The most iconic Seollal custom: children and young adults perform the sebae (세배), a deep formal bow (prostrating to the floor for women, kneeling bow for men) before elders. In return, the elder offers sebae-don — money in an envelope — and a formal blessing.

Early on New Year's morning, the family gathers before a table laden with food offerings (including tteokguk, fruit, rice, and meat) and performs the charye — a Confucian ancestral memorial rite, bowing and pouring wine to honor deceased family members.

Wearing the hanbok (한복) — Korea's traditional silk garment — on Seollal is a beloved custom. Grandparents in full traditional hanbok, parents in semi-formal versions, and children in brightly colored children's hanbok create a vision of living tradition.

Yutnori (윷놀이) is Korea's signature Seollal game: four wooden sticks thrown like dice, with players racing tokens around a board. Generations play together in cheerful, competitive rounds throughout the holiday.

After performing the formal bow, children receive sebae-don from elders — money in white or decorative envelopes. Unlike Chinese red envelopes, Korean sebae-don envelopes are traditionally white or light-colored.

Historically, Seollal included geonnal (swinging on rope swings), top-spinning (팽이치기), and kite flying (연날리기). These traditional games are still played in cultural villages and family gatherings, particularly with children.

The defining Seollal dish: a clear beef broth filled with sliced oval rice cakes (garae-tteok), garnished with egg strips, seaweed, and scallion. Eating it is said to add a year to your age — children eagerly eat multiple bowls.

An array of savory pan-fried patties (전) made from fish, meat, tofu, and vegetables dipped in egg batter. Making jeon together is a major Seollal cooking activity — the sizzling oil fills the house with the smell of the holiday.

A traditional sweet rice punch served as a digestif. Slightly fizzy, mildly sweet, with grains of cooked rice floating at the bottom — sikhye is the taste of Korean holiday hospitality.

Slow-braised beef short ribs with vegetables in a sweet-savory soy sauce. A labor-intensive dish of honor — its presence on the Seollal table signals the family's care and effort.

Puffed rice or grain crisps coated in syrup and studded with sesame, nuts, or dried fruit. Gangjeong are traditional holiday sweets given as gifts and piled on the ceremonial table.

A deep-red punch made from dried persimmon, cinnamon, and ginger, sweetened and served cold. Its spiced warmth makes it a beloved winter holiday drink across Korean households.