North Korean beachside ‘tourist city’ to put industry on track for ‘epochal development’

North Korea is set to open a long-awaited luxury beachfront “tourist city” later this year on the Kalma peninsula as the “first big step” to developing the country’s tourism industry. 

The resort complex comprises about 150 hotels, restaurants and attractions being built along the 5-kilometre Myongsasimni beach near the city of Wonsan on the east coast.

The area was previously used as a missile testing site.

State media has released a series of photos showing the country’s supreme leader Kim Jong Un inspecting the facilities with his daughter Kim Ju Ae.

“The construction of the Kalma coastal tourist area is the first big step of great significance in putting the national tourist industry on a track of epochal development,” Mr Kim was quoted as saying.

‘One single, giant complex’

US-based North Korea expert Jacob Bogle said the state-owned resort complex would be the biggest tourism development in the country and likely the largest single-owner resort complex in the world once completed.

Mr Bogle said it was often compared to the Benidorm area of Spain’s Costa Blanca — a destination famous for its hotels, beaches, and skyscrapers, which a North Korean fact-finding mission visited in 2017.

“But Benidorm is a collection of different resorts and hotels owned by different companies built up over years and years,” he said.

“Wonsan is one single, giant complex and, as far as I’m aware, there aren’t any other single-owner beach resorts on this scale.”

Mr Bogle, who has developed a comprehensive map of North Korea, said there would also be an aquarium and sports facilities at the resort complex.

However, he said tourism in North Korea was traditionally conducted in groups — from factories, workplaces, farms or schools — with highly restricted itineraries.

“You would be able to do just about anything [at the resort] that you could elsewhere, you’re just not really going to be able to leave,” he said.

“Once you’re there, you’re there for your trip.”

Delayed by the pandemic

Planning for the Wonsan-Kalma resort project began in about 2014 with construction expected to be completed in 2019.

However, after some initial delays work stopped completely during the pandemic.

At one stage, the half-finished construction site was reportedly taken over by “kkotjebi” — a Korean word for homeless people.

Last year, observers noted progress restarting and North Korean state media announced it would finally open in May 2025 with that date now being pushed back to June.

Tourism not subject to sanctions

Mr Kim was quoted as saying that North Korea’s advantages included “rich and diverse tourist resources to be envied by the world”.

“If the tourist industry is developed by making active use of such favourable conditions and environment, it will open up a new realm of socialist cultural construction and bring about another motive force for promoting regional rejuvenation and national economic growth,” he said.

He said that along with other tourism developments at Mt Kumgang and in the Samjiyon area, it would boost the regional economy and people’s living standards and “give a complete facelift to the appearance of the country”.

North Korea is subject to a range of sanctions, primarily over its nuclear weapons program, that have crippled its economy.

Alexander Hynd, a lecturer at the University of Melbourne’s Asia Institute, said hosting foreign tourists was a way for North Korea to obtain foreign currency.

Dr Hynd added it was also important for Mr Kim to demonstrate that his government was able to follow through on its plans for these kinds of large infrastructure projects.

“My sense is that the primary target market will be North Korea’s neighbours to the north, predominantly Russia and China, but North Korea also has a modest domestic tourism industry,” he said.

North Korea’s borders finally began to reopen last year following the pandemic with the first tourists a group of Russians.

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The North Korean state-owned travel agency Korean International Travel Company also released a video last year spruiking the country’s beaches to Russian tourists.

“As a result of the growing political ties between Pyongyang and Moscow it could be that there is a particular emphasis on Russian tourists, but Chinese tourists would still likely be considered a major potential market, too,” Dr Hynd said.

“If in the future relations were to improve between North Korea and other states, it is possible that tourists from other states would be welcomed too.”

Australian National University Korean studies lecturer Leonid Petrov said Mr Kim’s focus had historically been on providing facilities for the domestic tourism market.

“They welcome friendly foreigners like Russians, Chinese, perhaps some other nations who they believe would not bring any complications or risk to North Korea and North Korean workers, but predominantly it’s going to be focused on the domestic market,” he said.

If travel restrictions are lifted, Australians should be able to visit North Korea.

However, the Australian government’s Smarttraveller website advises Australians not to for a range of reasons including that North Korea is still technically at war with South Korea.

North Korea is also a totalitarian dictatorship with among the worst human rights records of any country in the world, according to rights groups.

Dr Hynd highlighted that a South Korean tourist was shot dead during a visit to North Korea in 2008 after she allegedly strayed into a restricted area.

“Personally I might find it hard to relax by the beach considering this kind of associated risk, but I could imagine some Australians being interested in the unusual nature of tourism in North Korea,” he said.

Construction work appears complete

Mr Bogle said some infrastructure work was still underway on the Kalma-Wonsan resort complex including upgrading a local sewage treatment facility.

He said whether it would be finished by the current deadline may depend on Mr Kim’s ability to obtain the luxury furnishings needed to fit-out the interiors.

“From the air, from satellite, it looks very much complete,” he said.

Mr Bogle said following a visit by Mr Kim last year, an apparently finished open-air theatre was demolished and rebuilt about 100 metres down the beach.

“I like to think that Kim, he just didn’t like the view and had it moved over,” he said.

“But that also could be some of why there has been delays.”