Free registration for entry now open —故宫 South Campus opens online booking at midnight on October 30

▲The Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum. (Photo / Reporter Chen Ruizhong)

Reporter Chen Ruizhong / Comprehensive report

The Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum will start accepting online reservations for visits starting at 00:00 on October 30 (tickets.npm.gov.tw). Visitors can book slots from December 29 of this year through January 31, 2016. Starting in 2016, reservations for the following month will be available every 20th of the month at 00:00 (for example, reservations for February will open on January 20, and so on). The museum noted that to ensure the best visitor experience, the Southern Branch has implemented crowd control measures and will not accept on-site ticket purchases. Additionally, all admission tickets will be free of charge during the trial operation period, which runs until March 31, 2016.

The museum stated that the initial monthly quota will be between 1,000 and 1,500 visitors, with the number for subsequent months to be determined based on actual conditions. The Southern Branch operates entirely on a reservation system, requiring visitors to first register for a membership account and activate it before making reservations. After a successful reservation, the system will send an email (including the reservation code) to the email address provided by the member. On the day of the visit, the reservation code will serve as proof for collecting tickets, checking in online, or cancelling the reservation. Admission will be free for the first three months, and no ID will be required. Once official ticket fees begin, discounted and free tickets will require relevant identification documents for collection.

In addition, after the introduction of official ticketing fees, for reservation records including discounted tickets, free tickets, or group tickets, the on-site self-service ticket machines will not be able to issue tickets. Please proceed to the manual ticket window to collect your tickets. When collecting tickets, you must present a photo-bearing ID such as an ID card or disability handbook.

The museum advises visitors to pay attention to their scheduled visiting times and to complete the ticket collection procedure in advance. Those who have made reservations must check in within their reserved time slot. Reservations will become invalid if tickets are not collected within 20 minutes of the scheduled time. If you are unable to collect your ticket in time and cannot enter during your originally reserved time slot, you will need to queue on-site for entry during another available time slot.

The museum also reminds visitors that the Southern Branch campus covers a large area, and it takes approximately 15–20 minutes to walk from the parking lot to the entrance hall. It is recommended that visitors take travel and traffic conditions into consideration and arrive at the ticket counter in the ticket hall at least 15 minutes before their scheduled visiting time in order to collect tickets and enter the museum on time.