{"id":3920,"date":"2025-08-02T05:49:20","date_gmt":"2025-08-02T05:49:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/inside-the-n-korean-resort-opened-by-kim-jong-un-and-what-russian-tourists-made-of-it\/"},"modified":"2025-08-02T05:49:20","modified_gmt":"2025-08-02T05:49:20","slug":"inside-the-n-korean-resort-opened-by-kim-jong-un-and-what-russian-tourists-made-of-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/inside-the-n-korean-resort-opened-by-kim-jong-un-and-what-russian-tourists-made-of-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside the N Korean resort opened by Kim Jong Un – and what Russian tourists made of it"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The world’s most secretive state is a mystery for billions of people – but not Anastasiya Samsonova.<\/p>\n

She has returned from a week’s holiday in North Korea<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

“We saw nothing terrible there, there is no danger there,” the 33-year-old HR manager tells me.<\/p>\n

“Frankly speaking, we really liked it.”<\/p>\n

She was part of a group of 15 Russian <\/strong>tourists who were the first foreign visitors to a new seaside resort, which was opened to great fanfare by North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un<\/strong> in June.<\/p>\n

Her holiday snaps show a white sand beach, shimmering seas and high-rise hotels. But something’s missing – people.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
<\/div>
\n Image:<\/span>
\n Anastasiya Samsonova at the Wonsan-Kalma beach resort in North Korea. Pic: Anastasiya Samsonova
\n <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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There are rows of sun loungers, but not a soul sitting on them. A glittering banquet hall that’s devoid of diners.<\/p>\n

That’s because, when it comes to international tourists, the Wonsan-Kalma resort is currently only open to Russians.<\/p>\n

“The hotel was absolutely new,” Anastasiya enthuses, unfussed by the absence of others.<\/p>\n

“Everything was done very beautifully, a good interior … very developed infrastructure.”<\/p>\n

\n
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\n \"Russian\n <\/div>
\n Image:<\/span>
\n Pic: Anastasiya Samsonova
\n <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

But why not Turkey<\/strong>? Or Thailand<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

I gently suggest that people in Britain might be shocked at the idea of a summer break in a country better known for famines and forced labour than parasols and pina coladas.<\/p>\n

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“We were interested in seeing how people live there,” Anastasiya explains.<\/p>\n

“There were a lot of prejudices about what you can and can’t do in North Korea, how you can behave. But actually, we felt absolutely free.”<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n \"Russian\n <\/div>
\n Image:<\/span>
\n Pic: Anastasiya Samsonova
\n <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Anastasiya is one of a growing number of Russians who are choosing to visit their reclusive neighbour as the two allies continue to forge closer ties following the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Last year, North Korean troops supplied military support in Russia’s Kursk region, and now there is economic cooperation too.<\/p>\n

North Korean produce, including apples and beer, has started appearing on supermarket shelves in Russia’s far east.<\/p>\n

And last month, Moscow launched direct passenger flights to Pyongyang for the first time in decades.<\/p>\n

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\n \"North\n <\/div>
\n Image:<\/span>
\n Pic: Danil Biryukov \/ DVHAB.RU
\n <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

But can this hermit nation really become a holiday hotspot?<\/p>\n

The Moscow office of the Vostok Intur travel agency believes so. The company runs twice-weekly tours there, and I’m being given the hard sell.<\/p>\n

“North Korea is an amazing country, unlike any other in the world,” director Irina Kobeleva gushes, before listing some unusual highlights.<\/p>\n

“It is a country where you will not see any advertising on the streets. And it is very clean – even the asphalt is washed.”<\/p>\n

She shows me the brochures, which present a glossy paradise. There are images of towering monuments, pristine golf greens and immaculate ski slopes. But again, no people.<\/p>\n

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\n
\n \"Irina\n <\/div>
\n Image:<\/span>
\n ‘There is a huge growing demand among young people,’ Irina Kobeleva says
\n <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Ms Kobeleva insists the company’s tours are increasingly popular, with 400 bookings a month.<\/p>\n

“Our tourists are mostly older people who want to return to the USSR,” she says, “because there is a feeling that the real North Korea is very similar to what was once in the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n

“But at the same time, there is a huge growing demand among young people.”<\/p>\n

Sure enough, while we’re chatting, two customers walk in to book trips. The first is Pavel, a young blogger who likes to “collect” countries. North Korea will be number 89.<\/p>\n

“The country has opened its doors to us, so I’m taking this chance,” he tells me when I ask why he wants to go.<\/p>\n

Read more from Sky News:
Trump’s tariffs are back – here’s who is in his sights this time
Coca-Cola and Brewdog beer on Russian shelves despite sanctions<\/strong><\/p>\n

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For pensioner Tatiana, the reason is sentimental.<\/p>\n

“My husband wanted to go there, but now he’s gone. So I want his wish to come true,” she says.<\/p>\n

It’ll certainly cost them. One week’s trip that takes in Pyongyang, a circus and the new beach resort, costs roughly £1,500 without flights.<\/p>\n

At that price, I suspect most tourists will be content for this secretive state to remain hidden.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Inside the N Korean resort opened by Kim Jong Un – and what Russian tourists made of it<\/sub><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The world’s most secretive state is a mystery for billions of people – but not Anastasiya Samsonova. She has returned from a week’s holiday in North Korea. “We saw nothing terrible there, there is no danger there,” the 33-year-old HR manager tells me. “Frankly speaking, we really liked it.” She was part of a group…<\/p>\n

Read More “Inside the N Korean resort opened by Kim Jong Un – and what Russian tourists made of it”<\/span> »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3921,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3920","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3920","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3920"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3920\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3921"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jobuzo.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}