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The 10 Best Museums in South Korea, South Korea
Coordinates: 36°N 128°E / 36°N 128°E / 36; 128
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1. Gyeongbokgung Palace
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 10,654 reviews
The National Museum of Korea and the National Folk Museum are located on the grounds of this palace, built six centuries ago by the founder of the Chosun dynasty.
Reviewed By Krubee - Singapore, Singapore
At the heart of Seoul lies this ancient yet historically significant center of the Joseon dynasty - the Eternal, Grand, Beautiful and Enchanting Gyeongbokgung Palace, the largest and grandest of the 5 palaces built during the Joseon dynasty in 1395 by King Taejo, the first King of Joseon.. It is the seat of the King, His household and the government. To date it is one of the most famous attractions in Seoul and South Korea. Millions of tourist visit this Palace and it is a must visit. You could take the Seoul metro and could alight at Gyeongbokgung station which is connected via Heungnyemun Gate or outside via Gwanghwamun station and you need to walk via North direction passing by the statue of King Sejong the Great. The National Palace Museum of Korea is located via Heungnyemun gate. The entrance fee to this palace is around 3K Won for adults. As you enter the main gate of Gwanghwamun in the south you will be greeted by several other gates as you walk north into the Geunjeongjeon (Throne hall). The cobbled stones floor indicates that you are entering history. Other significant buildings include the beautiful Gyeonghoeru Pavilion (Banquet hall) with a lake surrounding it, Gangnyeongjeon (King's residential quarter), Gyotaejeon (Queen's quarter), Hyangwonjeong (2 story Hexagonal shape pavillion on lake connected by Chwihyanggyo bridge), and many more. We went here during Fall season and it's magical we were surrounded by trees of red, yellow and orange. The wind blowing adds to the beauty of the falling leaves. Despite the plenty of tourists we have space to take beautiful photos and videos. There are even Korean cultural dance shows with photo opts afterwards. Behind this massive complex stands the mighty Mt. Baegaksan (a 342 m high granite mountain) a perfect background for your beautiful photos and videos. Some tourists rent traditional Hanbok dress, a traditional Korean clothes. Rental prices vary depending on the time starting at around 13K to 15K Won for about 4 hrs. It adds to the total experience you could get while walking around this historical palace not to mention it adds beauty to your photos and videos. Between 10 to 3 PM the traditional changing of the guards occur every hour which is a spectacle of Korean culture and tradition. We left at 5 PM which is also the closing time at this Eternal Grand Palace. It is my 2nd time to visit this but it still amazes me every time.
2. National Museum of Korea
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,362 reviews
This is the largest museum in Korea with over 220,000 objects in its collection. It has six permanent exhibition galleries such as Historical Gallery and Fine Arts Gallery. It also has special exhibition halls, a children's museum, outdoor exhibit areas, restaurants, cafes, shops and other amenities. *Admission: Free to Permanent Exhibition & Children's Museum(changeable after 2010)*Hours: Tue/Thu/Fri: 9am-6pm, Wed/Sat: 9am-9pm, Sun/holidays: 9am-7pm, closed Mon & January 1st
Reviewed By Janet1016 - Ottawa, Canada
I think it's awesome when a Museum offers free admission, especially to International travelers who can then learn all about a Country's Culture. My husband, son and I spent a week in Seoul, our very first trip to South Korea and visited the National Museum of Korea on our second day. It's a vast building, and one of the largest museums in Asia. We took the MRT to get there and it was a nice walk from the MRT station to the Museum. The Museum offers one hour free English language tours which we took. Our Guide was very friendly and personable and spoke English very well. There are also maps of the Museum available in English and they also detail the top sights if you have a limited amount of time to spend. I was fascinated most by the Gold Crowns and Caps, so delicate and ornate and so different from say English Crowns. :) The Museum houses many, many of Korean's National Treasures and it's really awe inspiring to get to see them and learn South Korea's history. You could spend a couple of days going through here no problem, plus there is another Museum on the grounds as well that is devoted to the Korean Language, the National Hangeul Museum. There is a large Food court area within in you get peckish and it serves really lovely meals. This is a great spot to visit if you're in Seoul. Go!!!!
3. Leeum Samsung Museum of Art
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 741 reviews
Reviewed By JackMassimoDA - Washington DC, United States
This is a manageable museum (you can cover a lot of ground in two hours here) that blends Korean history with modern art and works in between. Great exhibits and a fantastic campus with killer architecture to supercharge your Instagram. Also, around the museum is a v. cool area with trendy cafes and places to eat but not crazy expensive.
4. The War Memorial of Korea
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4,269 reviews
Poignant exhibits, war memorabilia, art works, and military equipment make this a perfect place to learn about Korea’s history of war, most notably with North Korea. Kids will enjoy the display of actual tanks and airplanes.
