North Korea reopening borders to Russian tourists for first time since pandemic

This Feb. 2, 2018, file photo released by North Korea's state media shows an athlete skiing down the slope at the Masikryong Ski Resort, near Wonsan, North Korea. A group of Russian tourists are expected to enter North Korea next month after the regime’s decision to open its borders to foreign visitors for the first time since the COVID-19 outbreak. Yonhap

A group of Russian tourists are expected to enter North Korea next month after the regime decided to open its borders to foreign visitors for the first time since the COVID-19 outbreak.

Authorities in the Russian Far East have started advertising a five-day tour to Pyongyang and the Masikryong Ski Resort in Kangwon Province, some 20 kilometers outside of Wonsan, saying in a social media post that the first group is scheduled to depart on Feb. 9.

During the three year pandemic, North Korea put itself in extreme isolation by imposing strict border controls. It is unclear whether it now plans to allow visitors from other countries as well, such as China, its most important economic partner.

Speaking to The Korea Times recently, analysts said North Korea will likely renew efforts to attract tourists as part of its broader attempt to revitalize the economy. In a sign of gearing up for such efforts, the authorities adopted a new law in August to “vitalize and expand” its tourism industry.

They said tourism is one of the few possible sources of hard currency for the North. Tourism has been excluded from the sanctions imposed by the U.N. and individual countries. Those sanctions specifically target “the transfer of bulk cash,” but not small sums of money visitors bring to the country.