Four Out of Ten Visitors to Gyeongbokgung Were Foreigners... 2.78 Million Visited Last Year

Foreign Visitors Surge by 37.3% in a Year; Total Palace Attendance Reaches 6.89 Million
Nearly 4.1 Million Foreigners Visited the Four Major Palaces
Sharp Increase Since 2021

Last year, the number of foreign visitors to Gyeongbokgung Palace surpassed 2.78 million. Four out of every ten visitors to the palace were non-Koreans. Not only Gyeongbokgung, but the total number of foreign visitors to Seoul’s four major palaces—Gyeongbokgung, Deoksugung, Changdeokgung, and Changgyeonggung—reached nearly 4.1 million last year, indicating that these royal palaces have become major destinations for inbound tourists in Korea.

Foreign tourists are taking commemorative photos in front of Geunjeongjeon Hall at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Last year, the number of foreign visitors to Gyeongbokgung Palace was 2,783,998, a 37.3% increase compared to the previous year. The Asia Business Daily database

According to data received by Assemblywoman Jin Sunmi of the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports, and Tourism Committee from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the National Heritage Administration on September 25, Gyeongbokgung Palace recorded a total of 6,886,650 visitors last year. This figure represents a 6.88% increase compared to 6,443,600 people in 2024. Among these, 2,783,998 were foreign tourists, a 37.34% increase from 2,027,087 the previous year. Foreign visitors accounted for 40.4% of all visitors.

In contrast, the number of domestic visitors was tallied at 4,102,652. In 2024, subtracting foreign visitors from the total number of visitors leaves 4,416,513 domestic visitors, which means the domestic visitor count decreased by about 7.1% compared to the previous year.

Other royal palaces also continued to attract crowds. Last year, Deoksugung Palace welcomed 3,561,882 visitors, of which 378,069 were foreign nationals. At Changdeokgung Palace, 665,893 out of a total of 2,219,247 visitors were foreigners, while at Changgyeonggung Palace, 269,970 out of 1,602,202 were foreign tourists.

The combined number of visitors to the four major palaces reached 14,269,981 last year, a 12.2% increase from 12,722,348 in 2024. Visitor numbers, which stood at 3,835,096 during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, climbed to 8,050,034 in 2022, 11,402,889 in 2023, 12,722,348 in 2024, and exceeded 14 million last year.

The surge in foreign visitors was even more pronounced. The number of foreign visitors to the four palaces rose from 59,125 in 2021, to 501,296 in 2022, 1,919,188 in 2023, 3,065,856 in 2024, and reached 4,097,930 last year. The share of foreigners among all palace visitors also rose to around 28.7% last year.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s "2025 Major Tourist Sites Admission Statistics," Gyeongbokgung Palace ranked first among registered tourist sites, drawing 6,886,650 people. The National Museum of Korea followed with 6,507,483 visitors, and other top destinations included KINTEX with 5,940,398, Suncheonman National Garden and Suncheonman Wetland with 4,795,907, among others.

Assemblywoman Jin stated, "The global K-culture phenomenon, including K-pop, has sparked interest in Korea’s national heritage, making palace strolls and museum visits a cultural activity enjoyed by both locals and foreign tourists." She stressed the need for policy support and management so that national heritage and public cultural infrastructure can become world-class attractions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.