"Unable to Depart on Departure Day" Chinese Group Tours to North Korea Opened After 5 Years Ultimately Canceled

Tour Information Remains on Agency Website... Advertisements Removed
Speculation That Chinese Authorities Raised Issues Over Tourism

Chinese travel agencies have consecutively launched tourism packages to North Korea, which had been suspended for five years, but it is reported that the tours were abruptly halted without even starting.

On the 24th, Yonhap News, citing the local travel industry, reported that the North Korean Rason City 3-night 4-day tour program organized by the Beijing travel agency 'Zixinghui' did not operate on the originally scheduled departure date.

North Korea Rason Tour Package Departing on the 24th by a Chinese Travel Agency. Zixinghui Website

As recently as the 18th, Zixinghui announced, "With special permission from Joseon (North Korea), we will organize the first Chinese private travel group in five years to deeply explore Rason on the 24th," selling packages priced at 3,599 yuan (about 720,000 KRW) and 4,599 yuan (about 920,000 KRW).

According to the itinerary announced by the travel agency, tourists were supposed to gather at 9:40 a.m. at the Quanhe (圈河) trade zone in Hunchun, Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture, Jilin Province, a border area between North Korea and China, and cross into North Korea. However, it is reported that the group tourists did not depart on that day.

Although the Rason tour information remains on the company's website, the advertisement that had been posted on the Chinese version of KakaoTalk, WeChat official account, has disappeared. A Chinese travel agency A, which sold similar Rason tour packages, stated on the same day that "the Tourism Bureau (a local Chinese government agency responsible for tourism under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism) has banned travel and promotion."

Regarding this situation, there is speculation that the Chinese side may have taken issue with Chinese travel agencies promoting individual business inspection trips to Rason, originally authorized by North Korea, as a "resumption of group tourism." North Korea issues separate visas for business (sangmu) and travel purposes.

On the 18th, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "China has consistently maintained a proactive attitude toward China-North Korea regional exchanges and cooperation. We will not comment on news announced by individual travel agencies."

However, at a briefing on the same day, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Zhen responded to the question, "The Rason City tour scheduled for today did not depart, and some travel agencies say they were banned from promoting tourism. Is this true?" by saying, "We will not comment on the specific activities of travel agencies." Within the Chinese industry, there is also speculation that North Korea has not yet permitted group tourism by Chinese nationals.

North Korea closed its borders in January 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but recent limited tourism permissions starting with Russia have raised expectations that the country might be opening its borders.

On the 3rd, Wang Yajun, the Chinese ambassador to North Korea, visited the Pyongyang Metro's Buhung Station with embassy officials and officially announced through the embassy that he hopes "more Chinese tourists will visit the Pyongyang Metro in the future to experience its depth, convenience, and order, thereby promoting mutual understanding and friendship between the peoples of the two countries," lending support to such expectations.

North Korea-specialized travel agency 'Goryeo Tour,' headquartered in China, announced that its staff conducted a preliminary inspection of Rason City on the 13th of this month and that tourism would be possible starting from the 20th. According to the Chinese travel industry, individual trips to North Korea's Rason by Chinese nationals holding business visas, rather than group tours, are somewhat possible under restrictions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.