National Palace Museum of Korea — Attraction in Seoul

The National Palace Museum of Korea (free entry) is one of the two museums located on the grounds of the Gyeongbokgung Palace grounds.

Relocated to the modern building in the southwest part of the Gyeongbokgung, the museum provides visitors opportunity to learn about the Jesong Dynasty, who ruled Korea for five centuries. The collections also provide helpful context behind what you see when walking the palace grounds before or after your visit.

There are supposedly over 40,000 historical artefacts at the National Palace Museum, with a handful of which are considered national treasures. The museum is spread over three floors and includes 11 permanent exhibition where you find historical portraits and paintings, maps, manuscripts, palace furniture, royal clothing, instruments, items of early astronomy and many more wonderful possessions associated with Gyeongbokgung Palace and the Royal family.

Highlights for me included seeing the King Jesong portraits, procession carriages, ancient sundials and the fascinating restored model of Jagyeokru, a large-scale 15th century water clock seen in the Jesong Science Room.

In the end, I really enjoyed this museum collection finding it to have done a fine job of providing context and background to what visitors are seeing in the rest of the palace grounds. The museum is an intricate part your visit to Gyeongbokgung and shouldn't be skipped if you plan to visit the palace while in Seoul.

You can comfortably see the National Palace Museum of Korea in 30-45 minutes if you are short on time or you can explore the collection more thoroughly and easily spend a couple of hours here as well.

Note: There are free guided tours given in Korean, Japanese and English. Check the online website for times...

Massive museum showcasing some of Korea's most precious relics from the Joseon Dynasty [1392~1910]. Over 20,000 royal relics from Gyeongbokgung Palace, Changdeokgung Palace, Changgyeonggung Palace and Jongmyo Shrine are also on display according to the official description. The museum is split in to 5 sections: Royal Symbols and Records, Ancestral Rites, Palace Architecture, Joseon Sciences, and Royal Life.

Almost 200,000 of total square footage gives this museum plenty of space to showcase all of its artifacts. Not very crowded and with free storage lockers makes this a great spot for tourists. English descriptions and even interactive exhibits are also included making for an easy and informative trip.

Guided tours in Korean, English, Japanese, and Chinese are also available multiple times a day, highly recommend checking on their website for times.

Enjoyed every second here as I navigated the many levels and exhibits full of detailed information and beautiful artifacts. Especially worthwhile considering the...

This was a nice break from the scorching heat outside. We walked in expecting to pay around 10,000 to 20,000 KRW, but realized after getting there that the entry was free! And I love free :D. The place was super well maintained for something that doesn't charge an entry fee. Extremely clean, very well lit, and pretty well laid out. I just disliked that we had to walk down to see more exhibits (instead of walking up) -- I know it sounds ridiculous, but I'd rather walk up when my legs are fresh. Same with hikes. I really don't look forward to doing hikes where we start off walking down hill. Back to the museum. It does a really good job of explaining various aspects of the Joseon Dynasty. There is also a WORKING replica of a water based clock (you gotta see it), that was used during the times of the emperors. Most of the signs are in Korean and English, but the descriptions are mostly in Korean. So it's good to have someone who speaks...