Forbidden City in Beijing: The Most Visited Museum in the World

The Palace Museum, better known as the Forbidden City, welcomed the 17 millionth visitor on Dec. 13, 2018, making it the most visited museum in the world, reported Beijing Evening Post on Saturday.

The number of visitors to the museum has been growing since reaching a milestone with 10 million in 2009. The record number of tourists this year is 6.25% higher than that in 2017.

Among the visitors, 40 percent are under 30 years old and 24 percent are between 30 and 40 years old, which means museums are more attractive to the younger generation.

In order to protect the ancient architecture, the Palace Museum has limited the number of visitors to 80,000 a day for 76 days this year, but the number of visitors in the off-season is still growing steadily this year, accounting for nearly 30 percent of all visitors.

In recent years, in addition to opening more fields to the public, museums’ digital efforts and creative marketing strategies may be the main reasons why museums attract young audiences.

The museum’s official Weibo, which has more than 6 million followers, regularly posts exquisite photos and constantly displays the museum’charm of four seasons, playing an important role in interacting with young people and promoting the museum.