Introduction
A flipside Disneyland of state-sanctioned sights. A communist land where time stands still, North Korea is one of the world's most bizarre countries. The architecture of Pyongyang, the DMZ at Panmunjeom and a slew of other quirky Kim-centric sights are the reasons to visit. However, there's absolutely no independent tourism - come by group tour or don't come at all!
Destination Facts
Capital: P'y ŏ ngyang
Chairman of the National Defense Commission (highest post held by a living person): Kim Jong Il
Eternal President: Kim Il Sung
Government: authoritarian socialist
Time zone: GMT +9
Area: 120540
Population: 23000000
Languages: All religion has been effectively prohibited since the 1950s although the elevation of the national ideology Juche to the status of a religion has continued.
Currency: North Korean Won (W)
Country Dialing Code: 850
Getting there and away
The flight from Beijing to Pyongyang takes two hours, and the North Korean airline Air Koryo and China Southern make about three trips each weekly. You should book as far in advance as possible, Sunan International Airport is 30km (19mi) west of Pyongyang, and the journey by car takes about 20 minutes. The alternative means of getting into North Korea is via train from Beijing.
Getting around
There are no regularly scheduled domestic flights and the ones that are scheduled are not available to foreigners. Few public buses run in the country or between major cities. North Koreans are not permitted to travel around their own country without permission, and most of the time you'll travel by bus or car with your driver and guide. There are virtually no bicycles in the country, in stark contrast to China, and you would not be allowed to ride one anyway.
Weather
Spring, from April to June, is a beautiful season, with generally mild temperatures and cherry blossoms spreading north across the country. While not the driest months, June to September provide respite from North Korea's icy winters with average high temperatures between 23 and 29 ° C (74-84 ° F). Winter, from December to March, is dry but often bitterly cold, particularly in northern parts. Siberian winds drag January temperatures in most of the country to below zero.
14 Interesting Facts about North Korea:
1. You can’t turn off the government radio installed in your home, only reduce the volume.
2. Idolatry in North Korea is such that it is second-nature for ordinary citizens to “rescue” portraits of Kim Il Sung before all else in the case of a house fire (there are even special bunkers for statues in case of war)
3. Many people don’t even know that man has walked on the moon.
4. There is no Internet, cell-phones have been banned.
5. A main cause for all problems are Americans. Mothers teach their children to sing songs about bad Americans, there are many postage stamps showing the death of “U.S imperialists”
6. A six-day work week, and another day of enforced “volunteer” work, ensures that the average citizen has virtually no free time.
7. The very first thing you do when you visit North Korea’s capital Pyongyang is visit and give a flower to a big statue of “Dear Leader”.
8. About 0.85% of the population are held in prison or detention camps.
9. Most traffic control is performed by female traffic directors (reportedly handpicked by Kim Jong-Il for their beauty), as the lights are switched off to save electricity.
10. Dogs are banned in Pyongyang to keep it clean.
11. Avarage wage in 2005 was 6$ (source: www.gluckman.com/NKFEER.html)
12. Visitors of North Korea are given special guides and can’t go anywhere without them.
13. North Koreans are used to often disappearing electricity and have many candles prepared.
14. North Korea has the fourth-largest military in the world, at an estimated 1.21 million armed personnel
Related Posts: Mongolia, Japan, China
A flipside Disneyland of state-sanctioned sights. A communist land where time stands still, North Korea is one of the world's most bizarre countries. The architecture of Pyongyang, the DMZ at Panmunjeom and a slew of other quirky Kim-centric sights are the reasons to visit. However, there's absolutely no independent tourism - come by group tour or don't come at all!
Capital: P'y ŏ ngyang
Chairman of the National Defense Commission (highest post held by a living person): Kim Jong Il
Eternal President: Kim Il Sung
Government: authoritarian socialist
Time zone: GMT +9
Area: 120540
Population: 23000000
Languages: All religion has been effectively prohibited since the 1950s although the elevation of the national ideology Juche to the status of a religion has continued.
Currency: North Korean Won (W)
Country Dialing Code: 850
The flight from Beijing to Pyongyang takes two hours, and the North Korean airline Air Koryo and China Southern make about three trips each weekly. You should book as far in advance as possible, Sunan International Airport is 30km (19mi) west of Pyongyang, and the journey by car takes about 20 minutes. The alternative means of getting into North Korea is via train from Beijing.
There are no regularly scheduled domestic flights and the ones that are scheduled are not available to foreigners. Few public buses run in the country or between major cities. North Koreans are not permitted to travel around their own country without permission, and most of the time you'll travel by bus or car with your driver and guide. There are virtually no bicycles in the country, in stark contrast to China, and you would not be allowed to ride one anyway.
Spring, from April to June, is a beautiful season, with generally mild temperatures and cherry blossoms spreading north across the country. While not the driest months, June to September provide respite from North Korea's icy winters with average high temperatures between 23 and 29 ° C (74-84 ° F). Winter, from December to March, is dry but often bitterly cold, particularly in northern parts. Siberian winds drag January temperatures in most of the country to below zero.
1. You can’t turn off the government radio installed in your home, only reduce the volume.
2. Idolatry in North Korea is such that it is second-nature for ordinary citizens to “rescue” portraits of Kim Il Sung before all else in the case of a house fire (there are even special bunkers for statues in case of war)
3. Many people don’t even know that man has walked on the moon.
4. There is no Internet, cell-phones have been banned.
5. A main cause for all problems are Americans. Mothers teach their children to sing songs about bad Americans, there are many postage stamps showing the death of “U.S imperialists”
6. A six-day work week, and another day of enforced “volunteer” work, ensures that the average citizen has virtually no free time.
7. The very first thing you do when you visit North Korea’s capital Pyongyang is visit and give a flower to a big statue of “Dear Leader”.
8. About 0.85% of the population are held in prison or detention camps.
9. Most traffic control is performed by female traffic directors (reportedly handpicked by Kim Jong-Il for their beauty), as the lights are switched off to save electricity.
10. Dogs are banned in Pyongyang to keep it clean.
11. Avarage wage in 2005 was 6$ (source: www.gluckman.com/NKFEER.html)
12. Visitors of North Korea are given special guides and can’t go anywhere without them.
13. North Koreans are used to often disappearing electricity and have many candles prepared.
14. North Korea has the fourth-largest military in the world, at an estimated 1.21 million armed personnel
Related Posts: Mongolia, Japan, China
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