Gyeongbokgung Palace has seen a surge in popularity following BTS's comeback concert at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, but the spike has not come without side effects. Expansion of free admission to national heritage sites on "Culture Day" has been postponed to May due to crowd management concerns.
Heo Min, commissioner of the Korea Heritage Service, said at a press briefing for the "2026 Spring Royal Culture Festival" held at Korea House in Jung-gu, Seoul on Monday that "Gyeongbokgung normally drew about 20,000 visitors on holidays, but approximately 53,000 people visited on March 29 after the BTS concert on March 21." Heo mentioned BTS while explaining the palace's popularity ahead of this year's spring festival, which runs for nine days from April 25 to May 3 across Seoul's five grand palaces — Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, Deoksugung, Changgyeonggung and Gyeonghuigung — and Jongmyo Shrine.
"Since BTS's Gwanghwamun comeback concert, we have been feeling firsthand the heightened interest in Korean palaces and traditional Korean culture," Heo said, conveying the positive atmosphere. According to the Korea Heritage Service, 33,005 people visited Gyeongbokgung on Sunday, March 22, the day after the BTS concert. That represents a more than 50 percent increase compared with the 21,236 visitors recorded on Saturday, March 22 of last year. Visitor numbers have continued to climb since then.
However, the surge has also created complications. At a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Lee Jae-myung on March 31, the government announced plans to expand "Culture Day" starting in April — from the last Wednesday of every month to every Wednesday — but the national heritage sector was excluded from the timeline. At the time, Commissioner Heo explained that visitors to Gyeongbokgung had surged after the BTS concert and said, "I sympathize with expanding 'Culture Day,' but there are safety management concerns as visitors flood into palaces such as Gyeongbokgung. We will consult with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to differentiate free admission by region and sector."
