WNAM REPORT: North Korea has reopened tourism in the special economic zone of its northeastern border city Rason to foreign tourists, the website of a China-based travel agency showed Friday.
“North Korea has reopened tourism in Rason, it’s Special Economic Zone in the northeast of the country, according to our local DPRK partners,” the website of Young Pioneer Tours, a travel company specializing in North Korea tours, said. DPRK stands for the official name of North Korea, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“The official reopening is technically effective” from Thursday, it said, adding that this is only a “breaking story” and “things could change rapidly in the coming days.”
The tour agency also quoted partners and contacts to say that the plan is to open immediately for both Chinese and all other foreign guests, excluding Americans and South Koreans.
“It is anticipated that these initial trips will be for up to five days. Notably, Chinese visitors don’t even need full passports for these trips, as special single-entry travel permits to North Korea are arranged for them,” it noted.
Rason had been a frequent destination for foreign travelers before North Korea imposed border controls years ago due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Exempt from international sanctions related to North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, tourism has been a source of foreign currency income for the country.
Young Pioneer described Rason as the first special economic zone, which “operates under a different visa regime than the rest of North Korea.”
It is even considered “visa-free,” though visitors still need a travel permit, it said.
Compared with other parts of North Korea, Rason is “slightly freer” and offers tourists “the opportunity to see the business side” of the country, with visits to factories, the port, a foreign language school, a taekwondo school, a North Korean bank and more, it advertised.
Amid the border reopening, North Korea also began attracting participants for its annual Pyongyang International Marathon, scheduled for April, earlier this month by publishing application guidelines for an international audience on a website operated by the country’s sports ministry.
