Freezing temperatures forecast for last day of 2025 and New Year

Cold wave advisories will be issued for Seoul, Daejeon, and parts of Gyeonggi and other provinces on the last day of 2025. The cold snap is expected to continue through New Year’s Day and into Friday.

People in Seoul wrap themselves up in thick coats on Dec. 26 amid the cold weather. [KIM JUNG-HUN]

Cold wave advisories will be issued for Seoul, Daejeon, and parts of Gyeonggi and other provinces on the last day of 2025. The cold snap is expected to continue through New Year’s Day and into Friday.

The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) announced at 10 a.m. Wednesday that cold wave advisories would go into effect from 9 p.m. in the affected areas.

The advisory covers most of Gyeonggi, excluding Dongducheon, Yeoncheon, Pocheon, Gapyeong, Yangju and Paju; Yeongwol and Wonju in Gangwon; Cheonan, Gongju, Nonsan, Geumsan, Cheongyang and Gyeryong in South Chungcheong; all of North Chungcheong; Jinan, Muju, Jangsu, Imsil, Sunchang and Namwon in North Jeolla; Mungyeong, Yecheon, Andong, Yeongju, Uiseong, Cheongsong and areas of Yeongyang in North Gyeongsang; all of Seoul; Incheon, excluding Ongjin County; Daejeon; Gunwi in Daegu; and Sejong.

At the same time, cold wave warnings — a more severe alert — will be issued for other areas, including Dongducheon, Yeoncheon, Pocheon, Gapyeong, Yangju and Paju in Gyeonggi; Taebaek, areas of Pyeongchang and Jeongseon, Hoengseong, Cheorwon, Hwacheon, areas of Hongcheon, Chuncheon, Yanggu and Inje, as well as the northern, central and southern mountainous areas of Gangwon; and areas of Bonghwa and the northeastern mountainous areas of North Gyeongsang.

Water vapors rise from houses in Seoul from their heating systems on Dec. 26, 2025. [NEWS1]

As cold air from the northwest moves southward, the country is experiencing a sharp drop in temperatures to mark the end of the year. Temperatures in inland and mountainous parts of central Korea fell to around minus 10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit), and the wind made it feel even colder.

As of 6 a.m., cold temperatures were reported in northern Gyeonggi, Gangwon, and the inland regions of North and South Chungcheong, North Jeolla and North Gyeongsang. In Gapyeong, Gyeonggi, the temperature dropped to minus 9.6 degrees Celsius. Other parts of Gyeonggi also recorded subzero temperatures, including minus 9.4 degrees Celsius in Paju, minus 9.2 degrees Celsius in Yangju, minus 9.1 degrees Celsius in Pocheon and minus 8.0 degrees Celsius in Dongducheon.

On New Year’s Day, the freezing temperatures are expected to persist as chilly air continues to flow in from the northwest. In some inland areas, the morning low could drop to as low as minus 16 degrees Celsius. Rain or snow is forecast to begin late Wednesday night in parts of the Jeolla coast and Jeju, and expand to areas such as the western coast of South Chungcheong on Friday.

The KMA said the cold snap is expected to last until Friday. Starting in the afternoon on Saturday, temperatures will gradually rise and return to seasonal averages.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY CHO MUN-GYU [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]