North Korea Shuts Borders to Tourists Again Weeks After Opening
North Korea has abruptly halted foreign tourism just weeks after allowing Western visitors into the country for the first time in five years. Multiple tour companies, including KTG Tours, Young Pioneer Tours, and Koryo Tours, announced on Wednesday that travel to the northeastern city of Rason was suspended until further notice.
"Just received news from our Korean partners that Rason is closed to everyone. We will keep you posted," KTG Tours posted on Facebook. The North Korean government has not provided any explanation for the sudden shutdown.
International travel to North Korea had been shut down since early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with restrictions gradually easing in 2023. The country welcomed its first Russian tourist group in early 2024, and last month, travelers from Britain, Canada, France, and Germany were finally allowed entry.
Rason, a special economic zone near the Chinese border, was the only place Western tourists were allowed to visit when the country briefly reopened. Unlike Russian tourists, who could enter Pyongyang, Western visitors were limited to Rason and had stricter movement restrictions. Their visit included factory and shop tours, as well as stops at monuments of North Korean leaders. However, phone signals and internet access were still unavailable, and tourists had limited interaction with locals. Tourists were not permitted to photograph rural areas, where visible poverty was evident.
The sudden closure raises uncertainty about upcoming events like the Pyongyang Marathon, scheduled for April 6th. Koryo Tours had announced earlier this week that it was accepting international applications for the race, but it is now unclear whether those applications will be processed. Meanwhile, tour operators are advising travelers who planned to visit in April and May to hold off on booking flights until further updates.
Before the pandemic, North Korea received approximately 350,000 foreign visitors annually, with 90% coming from China. In 2019, tourism generated an estimated $175 million in revenue. More recently, North Korea has strengthened its ties with Russia, sending weapons and troops to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine. It remains unclear whether political factors played a role in the sudden border closure.
