How to Travel to North Korea

Completing Necessary Paperwork

Check if your country has any travel ban or restrictions. Visit your country’s official government site to see if there are special requirements or any travel bans. You may not be able to use a regular passport, or you may need a special visa. The site might be under the Foreign Affairs or Travel section on your country’s website. For example, citizens in the UK need to contact the Korean embassy in London to apply for a visa. U.S. citizens can apply to receive a special validation passport at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/requirements/passport-for-travel-to-north-korea.html. But get ready for denial as obtaining a Special Validated Passport is rare. If you are traveling from South Korea, you will need permission from both the Republic of Korea and the DPRK to tour North Korea.

Book approved tours and accommodations. Tourists can only participate in activities hosted by these tour groups and supervised by North Korean guides. Tour group operators usually book hotels within the country’s capital as well, so choose an active tour operator that also includes accommodations. Some tour operators like Koryo Tours and Mir Corporation have stopped leading trips for citizens in certain countries (like the U.S.) until travel bans are lifted, so check their websites to make sure you can join.

Budget for airfare. Traveling to North Korea is fairly inexpensive, and easy to organize since tours are usually all-inclusive. Tours may start from a city close to North Korea like Beijing, so airfare to the tour’s beginning location should be factored in. Depending on the length of your trip, tours range from $500 to $2,500 USD or 1,850 euros.

Taking Precautions Before Your Trip

Prepare your family in case of emergencies or death. Since the threat of arrest or detention in North Korea is high, travelers should prepare their family before their trip. Draft a will, plan funeral arrangements, and discuss care or custody of children and pets. Share important documents with your family or close friends in case you cannot return home.

Know how to contact your government in an emergency. Your home country may not have an embassy or consulate in North Korea. In an emergency, you might need to contact another country’s embassy, or your country’s embassy in Seoul, South Korea. Check your country’s official government site for embassy contact information. The Embassy of Sweden Pyongyang acts as the protecting power for U.S., Australian and Canadian citizens.

Register your trip or contact details with your country. Check your country’s official site to see if you can register your information with them for your trip. Your country will have your details on the official record and will allow them to contact you and possibly help you if needed in an emergency. For example, citizens in Ireland can register with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade if they’re traveling outside Ireland or Great Britain. U.S. citizens can enroll in Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) at https://step.state.gov/.

Staying Safe While in North Korea

Develop plans for communication and safety. If you’re traveling to North Korea on an officially-sponsored mission, make sure your work or organization is kept up to date on your location. Choose a person within the organization to contact first. Let them know what they should do if you cannot be contacted or in the event of an emergency.

Follow cultural regulations and laws. Laws concerning behavior can be strict in North Korea. It’s illegal to perform any religious activities, and to possess any items that criticize North Korea. Your tour group will likely give you advice or literature on how to behave during your trip, so be sure to follow it. You cannot take Korean money out of the country when you exit.

Be mindful of what you say or do in North Korea. Since a North Korean guide will be at your side for most of your trip, be careful of what you say to them. It’s best not to discuss subjects like politics with the guide or anyone else during your trip. It’s illegal to have unauthorized conversations with North Koreans, or to question the nation’s leaders. Don't fold or dispose of newspapers that have the image of the Kim dynasty's members on them. It can be taken the wrong way by North Korean officials. Speech is extremely restricted in North Korea so it's best to avoid saying anything.