The Andong Mask Dance Festival 2026 runs September 24 through October 4.
That window overlaps the Chuseok holiday, when most travelers pour into Seoul and Busan — Andong sits in the opposite direction of that flow.
This post covers the dates, what is free versus ticketed, the four festival zones, and how to pair the festival with Hahoe Folk Village in two days.
Contents
- Andong Mask Dance Festival 2026: dates, theme, and what changed
- Dates, theme, and the four zones
- What you will see: talchum and the international showcase
- Tickets: what is free and what is not
- Hahoe Folk Village: timing and rope-walking nights
- Getting there and where to stay
Andong Mask Dance Festival 2026: dates, theme, and what changed
The festival’s opening on September 24 coincides with the Chuseok holiday period, which traditionally shifts holiday travel toward Seoul, Busan, and family hometowns rather than provincial cities in North Gyeongsang — meaning shorter lines and easier bookings on the festival side of the trip, though the exact 2026 holiday overlap has not been confirmed in an official announcement.
Holiday travel in Korea moves toward Seoul, Busan, and family hometowns — not toward a provincial city in North Gyeongsang.
That means shorter lines and easier bookings on the festival side of the trip.
Autumn weather helps too: expect 15–22°C and mostly clear skies across the festival window.
The catch is lodging, which sells out months ahead in festival season — details on that below.
| Dates | September 24 – October 4, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Opening eve ceremony | September 24 |
| Official opening ceremony | September 25 |
| Main grounds | Mask Dance Park, Andong |
| Second site | Hahoe Folk Village (UNESCO) |
| Admission | Free for most zones |
| Theme | Memory of Masks, Dance for Everyone |
Dates, theme, and the four zones
The festival opens with an eve ceremony on September 24, and the official opening ceremony follows on September 25.
The 2026 theme is "Memory of Masks, Dance for Everyone."
Events spread across four zones instead of one gate: Mask Dance Park (the main riverside grounds), the former Andong Station and Jungang Line 1942 area, the old downtown, and Hahoe Village.
Performances run daily from about 11am to 9pm, with the biggest international showcases on weekend evenings.
Each zone has its best hours — Mask Dance Park in the afternoon and night, the old downtown in the afternoon and evening, Hahoe Village in the morning and afternoon.
Plan the day around that order rather than hopping zones at random.
What you will see: talchum and the international showcase
The signature show is Hahoe Byeolsingut Tallori, a Joseon-era mask drama that mocks aristocrats, monks, and scholars through humor.
It works even without Korean, and free shows run daily with longer evening showcases on Saturday and Sunday.
Talchum itself is on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list, so this is the real thing rather than a themed re-creation.
Alongside it, mask dance groups from across Asia and Europe perform — Indonesian Topeng, Japanese Noh, Bhutanese Cham, Italian commedia among them.
Those international schedules are published about a week before the festival, and the groups typically perform on the middle weekend.
Mask-making workshop zones let visitors decorate their own masks, which is the easiest stop with children.
Tickets: what is free and what is not
Most festival areas and street performances are free to enter, including the street performance zones.
Only special indoor shows at the Mask Dance Theater require tickets.
As a reference point, 2025 special-performance tickets ran 4,000–8,000 won with advance-booking discounts; 2026 prices have not been announced.
Start times and paid status vary by show, so confirm each one on the official program rather than assuming the general festival schedule applies.
Arriving 20–30 minutes early for major shows secures a viewing position ahead of the pedestrian queues.
Hahoe Folk Village: timing and rope-walking nights
Hahoe Folk Village is a UNESCO World Heritage site, listed in 2010, and people still live in its 600-year-old houses.
It sits about 30 minutes from central Andong, so a morning visit costs roughly an hour of round-trip transit against your festival day — budget for it instead of squeezing it between shows.
Go before 10am to see the lanes before tour groups arrive.
During the festival period, the Hahoe Yayeon rope-walking lantern night on the river beside the village runs on September 19 and October 4, 2026, so plan your Hahoe visit around those dates if you want to catch it.
The Hahoe Mask Museum near the village is a useful primer on Korean and international masks before watching live shows.
Getting there and where to stay
Festival visitors arrive through KTX Andong Station; festival-period shuttle and city bus details to Mask Dance Park and the old downtown are published closer to the dates, and taxis are the safer pick for late shows or heavy luggage.
On lodging, Hahoe hanok guesthouses run ₩80,000–150,000 a night and book out 6 or more months ahead — they are lived-in 18th-century houses with floor bedding, mostly shared bathrooms, and breakfast included.
Andong city hotels near the station run ₩70,000–130,000 a night, only slightly less.
If both sell out, Daegu works as a fallback base about an hour away by KTX.
👉 Korea in September month guide covering Talchum’s UNESCO status
👉 Andong Mask Dance Festival visitor guide with dates, theme, and four zones
👉 Andong Half-Price Trip and Accommodation Festa discount details
Related posts
📎 Seoul fireworks festival 2026 subway: Which Stations to Use Tonight
📎 Chuseok 2026 Korea travel: free parking, what closes
Sources
- festival runs Sept 24 – Oct 4 which appears to overlap Chuse (haniseoul.com)
- 2-day itinerary, Hahoe hanok stays, Daegu base option, rope- (korea-insider.com)
- unesco_status (haniseoul.com)
A 2-day plan that covers both sites
- Day 1: arrive, lunch at the jjimdak alley in the old downtown, then the former Andong Station area and Mask Dance Park, ending with the evening main show.
- Day 2: Hahoe Village in the morning, check that day’s Byeolsingut Tallori showtime, then return to Andong for the trip out.
- The evening performances are the best ones, so day trips from Seoul miss them — one overnight stay changes the trip.
- Many food stalls and traditional performance venues are cash-only, so carry some.
- Andong foods to try beyond jjimdak: heotjesabap (mock ancestral-rite rice), salted mackerel, and Andong soju.
FAQ
Q. Does the festival overlap Chuseok 2026?
The dates September 24 – October 4 cover the Chuseok window of September 24–27. Guides position the festival as a provincial alternative for that week, but the exact holiday overlap for 2026 has not been confirmed in an official announcement.
Q. How much are tickets for 2026?
Not announced yet. The 2025 reference range for special performances was 4,000–8,000 won; outdoor zones and street performances are free.
Q. When do Hahoe hanok stays sell out?
They typically book out 6 or more months before the festival because capacity is small. If nothing is left, city hotels in Andong or a Daegu base are the fallback.
Q. When are the international group schedules published?
About one week before the festival, and the international groups usually perform on the middle weekend.
Booking checklist before the September 25 opening
Cover photo: Untitled — CC0 1.0
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