National Museum of Korea becomes No. 3 most-visited museum worldwide in 2025

The National Museum of Korea had the third largest number of visitors among other museums and galleries worldwide last year, according to data from The Art Newspaper.

The National Museum of Korea in Yongsan District, central Seoul [NATIONAL MUSEUM OF KOREA]

The National Museum of Korea had the third largest number of visitors among other museums and galleries worldwide last year, according to data from The Art Newspaper.

The museum recorded over 6.5 million visitors, trailing only the Louvre and the Vatican Museums and surpassing the British Museum and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, according to the survey published on Tuesday. The National Museum of Korea also broke its own previous record from 2024, when it ranked eighth worldwide.

“The most spectacular rise, however, was seen in Korea,” The Art Newspaper wrote. “The National Museum of Korea’s main venue in Seoul boomed by more than 70 percent, from 3.8 million in 2024 to 6.5 million in 2025. That is one of the largest rises in absolute numbers we have ever seen.”

The article also noted that the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s Seoul branch drew 2.1 million visitors, up 28 percent from a year earlier.

The broader rise at national museums across the country was also clear. Gyeongju National Museum in North Gyeongsang ranked No. 39 with over 1.9 million visitors, Buyeo National Museum in South Chungcheong ranked No. 78 with 950,862 and Gongju National Museum, also in South Chungcheong, ranked No. 89 with 868,555.

Together with the National Museum of Korea in Seoul and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea in Seoul, five of Korea’s national cultural institutions entered the global top 100.

Visitors to the National Museum of Korea pass by a display of the Daedongyeojido, Korea's first large-scale map created in the 19th century by the Korean cartographer Kim Jeong-ho, at the museum's first floor on Feb. 12. [NEWS1]

“Branches of the National Museum in Jinju, Gyeongju, Cheongju, Buyeo and Iksan also saw significant rises,” The Art Newspaper wrote. “It seems the worldwide fervor for Korean culture is translating into museum visits from both locals and foreigners.”

A telling example of the expanding interest in Korean cultural heritage is the National Museum of Korea’s overseas traveling exhibition of works donated by the late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee.

The first stop on the tour, “Korean Treasures: Collected, Cherished, Shared,” at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art in Washington drew more than 80,000 visitors by the time it closed on Feb. 1.

Historic portraits hang in ″The Great Admiral Yi Sun-sin″ exhibition at the National Museum of Korea in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Jan. 21. [NATIONAL MUSEUM OF KOREA]

In recent years, the National Museum of Korea has steadily rolled out more focused permanent displays, such as the Room of Quiet Contemplation and the Oegyujanggak Uigwe gallery, while broadening its exhibition formats through the Immersive Digital Gallery and the Room of Senses.

Its recent special exhibition, “The Great Admiral Yi Sun-shin,” drew more than 407,000 visitors, setting a new attendance record for a heritage-themed special exhibition at the museum. Bolstered by that momentum, total first-quarter visitors for this year reached over 2.02 million, up 44.8 percent from almost 1.4 million a year earlier.

“With the spread of K-culture, the interest in Korean traditional culture and cultural heritage, which lie at its roots, has led people to museums,” said You Hong-june, the director of the National Museum of Korea. “We will fulfill our role and responsibility to provide broader opportunities for cultural enjoyment.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY KANG HYE-RAN [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]