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Uptick in births prompts parents to book 1st birthday party venues well in advance

Published: 06 Nov. 2025, 12:57 Updated: 06 Nov. 2025, 19:15

Military couple Captain Seo Hye-jeong, left, and Captain Kim Jin-su, right, hold their quintuplet babies during the children's first birthday party on Nov. 13, 2022. [YONHAP]

A steady rise in births is fueling a wave of early bookings for first birthday parties and weddings, as Korean families move quickly to secure venues months or even a year in advance.

An Yu-gyeong, 29, and her husband Seo Tae-won, 35, started looking for a venue to celebrate their daughter's first birthday even two weeks before she was born. An gave birth to her first child, Seo Da-eun, on Saturday, but had already reserved a party venue for Oct. 24 next year.

A first birthday party, or doljanchi, is a traditional Korean celebration held when a child turns one, marking an important milestone in their early life.

“We barely managed to book the hall we wanted,” An said. “It was already fully booked through Chuseok next year. At first, I thought it was too early to look before she was born, but I’m glad we did.”

A total of 20,867 babies were born in August, a 3.8 percent increase from a year earlier, according to data released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics on Oct. 29. It marked the 14th consecutive month of on-year growth.

From January to August, a total of 168,671 births were recorded, up 6.8 percent from the same period last year. It was the sharpest increase since 2007.

As the birthrate climbs, so does demand for first birthday venues. Kim Hyeon-ji, 29, who gave birth in August, said she made a reservation 10 months in advance.

“I was told that was the only way to get the date I wanted,” she said.

Specialized venues including hotels, restaurants and studios report that reservations for first birthday parties are booked solid between May and September next year. A venue in Seoul that once received 50 bookings a month now handles over 70.

“We are already booked through July next year,” a staff member said.

A first birthday venue in Bucheon, Gyeonggi, said bookings have increased 15 percent on year and that reservations are now full through September next year.

“People need to inquire at least a year in advance now,” a representative said.

Hotels are also seeing spikes in demand. First birthday party reservations rose 76 percent at The Plaza Seoul and 21 percent at Seoul Dragon City compared to a year earlier.

Many parents are making reservations under the child's prenatal nickname even before the baby is born.

“Saturday lunch is the most popular time slot since it suits a baby’s routine,” said a staffer at a party venue in Dongjak District, southern Seoul. “We get reservations straight from postpartum care centers or even before birth.”

The surge in births is also boosting the baby products market.

Fashion platform Posty, run by Kakao Style, said cumulative transactions in its children's category from March to July jumped 1,389 percent compared to last year.

Baby product companies are racing to meet demand. Maeil Dairies launched Absolute Goat Milk 100, a baby formula for newborns, in September — its first in seven years. Yuhan-Kimberly introduced a premium diaper line, Huggies Skin Essential, in April.

The first set of quintuplets born in Korea in 34 years, the Kim siblings, pose for a photo on Nov. 13, 2022. [YONHAP]

The marriage rate is also increasing. In August, 19,449 couples got married, up 11 percent from a year earlier, marking 17 consecutive months of on-year growth. Between January and August, there were 157,716 marriages, up 7.7 percent from the same period last year.

This has triggered a new wave of wedding venue shortages.

A 26-year-old woman surnamed Kim, who plans to marry in late November next year, said she began looking for a venue last month but found nothing available.

“Even the dress shop I wanted to visit has been fully booked for two weeks,” she said. “My fiance and I had to make 45 calls just to book a consultation. And that’s considered lucky.”

Posts on a Naver wedding planning forum, which has about 1.29 million members, reflected the frustration.

“People say no one is getting married these days, but it doesn’t feel that way,” one user wrote. “I started looking for a fall 2026 wedding in July this year, but all the venues I wanted were already gone.”

A wedding planner said that couples wait "two weeks just to do venue tours."

"Editing wedding photos takes up to six months, so you need to book the studio, dress and makeup appointments even earlier," the planner said.

Shin Kyung-ah, a sociology professor at Hallym University, said the recent rise in births reflects the determination of women in their 30s to balance careers and parenting.

“The birthrate won’t drop anytime soon, since the base effect is also at play,” Shin said. “For this trend to continue, the government urgently needs to improve its policies for women. That includes pushing efforts to break down barriers to parenting, like introducing infertility leave and making paternity leave mandatory.”

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 JUN YUL, OH SO-YEONG [[email protected]]