South Korea’s Myeongdong street vendors to close on Christmas Eve to prevent another Seoul Halloween crush horror
- Street vendors on the famous tourist shopping district will close on Christmas Eve, and partially close on New Year’s Eve, to prevent a human crush
- 25 street vendors will also join the district office on Christmas Eve to manage crowds, drawing on their decades of experience on the street
Street vendors in Seoul’s famous tourist destination, Myeongdong, will close on Christmas Eve to prevent a possible crowd control disaster, the vendors’ union said on Sunday. They will partially close their shops again on New Year’s Eve for the same reason.
The decision came after the vendors accepted the recommendation of the Jung District Office, where the shopping mecca is located.
“It was not an easy decision and there were some disagreements,” Lee said, “But we came to an agreement that people’s safety should come first and that this is the right decision for Myeongdong’s future in the long run,” Lee Kang-soo, the union’s manager, told The Korea Times during a phone interview.
Lee explained that this is the first time in his 20 years of working as a street vendor that all the street vendors in Myeongdong will simultaneously close on the busiest and most anticipated holiday of the season.
Myeongdong is one of the most popular destinations for tourists in Seoul, known for its pedestrian-friendly shopping district and diverse street food stalls.
Over 360 street vendors authorised to run businesses in Myeongdong operate every other day from 3pm to 11pm, with each stall operating 15 days a month, yielding a total daily average of 130 stalls in operation.
They offer a wide range of traditional, seasonal and trendy street delicacies, ranging from tteokbboki (spicy rice cakes) to tornado-shaped fried potatoes, as well as souvenirs such as hats and clothes with Korean-style embroidery.
