Kim Jong Un personally cut the ribbon on a new resort hailed by state media as a “national treasure-level tourism city” — a lavish seaside development set against what human rights observers describe as stark realities of hunger and hardship across North Korea.
According to the country’s official KCNA news service, Kim opened the sprawling Kalma beachside resort with waterparks, high-rise hotels, and accommodation for nearly 20,000 guests — a sweeping display of extravagance in one of the world’s most reclusive nations.
The Wonsan-Kalma Coastal Tourist Zone, unveiled in a ceremony on June 24, is on North Korea’s eastern coast. KCNA reported “service for domestic guests will begin July 1,” but gave no details on eligibility or transportation.
Earlier this month, North Korea announced the opening of Kalma train station, reporting it was built to “ensure a high level of convenience for travelers to the coastal tourist area.” The Kalma beach resort is next to an international airport, another indication the project is aimed at attracting foreign currency.
International attendance at the ribbon-cutting was limited to the Russian ambassador and staff, a nod to Pyongyang’s growing alignment with Moscow amid deepening isolation from the West under Kim’s authoritarian regime.
In 2024 UN human rights chief Volker Turk described North Korea under Kim’s rule as “a stifling, claustrophobic environment, where life is a daily struggle devoid of hope.”
Last year, small groups of Russian tourists visited North Korea for three-day ski holidays at Maskiryong resort, which has been a long-standing tourist attraction since its opening in December 2013. These, like all tourist experiences in North Korea, were heavily monitored and controlled by the government.
Returning tourists told CNN that they were subject to strict rules about what they could and could not photograph and were required to watch a choreographed dance performance by North Korean children in addition to the outdoor activities.
“Wonsan-Kalma is open to just North Koreans for now, but we should not be surprised to see Russians at the resort in the not-too-distant future,” said Rachel Minyoung Lee, a non-resident fellow with the 38 North program at the Stimson Center.
“More broadly, the opening of a major beach resort like Wonsan-Kalma helps to reinforce the state media narrative of Kim’s people-first policy and helps to balance out his greater focus on building up national defense,” Lee added.
In a country where international tourism has been open mostly to Russian nationals since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, and where domestic travel is heavily restricted, the new development raises familiar questions about access, audience, and economic feasibility.
“The initial target for this resort is going to be the privileged domestic elite of Pyongyang, such as party officials and other high-ranking figures,” said Lim Eul-chul, a professor of North Korean Studies at South Korea’s Kyungnam University.
“The ceremony of the Wonsan-Kalma resort reflects Kim Jong Un’s vision of ‘socialist civilization’ and is part of his strategic effort to seek economic breakthroughs through the tourism industry.”
North Korea’s most notable experiment with international tourism came in the late 1990s, when it opened the scenic Mount Kumgang area on its southeastern coast to visitors from South Korea.
The project was hailed as a rare symbol of inter-Korean engagement during a period of cautious rapprochement.
Nearly two million South Koreans traveled to the site over the next decade, providing Pyongyang with a critical stream of hard currency.
But the initiative came to an abrupt halt in 2008, after a North Korean soldier fatally shot a South Korean tourist who had reportedly wandered into a restricted military zone – an incident that underscored the fragility of cross-border cooperation and led Seoul to suspend the tours indefinitely.
Many of the sites were demolished in 2022, including the Onjonggak Rest House hotel which had hosted cross-border family reunions. Kim had previously called the area “shabby” and “backward” during a visit.
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Indeed, a central question surrounding the new resort is if one of the world’s most secretive and repressive countries is prepared to make a greater foray into international tourism, potentially adding to its foreign cash reserves and prestige.
So far, Russians appear to be the only foreign tour groups granted access to the beach resort. Vostok Intur, a Vladivostok-based travel agency, is promoting three tour packages – one in July and two in August – priced at around $1,840.
According to its website, the first tour is scheduled to begin on July 7 and will last eight days. Travel
Content adapted by the team from the original source: https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/26/travel/north-korea-kalma-beach-resort-tourism-intl-hnk
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