Taipei City-based National Palace Museum was the 13th most visited worldwide in 2017, according to the Theme Index and Museum Index released May 17 by U.S.-headquartered project management firm AECOM and nonprofit industry group Themed Entertainment Association.
 
Slipping one spot from the previous edition, NPM recorded about 4.43 million visits, down from 4.66 million in 2016. It placed third in the Asia-Pacific and is one of four Asian institutions to make the global top 20 along with three in mainland China.
 
This year’s rankings are topped by the Louvre in Paris with 8.1 million visits, followed by Beijing-based National Museum of China, 8.06 million; with National Air and Space Museum in Washington and New York-headquartered Metropolitan Museum of Art in joint third on 7 million.
 
According to NPM, while it registered a decline in cross-strait tourists last year, this was offset by increased numbers from Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asian countries. The museum is working to build on this momentum by further diversifying visitor sources and expanding its international exchanges and profile, it added.
 
Three other Taiwan museums ranked among the top 20 in the Asia-Pacific, the report showed. These are National Museum of Natural Science in central Taiwan’s Taichung City, ninth; National Taiwan Science Education Center in Taipei, 12th; and National Science and Technology Museum in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City, 20th.
 
First published in 2006, the index spotlights attendance figures and industry trends at museums, theme parks and water parks. Global museum attendance was flat last year, with the world’s top 20 museums registering a year-on-year increase of just 0.2 percent, the 2018 report said. (CPY-E)