Reviewed By Culinary-Consultants - Ferrara, Italy
As a veteran I am a lover of places that price and honor, the fellow and good military men and women of the past and present; Men and Women who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of freedom and liberty. In this vein, I dedicate part of every travel we make with our company to search for Memorials and Museums of War. The War Memorial of Korea as expected for the history of this country, is no disappointment. It opened in 1994 on the former site of the army headquarters to exhibit and memorialize the military history of Korea and it holds an exquisite collection and memorabilia of several past wars ranging from prehistoric times with very rudimentary weapons; passing with extreme detail throughout the Korean War and the ROK Armed Forces until more modern conflicts and the presence of South Korea as an allied in the United Nations. 13,000 items are displayed in six halls under different themes and about 100 large weapons are displayed in the outside exhibition area on the lawns around the building. Outside the building premises you can see a great variety of mobile units such as fixed-wing air-crafts like the De Havilland Canada U-6A Beaver, the Curtiss C-46D-20-CU Commando, also the Fairchild C-123J built in 1956 as a C-123B and later converted to a C-123J in the 1960s. Helicopters are also in the premises, such as the Bell AH-1J “International Cobra”, also the Bell UH-1B Iroquois, even Russian units as the Sikorsky H-5H Dragonfly and the Sikorsky HH-19B Chickasaw. But there are more mobile units such as armored vehicles, artillery and anti-aircraft guns. Missiles and several other maritime vessels like the Hurricane Aircat Air-boat used by ROK special forces during the Vietnam War and much more well kept pieces of war history are exhibited here at the War Memorial of Korea. The place definitely has been groomed to detail and has also a special glow about it; meaning a building with a soul. I truly recommend this place for the lovers of War History and War Artifacts and here you will also find a special place for the special connection we have with those who gave it all for the sake of freedom in South Korea and everywhere else.
5. The Independence Hall of Korea
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 129 reviews
Reviewed By janellim2016 - Augusta, United States
Lots of sculpture art, walking trails, indoor/outdoor exhibits. There are multiple buildings in a large complex. It’s easy to spend hours taking in the sights.
6. Gyeongju National Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 578 reviews
Reviewed By TravelerTrecker
This is large, impressive museum dedicated to the Silla culture. It has several buildings that are very well organized following a chronological order and with dedication to several aspects of the life of the Sillas including domestic and common aspects and royals features. The exhibit on the tomb treasures is impressive! Curation is excellent! Labels are in Korean and English. The Silla's bell is just beautiful. The bell is outside the museum and the exhibit is great, with excellent illumination. At night is really beautiful! We did not have to pay. It was a Korean holiday when we visited and because of this, the museum closed one hour later! We visited the museum in the afternoon. We spent 3 hours at the museum. when we arrived to the museum, it started to rain; rainy days are perfect for museum visits. The rain lasted for two hours; when we went to see the gardens, it was dry and pleasant. Because the museum closed late at 700 pm, we were able to see many sculptures, pagodas, and the bell located in the museum gardens with almost nobody around. The gardens looked beautiful at sunset. Lightning was really good. We learned a lot! The museum deserves at least 3 hours. We visited on September, 2019.
7. Trickeye Museum Seoul
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,527 reviews
The Trickeye Museum is "one of a kind" painting gallery, which combines art with hi-end technology - so-called AR (Augmented Reality) effect and 2D/3D illusions. Instead of merely viewing paintings (as in a typical art gallery), visitors can interact with the paintings using newly developed Trickeye Camera application to make pictures alive in order to be a part of the artwork and record it on video or make a picture. Moreover, there is the Ice Museum located in the Trickeye Museum, items in which are fully made out of ice such as iced TV, ice kitchen, ice slope etc. With one admission ticket you can enjoy both "Trickeye Museum" and "Ice Museum". To ensure that even its busiest customers have time to enjoy the fun, the museum stays open each day all around the year from 9 AM until 9 PM (last admission by 8 PM), making it a popular date and hang-out place. Outside of the main exhibition hall there is museum café, which exclusively serves Latte with Your picture from the phone on it.
Reviewed By daniellY8742XD - Miami, United States
Me and 4 other friends from University decided to visit the Trickeye Museum in Hongdae. You have to download an application that is called "TrickEye" in order to see the illusions and special effects. Free Wifi is provided. We had a lot of fun, it was a different experience seeing dinosaurs, sharks and artists coming out of the wall and interacting with its surrounding. It took us about 1-2 hours because we really enjoyed the special effects and made a lot of video and photo material.
8. Spirited Garden
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 502 reviews
In 1968, Director Sung set on his project to turn a piece of deserted 'wasteland' at Jeoji-ri, Hanyoung-myon into something else. Thanks to his strenuous efforts and strong will, we now have the beautiful garden that represents the quintessence of Jeju. Consisting of 7 small gardens and auxiliary facilities, this Spirited Garden provides spaces where you can find peace of mind surrounded by waterfall, ponds, stone bridges as well as trees. All the garden trees, bunjaes, and stones allows you to relieve yourself from any everyday life burden and to take a respite to enjoy the beauty of the nature. High walls built in order to protect trees from strong winds became castles and the architectures built to house exhibitions and to serve convenience purposes now represent the beauty of the nature in Jeju. They are sure to provide people from around the world with chances to think of a new paradigm of life
Reviewed By jaineek2019 - South Korea, null
A beautiful and peaceful place where you get to enjoy the bonsai works of decades and think on life through each of their characteristic and how they were grown. Totally worth a visit and entrance fee! It was also a good experience we got to talk to the director who founded the garden! Much respect.
9. Icheon World Ceramics Center
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 24 reviews
One of Korea’s oldest and most prized art forms is ceramics and at Icheon World Ceramics Center (about an hour from Seoul) you can see more than 500 different creations. It is a great place to buy ceramics at heavily discounted prices and there are even classes teaching visitors how to make their own work of art.
10. National Gwacheon Science Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 77 reviews
Reviewed By SusannaG42
We travelled all the way here for my 4 year old dino-obsessed son. We thought it was totally worth it! Word of warning - taxis are hard to come by so you are probably better off prebooking your ride. The main exhibit hall was great - lots of informative stuff in English. They also have separate buildings for an Insectarium (which we didn’t go to) and a Space Centre (which we did but left quickly as it was all in korean and we understood nothing). There’s a Dino park outside as well with Dino statues which my son loved taking photos of.
