom guide has the timing.
- Lotte World Mall and the aquarium. Shopping, restaurants and the Lotte World Aquarium are connected to the tower underground, as is the duty-free store; see our guide to duty-free shopping in Seoul.
- Gangnam. Jamsil is six stops east of Gangnam on Line 2, so an evening at Seoul Sky fits easily into a day in the south of the city; see our Gangnam guide.
Photography tips
- Beat the reflections at night. After dark, the glass reflects the lights inside the observatory. Put your lens right up against the window, or cup your hand or a dark scarf around it.
- Face west for sunset. The sun goes down over the river towards central Seoul, which is the direction for the classic sunset shot with the Han in the frame.
- Use the blue hour. The twenty or thirty minutes after sunset, when the sky is still blue and the city lights are on, give the best cityscapes of all.
- Shoot straight down on the Sky Deck. A wide lens or a phone’s ultra-wide setting captures both your feet and the drop below.
- Zoom in on landmarks. N Seoul Tower, the bridges and the palaces of the old city make good telephoto subjects on a clear day.
Three ways to do it
- The sunset visit: arrive about 45 minutes before sunset, walk the full circle in daylight, watch the sun go down from the west side, stand on the Sky Deck as the lights come on, and have dinner in Lotte World Mall afterwards.
- The Lotte World combination: spend the day at the theme park, or arrive at 16:00 with the After-4 ticket, and go up the tower either before the park’s night parade or straight after it on a Friday or Saturday, when Seoul Sky stays open until 23:00.
- The late-night visit: on a Friday or Saturday, go up at around 21:00, after the sunset crowds have gone, for the city at its brightest and the observatory at its quietest. Remember that last admission is 22:00 on those days.
Getting there
Take the subway to Jamsil Station, on Lines 2 and 8, and follow the signs for Lotte World Tower and Lotte World Mall through the underground passages; the Seoul Sky entrance is on the basement levels of the tower. You do not need to go outside at all, which is useful in the rain or the depths of winter. A single subway journey across Seoul costs ₩1,550 with a T-money card; see our Seoul subway guide for the rest.
Practical tips
- Allow an hour and a half, including the queue for the lift and time on the Sky Deck.
- Eat before or after in Lotte World Mall, which has far more choice than the cafe at the top.
- Bring a lens cloth and shoot against the glass to cut reflections at night.
- With children: they pay the reduced ticket and usually love the glass floor, although some need a hand to step out onto it the first time.
- Check the air and the cloud before you go. If the top of the tower is hidden in cloud, there will be nothing to see.
Is Seoul Sky worth it?
On a clear evening, yes. The view from the top of Korea’s tallest building is spectacular, the glass floor is a genuine thrill, and the whole experience is slick and easy to reach. At ₩31,000 it is the most expensive observation deck in Seoul, and it is worth it only when the air is clear, so be prepared to change your plans if the forecast is hazy.
If you are on a budget, or if you have already been up N Seoul Tower, it is the easiest big-ticket item to skip. The Fast Pass is rarely worth it outside weekend evenings, and the Sky Bridge Tour is an expensive treat for thrill-seekers rather than a necessity. But if you are spending the day at Lotte World, or staying in Gangnam, sunset at Seoul Sky is one of the great Seoul experiences.
Frequently asked questions
How much is Seoul Sky?
A general ticket is ₩31,000 for adults and ₩27,000 for children. The Fast Pass, which skips the queue, is ₩62,000. Platforms sometimes sell discounted tickets and combos with Lotte World or the aquarium.
What are Seoul Sky’s opening hours?
10:30 to 22:00 from Sunday to Thursday, and 10:30 to 23:00 on Fridays, Saturdays and the evenings before public holidays. Last admission is one hour before closing, and it is open every day of the year.
Where is the glass floor at Seoul Sky?
On the 118th floor, at the Sky Deck. The glass clears when you step onto it, leaving you looking straight down nearly 500 metres.
Is Seoul Sky better than N Seoul Tower?
It is higher, sleeker and has the glass floor; N Seoul Tower is cheaper, more atmospheric and has free terraces. Choose Seoul Sky for height and a Lotte World day, and N Seoul Tower for sunset, romance and a budget.
Do I need to book Seoul Sky in advance?
For weekend evenings around sunset, it is a good idea. On weekdays you can usually buy at the ticket office on the day.
What is the Sky Bridge Tour?
A guided, harnessed walk across an open-air bridge between the tower’s two peaks, 541 metres up. Participants must be at least 12, at least 140 cm tall and under 120 kg. It closes from December to February and in bad weather.
How long do you need at Seoul Sky?
About an hour to an hour and a half, including the lift queue. Allow longer at sunset on a weekend.
Final thoughts
Seoul Sky is the city’s most spectacular view, and like every view it depends on the day. Pick a clear evening, arrive before sunset, stand on the glass, and stay until the lights come on across the river. Pair it with Lotte World or a walk around Seokchon Lake and it makes one of the best days in Seoul. For the other paid sights worth your money, see our guide to Seoul’s ticketed attractions.
Photo Credits
Lotte World Tower above Seokchon Lake and Magic Island: Lotte World day view 2 by kallerna, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Han River from Lotte World Tower: Han River seen from Lotte World Tower by Tristan Surtel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Sky Deck glass floor: Seoul Sky at Lotte World Tower by Lee Jeong Woo, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Republic of Korea, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Looking down Lotte World Tower: Lotte World Tower (3) by Шохбоз, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fireworks at Lotte World Tower: Lotte World Tower Fireworks 01 by HyunJae Park, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.