Latest news with #YoungPioneerTours
Business Insider
04-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Kim Jong Un is opening a tourism mega-resort in North Korea. It's unclear how he'll fill its thousands of rooms.
Last October, a video of tanned, blond Russians relaxing on a North Korean beach went viral. That beach is in Wonsan, on the Kalma peninsula — a stretch of North Korea's eastern coast now home to dozens of hotels and apartments — and is the latest puzzling artifact of Kim Jong Un's grandiose ambitions. Reports of the exact scale vary from about 7,000 to 20,000 rooms, which could make the resort — called Wonsan Kalma — one of the largest single-entity-owned beach resorts on the planet. "This is by far larger than anything else Kim has done" in tourism, Bruce W. Bennett, an expert in North Korean affairs at RAND, told Business Insider. The dream for Kim: a world-class megatourism project displaying his totalitarian power to the world and at home, and a way to make money. The question is who, exactly, will flock there. The North Korean Embassy in London didn't respond to a detailed request for comment. A modest tourist trade The project, first announced in 2014, has been delayed several times. When the first delay was announced in 2019, Kim said that he didn't want to compromise on quality. Analysts speculated at the time that the delay could be due to import restraints caused by international sanctions. The project also stalled during the COVID-19 pandemic, but it's now scheduled to open in June. This means North Korea, which largely sealed off its borders at the start of the pandemic, could soon reopen to international tourism. The country welcomed a group of tourists in February, before again resealing its borders. Tour operators are watching closely. Rowan Beard, the cofounder of Young Pioneer Tours, the company that led the recent visit, has not yet seen Wonsan Kalma. He told BI he's impressed with what he's heard about it. "There's a lot of really cool facilities there, not just built for tourists," he said. "It's also built for delegations. So there's special delegation rooms and presidential suites." "It is huge. It's a city," he added. "It's like building the Gold Coast from scratch." North Korean state media said in 2014 that the 3,460-acre site would feature an "underwater hotel, flower park, international meeting hall, exhibition and exposition hall," among hotels, condos, and apartments catering to every budget. The region is already a popular destination for domestic tourists. Nearby Songdowon has an international children's camp, and in winter, tourists can visit the Masikryong Ski Resort, about 12 miles away. State media reports that Kim has praised the region's beauty, having spent some of his childhood there, and owning a lavish private compound nearby. "Wonsan is Kim Jong Un's Mar-a-Lago," Michael Madden, now founder of the North Korea-watching site NK Leadership Watch, told Reuters in 2015. Mass tourism, niche interest Facilities at Wonsan Kalma have appeared and disappeared over the years. South Korea-based SI Analytics has suggested that a mysterious turtle-shaped edifice will become an aquarium. A theater that popped up in 2021 has since been demolished. In recent weeks, SI Analytics has observed increased flows of oil tankers to the nearby port, suggesting a rush to finish construction. Beard told BI that his North Korean contacts had been expecting him to bring business there when it opens. They're "expecting a high turnout," he said. He plans to offer visits, but told his contacts that the level of interest may disappoint: He thinks he can bring about 100 people a year. The problem is fundamental — Young Pioneer customers tend to be adventure tourists attracted by the company's edgy tagline: "Destinations your mother would rather you stay away from." Experts BI spoke to expressed doubts that the site would have mass appeal for international tourists. It's a beautiful spot — but as RAND's Bennett put it: "This isn't Florida. This is North Korea." "It's not even clear it will make money, given how much they've invested," said Marcus Noland, a North Korea expert and executive vice president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Pyongyang does not make its spending public, but as early as 2019, Kim said that "enormous funds and labor" had gone into the project. While North Korea's use of forced labor may have cut costs, projects of similar scale worldwide run into the hundreds of millions of dollars. The site may segregate North Koreans from international tourists, to keep locals from learning too much about the outside world, experts said. "Kim has a deathly fear that outside information is going to reach his people," Bennett said. That — and North Korea's lack of experience with hospitality — may make for something of a stilted vacation, Bennett said. "You'll be in a bit of a bubble," Beard added. The ruble to the rescue? International tourism is attractive because it brings in cash that largely circumvents international sanctions. But South Koreans — ostensibly the ideal customers for Wonsan Kalma due to their proximity and spending power — are unlikely to visit due to political tensions. "The commercial logic is South Korea is your customer base, and the political logic is we have to keep South Korea at arms' length," Noland said. Other likely international visitors could be from Japan, China, and, thanks to their ongoing military cooperation, Russia. Vostok Intur, a travel agency in Russia's Vladivostok, began advertising tours to the resort in January. The all-inclusive trips, which start in July, cost about $420 — plus a further payment of $1,400 per person, which is likely Pyongyang's cut. Last fall, Russia's ambassador to North Korea, Alexander Matsegora, praised North