SEOUL (AFP) - Foreign tourism is "booming" in North Korea, state media said Tuesday a week after the country triggered global outrage by conducting its third nuclear test.
The number of foreign visitors to the North has grown steadily since 2000 and witnessed a surge after 2009, especially in the number of European visitors, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
"The global popularity of tourism to (North Korea) is booming," the agency said, without providing any breakdown on the number of visitors.
A range of "shining, socialist accomplishments" made under the leadership of the ruling Kim family have elevated North Korea's status and sparked interest in travelling to the country, KCNA said.
It did not mention if the "accomplishments" included its long-range rocket launch in December -- condemned as a disguised ballistic missile test -- or the February 12 nuclear test.
"Most tourists gave positive reviews about their experiences in (North Korea) on the Internet and other media ... and the range of travel routes is expanding," KCNA said.
North Korea's direct air links with other countries are extremely limited, with China the main conduit for most travellers heading to Pyongyang.
The state carrier, Air Koryo, also flies to the Czech Republic, Hungary, Malaysia, Switzerland, Russia and Thailand, according to its website.
North Korea is not a cheap tourist destination, as the hard currency-strapped nation charges high prices for everything from beer to accommodation.
More on North Korea
Gallery: Daily Life in North Korea
Gallery: Inside North Korean theme parks: even soldiers need to play
16 Comments
All the negative comments posted here are just what Robert says, "imaginary" !!!! That's the unfortunate thing about Australians, they actually believe their own publicity, which is polite way of saying, "they believe their own #$%$ cleverly thinking they've disguised it as "fact" !!! But the rest of us generally know better !!!! lol
1 Reply40 million people in America are hungry and homeless, how does North Korea look in comparison, In Australia I dont need to tell you how our indigenous folk are looked after or our elderly for that matter, you biased and uneducated bafoons can it ok
1 Replywhy would someone want to go to a country where the ruler starves its own people due to wasting money on armaments...lol@Ian.those bombs america dropped on the #$%$ helped stop the war..Hiroshima was Japans main supply depot for their army.Damn i would drop one on them now lol for fun.And on China...
2 RepliesSnuff tourism. Would you have liked to visit operation concentration camps as well?
1 ReplyGotta love North Korean propaganda, pure BS at it's finest, i especially loved this quote from the North Korean tourist agency, A range of "shining, socialist accomplishments" made under the leadership of the ruling Kim family have elevated North Korea's status and sparked interest in travelling to the country, KCNA said. LOL, apart from building missles and nuclear warheads North Korea hasn't achieved anything else, it's a disaster and a country thats in shambles, the people there are starving and it's economy is dead. No one outside of North Korean is going to be silly enough and naive enough to believe the propaganda.
1 Reply