Blue House website gets multilingual makeover as it adds Japanese, Chinese services

To accommodate the growing number of foreign visitors to the Blue House, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on Tuesday that it has revamped the Blue House website.

The Blue House, or Cheongwadae, opened its doors to the public in May 2022. [YONHAP]

To accommodate the growing number of foreign visitors to the Blue House, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on Tuesday that it has revamped the Blue House website.

The website (opencheongwadae.kr), which has only been available in Korean and English so far, has added Japanese and Chinese. It also simplified the English booking page, allowing users to book a tour using only an email address.

The new reservation system for tours in English now only requires email authentication in the personal verification process. Blue House tours can be reserved online or in-person.

The revamped website also has a new tab that allows users to reserve spots for cultural events held at the Blue House. However, this function is currently only available in Korean.

According to the Culture Ministry, the website's content has also been updated, adding more information such as how to use the virtual reality (VR) content and facilities that allow users to look at the interior of the Blue House’s Main Building, State Guest House and the Chunchugwan.

"As of the first quarter of 2024, 39,807 foreign tourists have visited the Blue House, which is 2.5 times larger than the number of foreign tourists who visited during the same period last year," an official from the Culture Ministry said.

"We plan to update the reservation system to include Japanese and Chinese languages so that foreigners can better access it as well."

BY KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]