Korea's hospitality after the Wonsan region hosted injured Russian soldiers. Despite the diplomatic overtures, there's "a real question" of whether there will be enough Russian interest for a place that big to thrive, Bennett said. "I don't see the Russians flocking to Kalma," Beard said, adding that Russians — like the rest of the world — "want to go to Pattaya in Thailand. They want to go to Goa, in India or they want to go to Dubai." There's also likely a sizeable domestic audience for the site. The state could offer workers trips there as a reward for exceptional performance, experts said. Beard believes locals will be excited, thinking: "'Hey, we're getting our own Disneyland,'" he said. The Trump factor There's another possible audience for Kim's tourism drive — President Donald Trump. Wonsan Kalma is being built against a backdrop of North Korea's desire to be recognized as a nuclear state. In 2018, Trump encouraged Pyongyang to develop its "great beaches," and while North Korea is unlikely to welcome US tourists anytime soon, Trump and Kim speaking the language of real estate to each other could provide some sort of diplomatic stepping stone, Ellen Kim said. But what if this site fails to impress, like Pyongyang's Ryugyong Hotel? The unfinished hotel — dubbed "the hotel of doom" by the outside world for its imposing structure and failure as a project — has never become fully operational. It's the country's tallest building, begun under Kim Il Sung, Kim's grandfather. "Kim Jong Un has always wanted to show that he was more modern and kind of more 'with it' than his father or grandfather," Noland said. He may see Wonsan Kalma as his best way to prove that. "I think he wants to really make it look like North Korea is a big deal," Bennett said.
Daily Mirror
21-04-2025
- Daily Mirror
Tourist in North Korea says it 'could be holiday hotspot' but one thing is surprising
A man who claims he visited North Korea said it could be confused for Dubai or Spain – but aside from the nation's tight security, there's something else preventing it from topping travel bucket lists A tourist who claims to have visited North Korea made a stunning comparison, likening scenery in the country to Dubai or Spain – but with a crucial difference. The Spaniard, who goes by Caminante Rojo on social media, visited the country weeks after it reopened to visitors after years of closed borders. He documented his experiences as a visitor on his TikTok account. Commenting on the newly-built skyscrapers, he compared the high rises to more popular holiday destinations and visited a bar for drinks and food. Inside the modern-looking bar he was given a menu of the drinks on offer, which included what he said were imported beers being sold at sky-high prices. Describing his experience in the video, he said: "We have just been stopped at one of the newest streets in the centre of the city. This is by far the most luxurious part we have seen in our trip. It almost looks like Dubai. "Don't tell me it doesn't. Look, I'm telling you, these buildings could be in Spain. And here it is, the beer bar, with a good pair of columns shaped like beer bottles. And look at the glass window, with beer foam and everything." Struck by the prices, he added: "A Delirium beer for $79 (£59.67)! It can't be, that's crazy! This six-litre one costs $629 (£475.12). The effects of sanctions and being a blocked country? Sky-high prices. I think we'll leave the imported beer for another day." Finally, he decided to try a local beer that costs $3 (£2.27). "They haven't put us separately like in other places." he adds as he sits near to other residents. "There are also Koreans here. We have ordered eight types of beer for a tasting." As an accompaniment, they brought him dried, salted fish, which he described as a "very typical" dish. North Korea allowed western tourists to return to the country to visit a special economic zone near the Chinese border earlier this year but appeared to put a new halt on tourism just weeks later. However some tour companies are offering brave visitors the chance to take part in guided tours scheduled in the coming months. Hundreds of foreigners were also allowed to take part in the Pyonyang marathon earlier this month. Operator Young Pioneer Tours said while North Korea was officially closed to tourism, "it's clear the country is starting to loosen its grip on international tourism. These gradual steps are a strong indication that Pyongyang won't stay shut forever – and likely, it will happen sooner rather than later." However, due to the level of tension on the Korea peninsula, British travellers are advised by the Foreign Office against "all but essential travel" to North Korea. Meanwhile permission to film is tightly controlled by the government. People are urged to follow the advice of their tour operator.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
North Korea halts foreign tourism weeks after reopening to Western visitors
