North Korea’s Kim Jong Un knows how to make headlines — whether it’s for his undeniably impressive body transformation or 90-carriage armoured train. Now, he’s back in the news cycle with plans to re-open his prized if controversial nation to tourists… but there might be more to this story than meets the eye.

As North Korea gears up to reopen its borders to international tourism for the first time in nearly five long post-COVID years, it appears that there’s more lurking beneath the surface than just a kindly desire to let the outside world into the tightly controlled communist fortress. This delicately orchestrated “VIP” tourist plan, set to commence in December this year, obfuscates a far more strategic agenda behind the Hermit Kingdom’s carefully controlled tourism reboot.

A ‘VIP’ Experience With Added Propaganda

North Korea’s decision to reopen tourism — centred in the first instance around the city of Samjiyon —is part of a bid to rekindle economic activity in the increasingly isolated nation. However, experts warn that what is being pitched as a wholly benign move is actually a calculated effort to promote the regime’s notorious ideological narrative.

Samjiyon is far from being a randomly selected location — it’s the purported birthplace of Kim Jong Il, former North Korean leader and father of current leader Kim Jong Un. The city, which sits at the foot of Mount Paektu, is a site deeply embedded in the mythos of the Kim dynasty. A geopolitical analyst who has spent years studying North Korea’s inner workings said this:

“This isn’t just about tourism — it’s about reinforcing the cult of personality surrounding the Kim family… By directing tourists, especially those from ‘friendly’ nations like China and Russia, to these highly symbolic locations, the regime is effectively exporting its propaganda under the guise of tourism.”

Hidden Costs

While the official itinerary for these tours is yet to be signed off and released, early clues suggest a heavy emphasis on sites that glorify the regime. Kim Jong Un’s recent inspections of Samjiyon and the Wonsan-Kalma tourism zone underline the regime’s intention to showcase a meticulously curated version of North Korea to the outside world which, you’ll be unsurprised to hear, is a pretty distant vision from the day-to-day reality experienced by citizens…

Beneath the veneer of a “VIP” experience lies the repressive reality of North Korea’s continued human rights abuses. The tourism sector, which has long provided the regime with much-needed foreign currency, has long been criticised for indirectly funding the country’s military ambitions, including its increasingly aggressive nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

Human rights advocates gave this statement in response to the news:

“Every dollar spent by tourists in North Korea is a dollar that could be used to further the regime’s oppressive policies… While these tours may offer a glimpse of the country’s beauty, they also come with the moral burden of supporting a government that has isolated its people and suppressed dissent for decades.”

Would you pack your bags and head across the DMZ for a week away? Or would you rather stick to a few days in Ibiza with the boys?