Purpose -The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of restoration of gold foils on Dazu Grottoes using different parylene coatings. Design/methodology/approach -The gold foil samples were applied with two types of parylene coating with six different thicknesses, C-10, C-15, C-20, N-10, N-20, N-25, respectively. Electrochemical impedance, surface morphology, and hydrophobicity properties were used to examine the behavior of the coatings. Findings -The results showed that an increase in electrochemical corrosion resistance was observed as the degree of coating thickness was increased for both C-parylene and N-parylene coatings. In addition, the surface morphology study, using 3D topography measurement, indicated that the surface roughness was decreased for all parylene coatings. Furthermore, the parylene-C coating was comparatively more effective than was the parylene-N coating. Originality/value -The results obtained from the three methods were in close agreement. This is an indication that the parylene-C coating can be used to restore the gold foils on Dazu Grottoes and to support future restoration and consolidation to be applied on site on the Grottoes.