Visiting one of the most isolated country on the planet, North Korea (DPRK) | Travel Guide

It’s difficult to keep an open mind when one is bombarded with so much misinformation and politically motivated news. – @the.trip.goes.on

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Disclaimer: All information, thoughts and opinions expressed here are solely based on Laagan Kaayo’s actual experience. This article only serves as a reference and inspiration about the possibility of traveling to North Korea but doesn’t guarantee that you will experience the same.

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*Update 2019 – All foreigners (except Chinese Nationals) are no longer allowed to go on Day Trips to Sinuiju, North Korea.

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Why would I want to visit North Korea in the first place? Well, to feed my raging curiosity and…

I was determined to finish my goal of visiting all East Asian countries! Well, visiting all South East Asian countries made me crave for more. I started planning since last year(2017)! Seeing all these travel blogs, sharing their own personal experience in North Korea look unbelievably cool which totally kicked my excitement to visit the hermit kingdom…without a warning.

But before I even go further, YES I am fully aware of the existing issues this country is facing.  I know that North Korean people are not really free people. It’s sad that despite living in the 21st century, not everyone is moving forward. I feel sincerely sorry for them. But is there something I can do about it? If I don’t visit North Korea, will their lives change? I’m not trying to be insensitive. Before you  throw any guilt trip at me, please know that I will always and forever choose to visit North Korea. 😊😊😊

Until Otto Warmbrier’s tragic incident broke the news! Followed by North Korea’s successful missile launch near Japan. Then there came the bloody escape of a North Korean soldier at the DMZ border! God! It was like in the movies, relentless and brutal!

I was having second thoughts already. My mom even warned me during our trip to South Korea last October 2017 because it was at that time when North Korea’s nuclear tests were in-progress and gave a major threat to its neighboring countries.

Fast forward to 2018! A sudden change in wind direction took place in the entire Korea. South Korean President Moon Jae-in met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the military demarcation line that separates the two countries in Panmunjom, discussing for permanent peace and finally ending their conflict. Like OMG! I’m not sure if it was magic but I was really happy watching them shook hands and Kim crossing to the South Korea side! It was a remarkable moment that changes the history. Forever.

And so I was more confident to push through my visit. But still I didn’t tell my mom that I was going to visit North Korea. 😀

Isn’t it immoral to visit a place like North Korea?

I will let this excerpt from Simon’s (General Manager of Koryo Tours) interview speak for me.

 

Finding a reputable tour agency that will bring you to North Korea and the cost

Nope, you cannot go to North Korea on your own. You have to find an accredited travel agency in China that will bring you to North Korea. And yes, all tours must start in China.

Young Pioneer Tours is famous! In fact they are my first choice however as I further did my research, I’ve found out that Koryo Tours offers a lower price for a Day Trip to North Korea. YPT’s price is 1690 CNY excluding the visa processing which is 50 CNY while Koryo Tours offers a Day Trip to North Korea for only 1290 CNY all in. So I went with Koryo Tours.

I connected with Simon, the general manager of Koryo Tours. He’s a legend. He has visited North Korea more than 140 times since 2002! And he’s nice and very accommodating with my emails despite his busy schedule.

The Tour Application, Visa processing and Travel Insurance

I will just highlight the important points but the travel agency will really give a complete detailed information of the tour especially the do’s and don’ts. Lots of things to read actually and I don’t wanna preëmpt it so.

This part was very convenient as it was done in Koryo Tours’ website! I created my account, filled it up together with my friend’s details. We uploaded a scanned copy of our passport, our double-entry Chinese tourist visa and a passport photo.

Yes! Your Chinese tourist visa should be at least double-entry. Unless you have a plan on staying in North Korea for good 😀

Travel insurance was a tour requirement in case something bad happens like food poison or car accident as there is no hospital in the town of Sinuiju in North Korea. I know what you are thinking. Yes, there’s no insurance company that covers North Korea but Simon emphasized that if an emergency happens in Sinuiju, you will be rush back to China for immediate help. So technically an insurance that covers China is what we needed.

Simon offered an insurance from AXA that costs 300 CNY per person. I checked AXA Philippines’ website and saw their “Smart Traveler” plan that only costs PHP 3,386.14 for 2 people, which is way cheaper than Simon’s offer. So we went for it and paid online through credit card.

We finished filling up everything and submitted all the necessary documents last May 6 as they needed at least 10 working days for the processing and then that’s it. We will just have to show up in Dandong on June 1!

The only sad thing about this whole visa processing is that we will never get to hold the actual thing. For foreign tourists like us, our visa was created as group visa for both me and my friend. While the Chinese tourist will be provided with a visa on a separate paper with their photo in it. I was jealous. But we can’t have everything. 🙁

Tipping the Tour Guides in North Korea

I would also like to mention the “highly encouraged” tipping of the guides. 100 CNY will be very much appreciated as indicated in the Pre-Tour information that Simon shared. But I didn’t like it really so we brought a couple of Cebu’s best delicacies, dried mangoes and rosquillos. 😀

North Korea Travel Agreement

We had to sign some agreements prior to the tour. And I’m thankful that there’s no Non-Disclosure Agreement otherwise I won’t be talking about it now. Lol.

Basically… it’s something to do with NOT being a journalist, and that your sole purpose in visiting North Korea is tourism only and all photos or video you take from North Korea should be for personal use only or you may share them with the mainstream media but you have to ask permission from Koryo Tours first. Stuff like that.

Also, the usual “no-liability” role of the tour operator in case you die. Typical.

Money in North Korea

As far as I know, tourists aren’t allowed to possess any North Korean money. Unless you have connections inside. During our trip, we were using Chinese Yuan in all of our transactions. And no, they don’t accept credit cards or debit cards. No ATM as well.

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Arriving in Dandong (Chinese border, gateway to North Korea (DPRK))

We have arrived in Dandong a day before our scheduled tour. We stayed at Hanting Hotel Dandong Train Station Branch for only Php 1394.38 a night for 2 people via Agoda, just across Dandong Train Station for convenience. Our room was basic and no breakfast included.

Visiting the easternmost part of the Great Wall was our main agenda, however we arrived passed 5PM and it was closed already. So we just went straight to the famous Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge after settling our things at the hotel. It was more or less a 10-minute walk but strolling around the streets of China is never boring.

Thank God the sunset was late so we had our first glimpse of North Korea just across the Yalu River. The distance is literally just like crossing the bridge from Mandaue to Lapu-Lapu. So near and yet it felt sooo far.

Later that night, I reviewed the photos of my phone and saw that I still have lots of pictures from South Korea in it! I’ve erased them all as fast as I could and changed the memory card of my camera to a new empty one as well. Just in case. I know I’m paranoid. In fact, I’ve also removed my Mr. Buckwheat plushy that was hanging in my day bag since May 24! (only Goblin fans can understand)

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