1.35 Million Foreign Visitors... National Folk Museum Ranks No.1 Among Korean Museums

National Folk Museum Welcomes 1.35 Million Foreign Visitors
Sets New Record Among Domestic Museums

The National Folk Museum has established itself as the most visited museum among foreign visitors in Korea. In 2025, the museum welcomed a total of 2.28 million visitors, of which 1.35 million were foreigners. This marks the highest number of foreign visitors for any museum in Korea, accounting for approximately 59.2% of the total visitors. The National Folk Museum is now recognized as holding a dominant position in attracting foreign visitors.

Jang Sanghoon, Director of the National Folk Museum, is taking a commemorative photo with the first foreign visitor of the new year 2026 on the 1st. Provided by the National Folk Museum

The increase in visitor numbers is also remarkable. The museum’s cumulative visitor count in 2025 rose by about 58.3% compared to the previous year (1.44 million), and the number of foreign visitors more than doubled, increasing by 103% compared to 2024. While museums across Korea are entering a recovery phase, the surge in foreign visitors is particularly concentrated at the National Folk Museum.

This success is attributed to the museum’s distinctive exhibition content. As the largest museum dedicated to the lifestyle and culture of Koreans, its permanent exhibitions-“The Life of Koreans,” “The Year of Koreans,” and “Koreans Today”-offer a comprehensive view of daily life, life cycles, seasonal customs, livelihoods, and beliefs in Korean culture. According to the museum’s own survey of foreign visitors, “exhibitions and other interesting displays” ranked as the top reason for visiting, followed by “hands-on content” and “connections with nearby attractions such as Gyeongbokgung Palace.” The museum’s systematic approach to presenting the life and annual cycle of a community is considered rare even internationally.

To commemorate these achievements, the National Folk Museum held a special welcoming event for the first visitors on its opening day in the new year of 2026. The first foreign visitors of the year were a group of tourists from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, visiting Korea with their families, who had a unique New Year’s experience at the museum early in the morning. Guide Won Dajeong (30) said, “For Vietnamese tourists, the National Folk Museum is an essential destination to understand Korean culture. The unexpected welcome made the visit even more memorable.”

Jang Sanghoon, Director of the National Folk Museum, stated, “The fact that more than 1.35 million foreign visitors have come to the museum demonstrates that it is recognized as a representative space for Korean culture. In this year, which marks our 80th anniversary, we will further enhance satisfaction for both domestic and international visitors by expanding experiential programs for foreigners and revamping our cultural gift shop.”