How to buy tickets on YES24's English site

Booking is for members only. The sign-up page asks for an email address, which becomes your ID, and sends a verification link that stays valid for one hour. If you delete your account, you can't rejoin for a month.

Register with your name exactly as it is in your passport: YES24's FAQ warns that if the account name differs from the passport, you may have trouble collecting tickets at the venue. Questions go to global_yesticket@yes24.com, and the FAQ says replies take two to three business days.

Some concerts and musicals are marked Verified Member Only, and only verified members can buy them. Verification is done online, on a computer or phone, in three steps: choose your country, scan your foreign passport, then do face recognition. Start it from the show page or from My Info > Verify Account, and finish at least one or two days before the sale.

Only foreign passports are accepted: no Korean passports, national ID cards, driving licences, photos or copies. After verifying you can't change your name, date of birth, email, nationality or gender, so check them first. If your status shows Declined or Pending, email support. Korean nationals living abroad follow a separate process that starts with proof of overseas residence.

YES24 takes credit cards with 3D Secure authentication, and PayPal. It doesn't take China UnionPay or American Express cards issued outside Korea. PayPal works only when the show is more than 180 days after the booking date, and adds a non-refundable 10-cent fee.

The booking fee is ₩3,000 per ticket, refundable only until 23:59 on the day of purchase. You can buy up to 10 tickets per transaction, though shows can set a lower limit. Fees and cancellation charges are in Korean won, so currency conversion can leave small differences on a refund.

YES24 has no official English page about its waiting room. Its FAQ gives practical advice only: allow pop-ups for ticket.yes24.com, turn off ad-blockers, and if the booking window still doesn't open, try an incognito window or another browser. Some listings note that booking goes through a captcha. All times on the site are Korea time (KST, UTC+9).

There are two delivery methods. Will Call means collecting at the venue box office on the day of the show, never earlier; bring your physical, valid passport and a printout of the booking confirmation. Only the ticket holder can collect, although the FAQ notes this can vary by show.

Some shows also offer overseas delivery by DHL, with a fee that depends on the destination. Where it's offered you can switch between Will Call and delivery until 20 business days before the show, and the buyer pays any customs charges. The English site doesn't deliver to Korean addresses.

Cancelling is free within 7 days of purchase. From day 8 until 10 days before the show, the fee is ₩4,000 per ticket for concerts and musicals (the FAQ caps it at 10% of the price); then 10% from 9 days before, 20% from 6 days before and 30% in the last two days. The deadline is 5 pm the day before for Tuesday to Saturday shows, and 11 am on Saturday for Sunday and Monday shows. Card refunds take three to seven days.

• Logging in with a Korean YES24 ID or a global.yes24.com bookstore account. Neither works; make an account on the English ticket site.
• Hunting for a show that isn't on the English site. If it's only on the Korean site, it generally isn't sold to overseas buyers through YES24; check the organizer's notice.
• Counting on PayPal for a show less than 180 days away.
• Bringing a photo or copy of your passport to Will Call. Venues want the original.
• Typos when you verify: name, date of birth, email, nationality and gender are locked afterwards.