HONG KONG — North Korea has once again closed its borders, suspending foreign tourism just weeks after the secretive state welcomed its first Western visitors in five years. North Korea sealed its borders in early 2020 at the start of the Covid pandemic, gradually lifting restrictions starting in mid-2023. The first tourists, a group from Russia, were allowed into the country in February 2024, but the first international visitors from other countries including Britain, Canada, France and Germany only arrived in North Korea for the first time last month. The visit by the Western group was limited to the remote northeastern city of Rason, which the North Korean government has designated a special economic zone. During the trip, they visited factories, shops and statues of late North Korean leaders. Unlike the Russians, they were not allowed to visit Pyongyang, the capital. Tour operators said Wednesday that travel to North Korea was no longer possible until further notice. It was unclear why North Korea had closed again to foreign visitors and how long the suspension would last. 'We have been informed that Rason is temporarily CLOSED,' Koryo Tours, a tour operator based in Beijing, said in a statement Wednesday. 'It's an unprecedented situation.' Other travel agencies that organize North Korea trips made similar announcements. 'We recommend that those planning tours in April and May refrain from booking flights until we have more information,' China-based Young Pioneer Tours said in a Facebook post, adding that refunds are available for tours that are canceled due to the abrupt change. Rason has operated differently from the rest of North Korea since it was declared a special economic zone in 1991. It has been used as a testing ground for new economic policies, the country's first mobile phone network and the first card payment system. Before the pandemic, North Korea had hosted hundreds of thousands of Chinese tourists who provided up to $175 million in extra revenue in 2019, according to the South Korea-based news outlet NK News. More recently, North Korea has been deepening ties with Russia, signing a mutual defense pact last year and sending weapons and troops to support President Vladimir Putin's war against Ukraine. In 2024, almost 900 Russian tourists visited North Korea, the South Korean Unification Ministry said, citing official Russian data. The United States banned its citizens from traveling to the country in 2017 after the death of American student Otto Warmbier. Warmbier, 22, a University of Virginia student, stole a propaganda banner from a hotel during a visit to Pyongyang in January 2016 and was later sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for committing a hostile act against the government. He was returned to the United States in a coma the following year and died shortly afterward. This article was originally published on
NBC News
06-03-2025
- Business
- NBC News
North Korea halts foreign tourism weeks after reopening to Western visitors
HONG KONG — North Korea has once again closed its borders, suspending foreign tourism just weeks after the secretive state welcomed its first Western visitors in five years. North Korea sealed its borders in early 2020 at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, gradually lifting restrictions starting in mid-2023. The first tourists, a group from Russia, were allowed into the country in February 2024, but the first international visitors from other countries including Britain, Canada, France and Germany only arrived in North Korea for the first time last month. The visit by the Western group was limited to the remote northeastern city of Rason, which the North Korean government has designated a special economic zone. During the trip they visited factories, shops and statues of late North Korean leaders. Unlike the Russians, they were not allowed to visit Pyongyang, the capital. Tour operators said Wednesday that travel to North Korea was no longer possible until further notice. It was unclear why North Korea had closed again to foreign visitors and how long the suspension would last. 'We have been informed that Rason is temporarily CLOSED,' Koryo Tours, a tour operator based in Beijing, said in a statement Wednesday. 'It's an unprecedented situation.' Other travel agencies that organize North Korea trips made similar announcements. 'We recommend that those planning tours in April and May refrain from booking flights until we have more information,' China-based Young Pioneer Tours said in a Facebook post, adding that refunds are available for tours that are canceled due to the abrupt change.
Saudi Gazette
06-03-2025
- Saudi Gazette
North Korea halts tourism just weeks after reopening
SEOUL — North Korea has stopped tourists from visiting, just weeks after the first Western tourists entered the country for the first time in five years. North Korea sealed itself off at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, and started to scale back restrictions in the middle of 2023. It opened up to Russian visitors in 2024, but it was only last month that Western tourists were allowed into the remote, eastern city Rason. However several tour companies now say that trips to the reclusive country have been canceled until further notice. Pyongyang has not given a reason for the sudden halt. "Just received news from our Korean partners that Rason is closed to everyone. We will keep you posted," China-based KTG Tours, which specializes in North Korean tours, said Wednesday on Facebook. Young Pioneer Tours and Koryo Tours were among the other agencies that have announced the suspension. Those planning tours in April and May should refrain from booking flights "until we have more information", Young Pioneer Tours said in a Facebook post. On 20 February, the first Western tourists started arriving in Rason, a city earmarked by the North as a special economic zone, to trial new financial policies. Tour operators told the BBC the visitors' movements were even more restricted than on pre-pandemic trips - they had fewer opportunities to wander the streets and talk to locals. Phone signals and internet access were also not available in the hermit state. One tour leader said he suspects Rason was picked because the area is relatively contained and easy to control. Earlier this week, Koryo Tours said it was accepting international applications for the Pyongyang Marathon for the first time in five years. The event is scheduled for 6 April but it is now unclear if these can still be processed. North Korea saw some 350,000 foreign tourists in 2019, of whom 90% were Chinese, according to media reports. — BBC
