Seaside resort in Kim Jong-un’s hometown prepares to ‘welcome tourists’

North Korea is reportedly finishing final preparations ahead of the opening of the Wonsan seaside resort in Kangwon Province, one of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s signature projects.

Individual tourism is not subject to United Nations Security Council sanctions, so it could serve as a means of earning foreign currency for North Korea. However, experts point out that there are many hurdles to overcome, including recruiting foreign tourists and improving North Korea’s poor infrastructure.

U.S.-based North Korea-focused outlet 38 North analyzed satellite images taken on Sunday of the Wonsan-Kalma Coastal Tourist Zone on Monday. Beach furniture items such as sunbeds appear to be arranged at regular intervals along the sandy shore, 38 North explained, according to the satellite photos.

“Work that had been taking place at several places around the resort appears to have finished, most visibly at the water park, where colorful furniture has been installed,” wrote 38 North. “There are not yet any obvious event preparations visible, such as a temporary stage, boards with propaganda slogans or a red carpet.”

Kim Jong-un visited the area on Dec. 29 last year, immediately after the end-of-year Workers’ Party plenary meeting, and previewed hotel and resort facilities. At the time, he announced that the resort would open for full operation in June.

North Korea had designated the Wonsan Myongsasipri area as a special tourism zone back in 2014 and began development into a comprehensive tourist complex linked to the Mount Kumgang tourism zone and the Masikryong Ski Resort.

The initial goal was to complete construction by April 15, 2019, which is Kim Il Sung’s birthday, but the project was delayed due to sanctions and supply disruptions caused by border closures amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

North Korea is expected to use Wonsan, where the new resort is — and reportedly Kim Jong-un’s hometown — as a flagship tourism hub to earn foreign currency and promote propaganda. Kim was born at a Wonsan guesthouse, according to some accounts.

In the 1960s, Wonsan was the port of arrival for repatriation ships from Japan, and Kim Jong-un’s mother, Ko Yong-hui, who was of repatriate Japanese-Korean origin, was reportedly referred to as “the woman from Wonsan” by North Korea’s elite.

In line with the resort’s completion, North Korea is working to attract overseas tourists.

“Foreign tourists are expressing surprise at how the huge coastal tourist area in Myongsasipri on the East Sea is becoming more luxurious by the day and are showing willingness to visit once tours begin,” said Jang Hyun-il, a department head at North Korea’s state-run Korea International Travel Company, in an interview published in the Cabinet newspaper on Saturday.

“To welcome tourists, we are conducting preparatory work such as updating tour commentary materials, developing unique tourism resources, revising itineraries and analyzing global tourism trends,” Jang added.

North Korea is also striving to build tourism infrastructure in Samjiyon, Ryanggang Province, near Mount Paektu, which it claims is the anti-Japanese revolutionary base of Kim Il Sung and the birthplace of Kim Jong-il.

Samjiyon houses an international tourism complex established in November 2016 on Kim Jong-un’s orders. It is close to the Chinese border and was aimed at attracting Chinese tourists.

However, the facility was completed in December 2019 just as Covid-19 began to spread, which prevented it from being properly used. Since July last year, North Korea has been developing the area into a complex mountain tourism zone, a four-season mountain tourism area, and a Mount Paektu tourism and cultural district.

Despite this, experts point out that attracting foreign tourists is the key for the Wonsan Kalma Coastal Tourist Area and other tourist sites in North Korea to become true sources of foreign currency.

While North Korea is expected to focus on attracting tourists from ally nations like China and Russia, whether it can attract visitors in meaningful numbers remains uncertain. The country’s poor transportation and logistics infrastructure make access difficult, and the severe cold weather following long harsh winters is another obstacle.

“This is a strategy to exploit loopholes in sanctions for foreign currency earning, but ultimately, the problem lies in attracting tourists,” said Jung Yoo-suk, a research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification. “It appears to be part of a strategy to diversify sources of foreign revenue in preparation for the post–Russia-Ukraine war landscape.”

BY CHUNG YEONG-GYO, LEE YU-JUNG  [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]