List of national parks of South Korea

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.[1] 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 2,200 km2 (850 sq mi), but almost all of this is water. The smallest park is Wolchulsan, with an area of only 56.1 km2 (21.7 sq mi).

The twenty-two national parks of South Korea.
Land-based parks are in red and marine parks are in blue.

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.[2] 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

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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.[3][4]

  Mountainous national parks (17)
  Marine & coastal national parks (4)
  Historical national park (1)
Name
(English, hangul, hanja)
Photo Location Designated Area Land type[5]
Bukhansan
북한산국립공원
北漢山國立公園
  Seoul,
Gyeonggi
1983 80 km2 (31 sq mi) Mountainous
Byeonsan-bando
변산반도국립공원
邊山半島國立公園
  Jeollabuk-do 1988 155 km2 (60 sq mi) Marine and coastal
Chiaksan
치악산국립공원
雉岳山國立公園
  Gangwon-do 1984 182 km2 (70 sq mi) Mountainous
Dadohaehaesang
다도해해상국립공원
多島海海上國立公園
  Jeollanam-do 1981 2,325 km2 (898 sq mi) Marine and coastal
Deogyusan
덕유산국립공원
德裕山國立公園
  Jeollabuk-do,
Gyeongsangnam-do
1975 232 km2 (90 sq mi) Mountainous
Gayasan
가야산국립공원
伽倻山國立公園
  Gyeongsangnam-do,
Gyeongsangbuk-do
1972 77 km2 (30 sq mi) Mountainous
Gyeongju
경주국립공원
慶州國立公園
  Gyeongsangbuk-do 1968 137 km2 (53 sq mi) Historical
Gyeryongsan
계룡산국립공원
鷄龍山國立公園
  Chungcheongnam-do,
Daejeon
1968 65 km2 (25 sq mi) Mountainous
Hallasan
한라산국립공원
漢拏山國立公園
  Jeju-do 1970 153 km2 (59 sq mi) Mountainous
Hallyeohaesang
한려해상국립공원
閑麗海上國立公園
  Jeollanam-do,
Gyeongsangnam-do
1968 545 km2 (210 sq mi) Marine and coastal
Jirisan
지리산국립공원
智異山國立公園
  Jeollanam-do,
Jeollabuk-do,
Gyeongsangnam-do
1967 472 km2 (182 sq mi) Mountainous
Juwangsan
주왕산국립공원
周王山國立公園
  Gyeongsangbuk-do 1976 107 km2 (41 sq mi) Mountainous
Naejangsan
내장산국립공원
內藏山國立公園
  Jeollanam-do,
Jeollabuk-do
1971 81 km2 (31 sq mi) Mountainous
Odaesan
오대산국립공원
五臺山國立公園
  Gangwon-do 1975 304 km2 (117 sq mi) Mountainous
Seoraksan
설악산국립공원
雪嶽山國立公園
  Gangwon-do 1970 398 km2 (154 sq mi) Mountainous
Sobaeksan
소백산국립공원
小白山國立公園
  Chungcheongbuk-do,
Gyeongsangbuk-do
1987 322 km2 (124 sq mi) Mountainous
Songnisan
속리산국립공원
俗離山國立公園
  Chungcheongbuk-do,
Gyeongsangbuk-do
1970 274 km2 (106 sq mi) Mountainous
Taeanhaean
태안해안국립공원
泰安海岸國立公園
  Chungcheongnam-do 1978 326 km2 (126 sq mi) Marine and coastal
Wolchulsan
월출산국립공원
月出山國立公園
  Jeollanam-do 1988 56 km2 (22 sq mi) Mountainous
Woraksan
월악산국립공원
月岳山國立公園
  Chungcheongbuk-do,
Gyeongsangbuk-do
1984 288 km2 (111 sq mi) Mountainous
Mudeungsan
무등산국립공원
無等山國立公園
  Gwangju,
Jeollanam-do
2012 75 km2 (29 sq mi) Mountainous
Taebaeksan
태백산국립공원
太白山國立公園
  Yeongwol, Jeongseon, Taebaek, Gangwon
Bonghwa, Gyeongsangbuk-do
2016 70 km2 (27 sq mi) Mountainous
Palgongsan
팔공산국립공원
八公山國立公園
  Daegu,
Gyeongsangbuk-do
2023 126 km2 (49 sq mi) Mountainous

References

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  1. ^ "e-나라지표 국립공원현황" (in Korean). Statistics Korea. Retrieved 2016-09-19.
  2. ^ "National Parks: About the Korea National Park Service". Korea National Park Service. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  3. ^ "特别保护区指南". 国立公园管理公团. Archived from the original on 2015-08-01. Retrieved 2015-07-29.
  4. ^ (韩)韩相壹 (February 2002). "韩国国立公园概况". 《中国园林》.
  5. ^ "About National Parks". Korea National Park Service. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
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