The national parks of South Korea are preserved parcels of public land on which most forms of development are prohibited. They cover a total of 6.6% of the country's area, and are typically located in mountainous or coastal regions. The country's largest mountain park is Jirisan National Park in the southwest; this was also the first national park to be designated in 1967. The largest marine park is Dadohaehaesang, with an area of more than , but almost all of this is water. The smallest park is Wolchulsan, with an area of only .
As of 2023, there are 23 national parks in South Korea; the parks, with the exception of Hallasan National Park, are managed by the Korea National Park Service, established in 1987. The Authority operates its own police force, and since 1998 has been under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Environment. It was previously under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Construction.
History Early on, admission to national parks in South Korea was free. In 1974, most of South Korea's national parks cancelled the free admission policy. Currently only Gyeongju National Park is free. In 1993, the ticket revenue of the Korean National Park accounted for 65% of the park's total revenue. With the increase in the number of tourists year by year, the Korean government has restricted the number of tourists and activities in order to effectively protect the natural environment of the park, and controlled the number of tourists through an appointment system. Picnic and camping for tourists can only be carried out in designated areas, and night climbing is strictly prohibited. In addition, South Korea has imposed a natural rest program on some areas of high conservation value in national parks to avoid man-made damage.
Name(English, hangul, hanja)Photo Location Designated Area Land type Bukhansan Seoul,Gyeonggi 1983 Mountainous Byeonsan-bando North Jeolla 1988 Marine and coastal Chiaksan Gangwon 1984 Mountainous Dadohaehaesang South Jeolla 1981 Marine and coastal Deogyusan North Jeolla,South Gyeongsang 1975 Mountainous Gayasan South Gyeongsang,North Gyeongsang 1972 Mountainous Gyeongju North Gyeongsang 1968 Historical Gyeryongsan South Chungcheong,Daejeon 1968 Mountainous Hallasan Jeju 1970 Mountainous Hallyeohaesang South Jeolla,South Gyeongsang 1968 Marine and coastal Jirisan South Jeolla,North Jeolla,South Gyeongsang 1967 Mountainous Juwangsan North Gyeongsang 1976 Mountainous Naejangsan South Jeolla,North Jeolla 1971 Mountainous Odaesan Gangwon 1975 Mountainous Seoraksan Gangwon 1970 Mountainous Sobaeksan North Chungcheong,North Gyeongsang 1987 Mountainous Songnisan North Chungcheong,North Gyeongsang 1970 Mountainous Taeanhaean South Chungcheong 1978 Marine and coastal Wolchulsan South Jeolla 1988 Mountainous Woraksan North Chungcheong,North Gyeongsang 1984 Mountainous Mudeungsan Gwangju,South Jeolla 2012 MountainousTaebaeksan Yeongwol, Jeongseon, Taebaek, GangwonBonghwa, North Gyeongsang 2016 MountainousPalgongsan Daegu,North Gyeongsang 2023 Mountainous
References
External links
Korea National Park Service, manager of 21 of the 22 national parks