A group of British tourists, who became the first foreign tourists to visit North Korea after a five-year pause, shared their impressions. Tourism to the country was resumed only last week, after years of isolation of North Korea during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is reported by the BBC, UNN writes.
Details
According to the BBC, North Korea closed its borders at the beginning of the pandemic, preventing diplomats, humanitarian workers, and tourists from entering, making it virtually impossible to get information about what is happening there.
Since then, it has further isolated itself from much of the world, relying on support from Russia and China. Many doubted whether Western citizens would ever be allowed to return.
However, after years of persuasion, several tour leaders got the green light. So tourists from the UK, France, Germany, and Australia traveled to North Korea’s Rason Province, where they spent four days visiting local businesses and infrastructure. However, the experience of the trip was often limited by the tight control of local guides who followed an approved schedule. The tourists had no access to telephone, Internet, or ATMs, and their time was strictly regulated.
Among the tourists was 28-year-old British YouTuber Mike O’Kennedy. Despite his reputation, he was shocked by the extreme level of control. As with all trips to North Korea, the tourists were accompanied by local guides who followed a strict, pre-approved schedule. It included carefully planned trips to a brewery, a school, and a new, fully stocked pharmacy.
Ben Weston, one of the tour leaders from Suffolk, compared visiting North Korea to a “school trip”. “You can’t leave the hotel without guides,
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A few times I even had to tell them when I wanted to use the restroom. “I have never had to do that anywhere in the world.
For now, tourists are being kept away from the capital Pyongyang. Greg Vazzi of Koryo Tours admits that the current itinerary lacks Pyongyang’s “big attractions.” He suspects that the authorities chose Rason as a guinea pig because the area is relatively isolated and easy to control.
Created as a special economic zone to test new financial policies, it operates as a mini-capitalist enclave within the rest of the socialist state. Chinese businessmen run joint ventures with North Koreans and can enter and leave quite freely.
Joe Smith, an experienced North Korea traveler and former author of the specialized platform NK News, visited the country on his third trip. “I think the more times you go there, the less you know. Each time you look behind the curtain a little bit, which leaves you with even more questions,
Joe’s highlight was an unexpected visit to a luxury goods market selling jeans and perfume, as well as fake Louis Vuitton bags and Japanese washing machines, probably imported from China. Here, tourists were not allowed to take pictures – as they suspected, it was an attempt to hide this consumer bubble from the rest of the country.
It was the only place where people did not expect us. It seemed dirty and real; a place where North Koreans actually go. I liked it,
However, according to the experienced guides, the group’s movements were more restricted than during previous trips, and there were fewer opportunities to wander the streets, visit a hairdresser or supermarket, and talk to locals.
Covid was often cited as a reason, said Greg from Koryo Tours.
“At first glance, they are still concerned.
Our luggage was disinfected at the border, our temperature was taken, and about 50% of people are still wearing masks,” Greg said.
COVID-19 is believed to have hit North Korea hard, although it is difficult to assess the extent of the suffering.
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Local guides repeated the government’s line that the virus entered the country on a balloon sent from South Korea and was quickly eliminated in 90 days.
One of the few chances that tourists get in North Korea to interact with locals is through their guides, who sometimes speak English. On these recent trips, they were surprisingly well-informed, despite the regime’s powerful propaganda machine and information blockade.
They knew about Trump’s tariffs and the war in Ukraine-even that North Korean troops were involved. But when Joe showed a photo from Syria, his guide didn’t know that President Assad had been overthrown. “I carefully explained that sometimes when people don’t like their leader, they rise up and oust him, and at first he didn’t believe me.
Such conversations need to be conducted delicately. Strict laws do not allow North Koreans to speak freely. Ask or tell too much and tourists can put their guide or themselves at risk.
According to Greg from Koryo Tours, such interaction brings a deeper meaning to tourism in North Korea: “North Koreans get the opportunity to communicate with foreigners. This allows them to come up with something new, which is very important in such a closed country.
But tourism to North Korea is controversial, especially after travelers were allowed to return earlier than humanitarian workers and most Western diplomats, including British ones. Critics, including Joanna Hosaniak of the Citizens Alliance for Human Rights in North Korea, argue that these trips mainly benefit the regime.
This is not like tourism in other poor countries, where locals receive additional income. The vast majority of the population does not know about the existence of these tourists. Their money goes to the state and ultimately to its military,
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