4 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Welcome to North Korea's Costa Blanca, where only five-star reviews are allowed
But that's no surprise, as the visitors to Wonsan Kalma were warned in no uncertain terms that any negative feedback could threaten Russia's alliance with Kim Jong Un's hermit kingdom.
Natalia Fisher (52) and Daria Polishchuk (22) flew to North Korea on a package holiday at the end of July, just weeks after the resort's official opening.
During their trip, guides told them to be careful with what they said about their experience back home, suggesting 'any friendship can be broken with some awkward, improper words'.
North Korea has forged a strong alliance with Russia, with Mr Kim piling troops and weaponry on to the Ukrainian battlefield in support of Vladimir Putin.
The cloistered nation is now opening its doors, appealing for Russian tourists to visit the mega resort, which stretches nearly 5km along the beachfront of Wonsan, featuring high-rise hotels, a water park and accommodation for 20,000 guests.
The resort was inspired by Spanish seaside resorts, after Mr Kim sent a delegation on a fact-finding mission to the Costa Blanca.
'If someone had shown me a photo, I would never have thought it was North Korea,' Ms Polishchuk said. 'Visually, I think it could compete with many European resorts.'
Ms Fisher said: 'The locals all seemed so happy. They walked around smiling, waving to us, taking videos of us, greeting us – and, in general, the mood towards tourists was so positive.'
A journalist with Russia's Kommersant newspaper, who travelled to Wonsan with Sergey Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, in mid-July, had doubts about the authenticity.
Anastasia Dombitskaya questioned whether the other guests were really North Korean tourists, saying: 'They understood and even spoke Russian perfectly.'
She noticed the streets were deserted, and the same couple were playing billiards continuously throughout the day.
All foreign tourists, apart from Russians, are currently barred from the Wonsan Kalma coastal tourist zone
'This couple did not even end up with the worst role − others had to portray vacationers right underneath the scorching sun,' she wrote.
'One person sat smoking one cigarette after another … another rode a bicycle up and down the embankment, and another settled on the veranda sipping a glass of beer that stayed full.'
Wonsan, on North Korea's eastern seaboard, was once the site of missile-testing facilities and has long been a coveted holiday spot for the nation's ruling elite.
Mr Kim maintains an opulent villa complex in the city, thought to be his personal favourite of his portfolio of more than a dozen properties.
All foreign tourists, apart from Russians, are currently barred from the Wonsan Kalma coastal tourist zone.
The mega resort reportedly aims to attract one million visitors, though Ms Polishchuk said there were just 50 other holidaymakers during her trip.
Her stay spanned Wonsan, Pyongyang and Mount Myohyang. It included trips to the Victorious War Museum, monuments to leaders, and the International Friendship Exhibition.
As part of their all-inclusive package, Ms Fisher and Ms Polishchuk stayed in luxury hotels and were fed extravagant buffets of foie gras, chips and battered cheese, as well as local delicacies.
Such meals would be unimaginable for a typical local in North Korea, where the average monthly salary is under $10 (€8.55). A week-long package holiday from Russia is advertised at around the equivalent of €1,750.
Ms Polishchuk said the tour guides were very attentive and did everything they could to cater to Russian tastes, though some aspects were lost in translation.
'They were apparently told that Russians love black bread, but they probably don't quite understand what black bread is,' she said, referring to the sourdough rye known in Russia as borodinsky.
'They took this bread, mixed it with activated charcoal, and ended up with bread that was literally black.'
The tourists had to be accompanied by a guide at all times outside of their hotel rooms, were not allowed to talk to locals and had to pay to access the heavily restricted internet.
In front of the portraits of the leaders, the locals bow, treating them with great respect
However, they said they were greeted like celebrities, with locals waving, photographing them and screaming 'Russia, Russia!' as they walked by.
'They consider us a truly brotherly nation,' Ms Fisher said. 'Even the guides told us that they have a great relationship with Russia … but they said, 'What you carry to the masses, what you tell about us, our friendship depends on this'.'
Ms Polishchuk said that the nation reminded them of the Soviet Union.
'You have to understand that there is still a cult of personality in Korea,' she said. 'In front of all these statues, in front of the portraits of the leaders, the locals bow, treating them with great respect.'
The group was instructed that any time they took a picture with a portrait, photo or statue of the supreme leader, Mr Kim had to be fully visible. If any part was cut off in the photo, they would be asked to delete it.
On the flight from Vladivostok to Pyongyang, Ms Polishchuk's family fell foul of flight attendants after accidentally filling out a form atop a North Korean magazine.
'Since the magazine is probably 70pc made up of photos of leaders, it just so happened that the declaration was obscuring one of the portraits of the leader, and the flight attendants got seriously upset with us,' Ms Polishchuk said.
Direct flights from Moscow to Pyongyang began at the end of July in a bid to deepen economic and military ties between Russia and North Korea.
North Korea has been one of Russia's closest military allies since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The countries signed a mutual defence treaty in 2024 that calls on each side to come to the other's aid if faced with an armed attack.
In April, Moscow and Pyongyang confirmed for the first time that North Korea had sent thousands of troops to fight for Russia in Ukraine.
At the July meeting between Mr Lavrov and Mr Kim, the latter reaffirmed his government's commitment to 'unconditionally support and encourage all measures' that Russia takes in Ukraine.
