10,000-Won Performance and 3,000-Won Exhibition Discounts
Issued Every Thursday at 2 p.m.
Valid Until Midnight the Following Wednesday
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will distribute approximately 360,000 performance discount vouchers worth 10,000 won each and about 1.37 million exhibition discount vouchers worth 3,000 won each starting at 2 p.m. on September 25, in an effort to expand public access to culture and promote cultural consumption.
On September 22, the Ministry announced its plan to distribute performance and exhibition discount vouchers, stating that the vouchers can be used for performances and exhibitions scheduled until December 31.
Since August 8, the Ministry has distributed 500,000 performance discount vouchers and 1.6 million exhibition discount vouchers using a supplementary budget of 10 billion won for the second round of 2025. The second round of distribution, beginning on September 25, will utilize the remaining unused vouchers from the previous round.
The Ministry explained that it has reduced the validity period for voucher use from six weeks to one week compared to the first round. During the first round, the six-week validity period led to a high rate of vouchers being issued but not used within the period. To increase the actual usage rate, the validity period has been shortened.
Vouchers from the second round will be issued every Thursday at 2 p.m. from September 25 to December 3. Each voucher must be used by midnight on the Wednesday of the following week after issuance. Any vouchers not redeemed within the one-week validity period will be reissued every Thursday.
The seven ticketing platforms issuing the vouchers are Naver Reservation, Nol Ticket, Melon Ticket, Clip Service, Time Ticket, Ticket Link, and YES24. Of these, only Naver Reservation will start issuing vouchers from October 2.
Each platform will issue up to two performance vouchers (10,000 won each) and two exhibition vouchers (3,000 won each) per person per week. One voucher can be applied per transaction. The minimum payment required is 15,000 won for performances and 5,000 won for exhibitions. However, since the discount is applied based on the total payment amount, if the total exceeds the minimum even with multiple tickets, the voucher can be used. For example, if a performance ticket costs 10,000 won, purchasing two tickets allows the use of a 10,000 won voucher, so only 10,000 won needs to be paid.
The eligible performance categories include plays, musicals, Western music (classical), Korean music (gugak), dance, and mixed genres, but exclude popular music and popular dance. For exhibitions, the vouchers can be used for visual arts exhibitions, art fairs, and biennales held at various public and private art museums nationwide. Industrial expos and similar events are excluded.
On Naver Reservation, Clip Service, Time Ticket, and Ticket Link, an additional two vouchers per person per week will be issued exclusively for performances and exhibitions held outside the Seoul metropolitan area. These regional vouchers offer greater discounts: 15,000 won per performance voucher and 5,000 won per exhibition voucher. The minimum payment required is 22,000 won for performances and 7,000 won for exhibitions.
The Ministry and the Korea Arts Management Service will operate a comprehensive information center to assist the public in using the online ticketing platforms without inconvenience.
A Ministry policy official stated, "We have added various benefits to the performance and exhibition discount vouchers so that the public can enjoy cultural activities more frequently and more conveniently. We hope that many people will actively use these vouchers and enjoy more performances and exhibitions in their daily lives."
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