Seollal is one of Korea's two main holidays along with Chuseok. Both kick off a mass movement of people going to visit their hometowns.

The race to return home involves people competing for bus, train and air tickets online, as well as at ticket booths.

Just a few years ago, however, people lined up at train stations and bus terminals, with thousands queueing up for tickets. Some even camped outside, while thousands more braved the expressways in their cars.

With the network of expressways much more limited back then compared to now, traveling to the provinces involved grueling hours, sometimes taking 20 hours from Seoul to Busan and 16 hours to Gwangju. These routes now take less than six hours on average.

The following old photos show how Koreans managed their trip to home for traditional holidays.