North Korea plans to fully activate its major tourist facilities nationwide starting May 1 and systematically monetize them through year-end to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the ruling party’s founding.
According to a Daily NK source in Kangwon province recently, the Cabinet issued an order to provincial people’s committees’ planning bureaus on April 22, directing them to develop and submit tourism product plans. The order requires plans to categorize tourists into four groups with tiered pricing structures.
The four categories include foreigners (category 1), high-ranking officials and wealthy individuals (category 2), families and ordinary citizens (category 3), and organizational trips such as workplace excursions (category 4). Provincial planning bureaus must implement graduated fees for each tourist destination and activity based on these categories.
The Cabinet provided basic guidelines, instructing bureaus to offer category 1 tourists tailored products featuring premium itineraries, professional guides, and luxury accommodations, while category 2 products should include preferred scheduling and upscale options.
Products for category 3 tourists should provide standard itineraries and basic amenities, while category 4 tours organized by enterprises, farms, schools, or other institutions should follow regular excursion routes.
The Cabinet urged planners to actively develop year-round tourism products regardless of season, utilizing not only major destinations like Pyongyang, Samjiyon, Rason, Nampo, Wonsan-Kalma, Yangdok Hot Springs, Mt. Paekdu, Mt. Kumgang, and Mt. Chilbo, but also coastal beaches and recreational facilities such as water parks, pools, ski slopes, equestrian centers, and rollerskating rinks.
“Provincial planning bureau officials had already received advance notice of the directive by phone, and provinces began implementation after the official written order arrived on April 22,” the source said.
Kangwon province’s planning bureau intended to submit a comprehensive plan to the Cabinet by late April, including pricing for tourist destinations and activities, operational strategies, and annual revenue targets.
As a result, officials worked late hours, collaborating intensively with relevant local agencies and financial managers to develop plans for renovating tourism infrastructure, implementing tiered fee structures, and projecting expected income.
“Officials tasked with creating these plans had to work overtime,” the source noted. “They rushed to complete the necessary administrative procedures, including preparing infrastructure and service improvements for tourist sites and establishing pricing guidelines.”
The source said that Kangwon province’s people’s committee was pushing hard to meet this year’s financial quota before the Oct. 10 celebration of the ruling party’s founding through aggressive promotion of tourism and the new monetization system.
