North Korea to open borders for tourists later this year
Following years of extensive Covid-19 restrictions, it has been announced that the secretive state of North Korea will reopen its borders to tourists and foreign nationals later this year. The nation has been largely closed off from the rest of the world since 2020 when it first imposed rules which prevented foreign trade or travellers from entering the country.
Of course, North Korea has always been a secretive country, largely closed off from the Western world. However, small groups of tourists – predominantly from neighbouring China – have been allowed to enter the country over the years.
The totalitarian Workers Party of Korea heavily controls the tourism industry, and holidaymakers have only been allowed to enter North Korea in small, guided groups. However, since the world was brought to a standstill in 2020, nobody has been permitted to cross the border.
Over four years later, North Korea finally announced that it would be opening its borders to tourists in December of this year. The news was announced by Koryo Tours, a Chinese travel company that operates guided tours of North Korea.
The company wrote on social media, “Having waited for over four years to make this announcement, Koryo Tours is very excited for the opening of North Korean tourism once again.”
Reportedly, the city of Samjiyon, in the northeast of Korea, will be the first place to welcome visitors. Over the past few years, the North Korean state has taken a particular interest in the mountain city, using colossal resources to transform it into a vision of a socialist utopia, complete with apartments, hotels, medical facilities, and even a ski resort. Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un has taken a special interest in the project, going so far as to demote senior officials over mishandling in the city’s construction.
It should be noted here that all news which comes out of North Korea is either incredibly secretive or released by the North Korean state. As a result, the idea that Samjiyon is a “socialist utopia” could easily be untrustworthy state propaganda. After all, the Covid-19 restrictions, which have prevented tourists from entering North Korea, have also affected its trade and economy, leaving the people and infrastructure of the nation much worse off than it was four years ago.
Seemingly, North Korea has already had a test run for tourism, inviting a small group of Russian tourists across the border back in February. Furthermore, Russian President Vladimir Putin also visited North Korea back in June amid worryingly warm relations between the two countries.
If the monitored influx of tourists into Samjiyon goes off without issue, it is thought that the rest of the country will open up to tourists soon after- probably during early 2025. However, groups of tourists will remain as heavily monitored and restricted as they were before 2020.
