January 30, 2026
SEOUL – School’s out for winter vacation. For some students in South Korea, that means all-day private tutoring in Daechi-dong, Seoul’s hagwon mecca, often requiring some logistical support.
In a snapshot of what vacation life looks like for them, a photo of a large white camper van parked on a road in front of a multistory building filled with hagwon went viral online Thursday.
“The neighborhood is always crowded with cars driven by parents picking up and dropping off their children, so it makes no sense to park a large camper van on the road,” one user wrote on a parenting forum for residents of Gangnam-gu.
“Most parents park farther away from the academies or drive around the neighborhood while waiting for their children to come out. Renting a camper van has gone too far,” another user wrote.
Despite the complaints, however, some Daechi-dong residents said the emergence of camper vans did not come as a surprise, noting that parents have long relied on various makeshift arrangements to provide resting spaces for students between classes.
They said that during school vacation periods, students from distant neighborhoods often come to Daechi-dong early in the morning and stay until late at night, attending multiple classes at different academies, which creates a need for private spaces to rest or eat between classes.
Using a camper van parked for extended periods may have been a cost-effective choice, even with the risk of parking fines, given the high rents for rooms and studios in the district.
A 30 square-meter studio apartment near the Eunma Apartment intersection in Daechi-dong was listed at 1.4 million won ($982) per month as of Wednesday on the property listing platform Naver Real Estate.
“Even for short-term rentals, prices in Daechi-dong often cost several million won. So some use camper vans or park small vans such as the Starex to look after their children,” said a real estate agent in the neighborhood.
Under the Road Traffic Act, the fine for illegal parking in general areas starts at 40,000 won for passenger vehicles and 50,000 won for cargo trucks weighing more than 4 metric tons. In six strictly prohibited zones, including areas near fire facilities and school zones, fines range from 80,000 won to 130,000 won.