Guided Tours of Palaces and Royal Cultural Heritage to Resume Next Month

On the 20th, the changing of the guard ceremony, which had been suspended due to the novel coronavirus infection, resumed at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Jongno-gu, Seoul. The Gyeongbokgung changing of the guard ceremony was held again after 83 days since it was suspended on February 27. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The Cultural Heritage Administration's Palace and Royal Tombs Headquarters announced on the 28th that the guided tours of palaces and royal tombs, which were suspended on February 8 due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), will be gradually resumed starting from June 1.

Gyeongbokgung Palace and Jongmyo Shrine will reopen on June 1 (closed every Tuesday), Chilgung Shrine (closed every Sunday and Monday), and Changdeokgung Palace, Changgyeonggung Palace, Deoksugung Palace, and Joseon Royal Tombs (closed every Monday) will reopen on June 2. Guided tours at Deoksugung Palace's Jungmyeongjeon Hall and Seokjojeon Hall (indoor tours, closed every Monday) will begin on June 9.

To prevent COVID-19 infection, the operation method will be slightly different. The number of visitors per session will be reduced to 20-30 people for palaces and 10 people for royal tombs. For Jongmyo Shrine and Changdeokgung Palace's rear garden, the number of student group reservations per session will be limited to 60 or fewer. In the case of Gyeongbokgung Palace, the tour route will be changed to focus on spacious pavilions.

An official urged, "Visitors must comply with the guidelines such as maintaining a safe distance (1-2 meters), temperature checks, use of hand sanitizer, and mandatory wearing of masks."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.