If you’re looking for a holiday where you’ll be constantly monitored by your state appointed guide, forbidden to talk to locals, and required to bow reverently before statues of communist dictators, then North Korea is the place for you!
Americans and South Koreans face greater restrictions when endeavoring to visit North Korea. Americans are typically denied visas, and South Koreans require special permission from the government. For others, guided tours are the only accepted method for travel in North Korea. The journey could provide a unique first hand experience of what it’s like to have one’s autonomy restricted by a dictatorial regime. The limited roster of experiences one will be permitted in North Korea includes a visit to Mount Myohmyan. There one can see shrines displaying gifts that Kim Jong-Il and his late father, Kim Il-Sung, the “eternal president”, have received from their many international pals. There are mountain trails amidst slopes blanketed in flowers during the summer months. Mount Kumgang, aka the Diamond Mountains, is the sole area of North Korea that South Koreans can tour without special permission. This area of Buddhist ruins and thermal springs has been designated the “Kumgangsan Tourist Region”.
