Hopes of a surge in Russian tourism to North Korea following the country’s post-pandemic reopening were dampened last year, as only 881 Russian tourists visited the country, according to newly released statistics.
The Russian Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) reported on February 4 that a total of 2,008 Russian nationals visited North Korea in 2024. Among them, 881 visited for tourism, while 701 entered for transportation-related operations such as managing flights and trains connecting the two countries. Additionally, 247 Russians traveled for personal reasons, and 174 for business purposes.
The number of Russian tourists visiting North Korea in 2024 more than doubled compared to pre-pandemic levels, with 406 visitors recorded in 2019, 391 in 2018, and 209 in 2017.
However, despite these gains, the figures fell far short of expectations. When North Korea lifted its strict COVID-19 restrictions, many anticipated that thousands of Russian tourists would flock to the country after a four-year hiatus.
The first group of 97 Russian tourists arrived in Pyongyang via Sunan International Airport on February 9, 2024, marking the official resumption of Russian tourism to North Korea since the pandemic.
Following this, Russian travel agencies, with government support, actively promoted various North Korea tour packages to attract more visitors. The relaunch of a regular passenger train service between Russia’s Khasan Station and North Korea’s Tumen River Station in December 2024, operating three times a week, was also expected to boost tourism further.
Despite these efforts, the final tally of Russian tourist arrivals—881 visitors—fell significantly short of projections, based on Rosstat’s official border-crossing data.
BY YOUNGNAM KIM [kim.youngnam@koreadaily.com]
