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Temple stay participation hits record 350,000 visitors last year

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By Park Ung
  • Published Jan 18, 2026 3:31 pm KST
Temple stay participants listen to a monk at Naksan Temple in Yangyang, Gangwon Province, in this undated file photo. Courtesy of Naksan Temple

Temple stay participants listen to a monk at Naksan Temple in Yangyang, Gangwon Province, in this undated file photo. Courtesy of Naksan Temple

Nearly 350,000 domestic and foreign visitors took part in temple stay programs last year, marking an all-time high amid growing favorable perceptions of Buddhism in Korea.

The Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, the country’s largest Buddhist sect, said Sunday that about 349,000 people took part in temple stay programs at 158 temples nationwide, including about 294,000 Koreans and 55,515 foreign visitors.

The total marked a 5.1 percent increase from 2024, and the highest level on record.

Temple stay programs began in 2002 during the World Cup co-hosted by Korea and Japan, offering a glimpse into Buddhist daily life while helping ease a lodging shortage and promote traditional culture.

Launched with 33 temples and 2,558 participants — about 51 percent Koreans and 49 percent foreign visitors — the program has expanded steadily over the past two decades.

Foreign participation first surpassed 50,000 in 2018, the year of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, plunged during the COVID-19 pandemic and rebounded last year above the 2018 record.

From 2002 through last year, cumulative participation reached about 4.18 million, including both domestic and foreign visitors.

Buddhism in Korea has gained traction in recent years through a less hierarchical culture, including temple stays that match singles and outreach events featuring electronic dance music.

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A survey last November by polling firm Hankook Research of 2,000 people aged 18 and older nationwide found Buddhism’s favorability at 54.5 points, where zero is not favorable at all and 100 is very favorable. It was the highest level since the firm began tracking the measure in 2020.

Buddhism ranked first among major religions, ahead of Catholicism at 52.7 and Protestantism at 34.7.

The Jogye Order plans this year to expand stay-based temple programs tied to local culture and tourism and introduce tailored meditation retreats to address rising mental stress.