North Korea tourism: Country to finally open its borders to tourists for first time since Covid-19 pandemic

Nearly all tourists have been shut out of the country since 2020 due to Covid restrictions but tour companies now say the border into the city of Samjiyon, and possibly the rest of the country, is set to open again. Since the pandemic only a small group of private Russian tourists have been allowed into the country and the Russian President Vladimir Putin visited in June.

Beijing-based company Koryo Tours said it was "very excited for the opening of North Korean tourism once again". The travel firm said itineraries would be confirmed in the coming weeks, with international tourism to Samjiyon set to resume in December. Located just ten miles from North Korea's border with China, Samjiyon will be easily accessible for tourists via a land crossing, according to a spokesman for Koryo Tours.

The city is close to Mount Paektu, the tallest mountain in the country which has immense cultural significance to both North and South Koreans, New apartments, a ski resort and commercial, cultural and medical facilities have been built in Samjiyon as part of a project to create a "highly-civilised mountain city".

More than 10,000 new hotel rooms are also being built near the Wonsan-Kalma international airport on the east coast of North Korea in preparation for international visitors, and additional buildings dedicated to the tourism industry are popping up across the country. Chief Executive of US-based analysis firm Korea Risk Group, Chad O'Carroll, told the BBC he had doubts about the reopening of North Korea's borders.

He said that the city of Samjiyon is not yet complete. Mr O’Carroll told BBC News: “If it does get completed in time, I can imagine only Russian tourists and possibly Chinese visiting in any real numbers at first. Unless [the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] offers direct Samjiyon flights to a neutral connection country like Mongolia, I will believe it when I see it. For now, I am quite sceptical we will see any real movement in December.”