North Korea will likely reopen to tourists from all over the world in the second half of the year, according to a company specializing in DPRK travel, after Russian tourists recently became the first foreign travelers to visit the country since the start of the pandemic.
In a statement on its website, Young Pioneer Tours (YPT) said it anticipates a resumption of foreign tours as early as July but cautioned that North Korean authorities have not provided a set date.
“Young Pioneer Tour managers recently visited China to meet with our North Korean travel partners to discuss when North Korea will reopen in 2024,” the tour operator said. “The good news is that it seems that it will most likely reopen this year, but no further specifics have been confirmed.”
“As per our discussions, embassy and tourism personnel are leaning towards opening ‘in the later half of the year,’ with this being interpreted as July 2024,” according to the travel firm.
At least four Russian tour groups have traveled to the DPRK since early February, most recently during the holiday period around founding leader Kim Il Sung’s birth anniversary, and more tours are in the works for the coming months.
But North Korea has remained closed to tourists from all other countries, including China, the DPRK’s biggest source of foreign tourists before it shut its borders in Jan. 2020.
Despite YPT’s optimism about a reopening, a representative of another North Korea-focused tour company cast doubt on its claim this will happen in July.
Zoe Stephens of Koryo Tours told NK News that their staff has also “been in constant contact with our North Korean partners throughout the border closure period, meeting up directly with them at least once a year.” She said they told the firm on Tuesday that “there is no solid information that borders will open in July.”
“Any speculation that a border opening in July is confirmed is just that — speculation,” Stephens said.
YPT previously raised the possibility of an opening for Western tourists in April, and other tourism organizations have also promoted DPRK trips that ultimately did not come to pass.
PRICE SPIKE
In its statement on Wednesday, YPT reiterated its anticipation that prices for traveling to North Korea will increase when the country reopens to tourists, “although the amount is likely to be very reasonable and not be over 20%.”
The company previously said that the DPRK plans to switch from euro to dollar payments for tours, a move it said would result in a price increase of around 20%.
Stephens said Koryo Tours has also been informed about pricing changes and expects an increase of “around 5% for most tours to reflect the increased charges from our partners.”
North Korea’s decision to raise prices for tourists shouldn’t come as a surprise, according to Joon-myoung Woo, a deputy director of the North Korean Economic Studies Team at the Bank of Korea.
“Right now, there isn’t a place in the world where prices haven’t risen internationally. So, if North Korea opens up its markets, it’s natural that they would reflect such aspects more than before the pandemic,” the expert said.
Rowan Beard of YPT told NK News that there will be “no quotas” on tourist numbers and “no restrictions” on nationalities once the DPRK allows tourists back in, citing his conversations with North Korean officials. Authorities also will not require travelers to submit proof of COVID-19 vaccinations or wear masks, he said.
While a Russian travel company recently included the border city of Kaesong on an itinerary, Beard said he was told access to the Demilitarized Zone might be restricted because of the DPRK’s “new policy of removing reunification.”
At the end of last year, leader Kim Jong Un characterized the two Koreas as separate enemy states at war and suggested reunification was “impossible.” This marked a significant departure from North Korea’s long-standing policy of seeking peaceful unification.
“Other sites are expected to remain accessible for tourists once reopened, such as North Hamgyong Province, and the Rason Special Economic Zone,” Beard said.
He added that YPT is getting close to opening up the North Korean town of Manpho on the China border to tourism, describing this as a years-long project. The town and the surrounding Jagang Province have remained largely off-limits to Westerners, though Chinese tourists have been allowed to visit for decades.
Choi Ji-young, a research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said that the expected resumption of tourism and increase in prices suggest North Korea wants tourism to become a major source of foreign currency amid “prolonged sanctions” on the country.
However, she said the DPRK would need to build more hotels and develop its tourism resources to provide more places for tourists to spend money.
“Because they don’t have a great capacity for such infrastructure, it seems unlikely that tourism could generate significant foreign currency income.”
Choi said North Korea’s belated reopening to tourists also aligns with its cautious approach to COVID-19 in recent years.
“North Korea implemented very strong border closures during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to other countries. And it started reopening trade much later than others,” the expert explained. “Considering that, resuming tourism now doesn’t seem like an unusual phenomenon.”
The DPRK began allowing select foreign delegations and its own citizens to enter the country last year, but despite reported plans for a broader reopening to foreign tourists, the country continues to keep its doors shut to foreign aid workers, even as humanitarian groups push to return to coordinate the delivery of much-needed aid.
Edited by Bryan Betts
North Korea will likely reopen to tourists from all over the world in the second half of the year, according to a company specializing in DPRK travel, after Russian tourists recently became the first foreign travelers to visit the country since the start of the pandemic.
In a statement on its website, Young Pioneer Tours (YPT) said it anticipates a resumption of foreign tours as early as July but cautioned that North Korean authorities have not provided a set date.
