North Korea is set to partially resume international tourism this year for the first time in about five years, travel agents said.
Koryo Tours, a Beijing-based travel agency specializing in tourism to North Korea, said on Thursday that tourism to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will resume in December of this year.
The tours will only be held in the North Korean city of Samjiyon, but the resumption may be expanded to other locations, Koryo Tours said.
A photo taken on September 13, 2019, shows a panoramic view of the northern North Korean city of Samjong. (Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images)
“After waiting more than four years to make this announcement, Koryo Tours is excited to reopen North Korea,” the company said in a press release.
The station said Samjiyon was chosen because it had recently been developed as a tourist destination, having visited the area in 2018 while filming the British documentary series “Michael Palin in North Korea.”
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Koryo Tours said it had received word from its North Korean partners that the itinerary and dates would be announced in the coming weeks.
“Once dates and itineraries are confirmed, they will be available for booking on our website,” the company said.
In this joint photo distributed by Russian state news agency Sputnik, North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un (second from right) listens to Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) during a meeting in Pyongyang on June 19, 2024. Putin enjoyed a red carpet welcome, military ceremony and a hug from his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong Un during his official visit to Pyongyang, where the two vowed to forge closer ties. (Photo by Kristina Kormilitsina/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
The hermit kingdom closed its borders at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, barring almost all foreigners from entering for business, travel or non-essential diplomatic ties – it only began to partially reopen them last year.
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The country has struggled to fully open up since the pandemic began, with the administration failing to develop the resources and infrastructure needed to effectively combat the spread of the virus within the country.
Timothy H.J. Nerozzi of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
