Destination: North Korea

North Korea Tours

Crafted Tours for Mature World Travellers

North Korea

7 days

May

North Korea Unveiled | Small Group Tour for Seniors

Visiting North Korea

Featuring visits to the Demilitarised Zone in Panmunjom, the Fatherland Liberation Museum, and the Kumsusan Memorial Palace of the Sun.

From A$5,950 AUD

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Articles about North Korea

Touring North Korea

The need to know

Getting around

Specifics are always outlined in your tour itinerary. The tour group will meet in Beijing and you will fly as a group to Pyongyang at the start and returning together by train at the end. During the tour, Odyssey travels with a small vehicle, suited for comfortable travel for the group size.

Accommodation

Odyssey stays in a centrally located 3-4 star hotel in Pyongyang.

Tour guides

Odyssey always engages local guides with regional knowledge to ensure an authentic experience during which you can learn as much as possible about the history and culture of places you visit.

Geography, Environment, & Weather

North Korea is located in East Asia on the Northern half of the Korean Peninsula. North Korea shares a border with China, Russia , and South Korea. The Yellow Sea and the Korea Bay are off the west coast and the Sea of Japan is off the east coast.

World heritage sites

North Korea has 2 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. You can view them here: https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/kp

The Complex of Koguryo Tombsincludes – about 30 individual tombs from the later period of the Koguryo Kingdom, one of the strongest kingdoms in nowadays northeast China and between the 3rd century BC to 7th century AD. The tombs, many with beautiful wall paintings, are almost the only remains of this culture.

Historic Monuments and Sites in Kaesong – Situated in Kaesong city, the site consists of 12 separate components, which together testify to the history and culture of the Koryo Dynasty from the 10th to 14th centuries.

Festivals & Events

There are only two major festivals in North Korea which visitors are allowed to attend – the Spring Dragon Boat Festival and the Mass Games. Other celebrations are held on the supreme leader Kim Jung-un’s birthday (15th April).

Reading list

Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea
by Barbara Demick

North Korea’s Hidden Revolution: How the Information Underground Is Transforming a
Closed Society by Jieun Baek

My Holiday in North Korea: The Funniest/Worst Place on Earth by Wendy E. Simmons

North Korea Confidential: Private Markets, Fashion Trends, Prison Camps, Dissenters and Defectors by Daniel Tudor

Dear Leader: My Escape from North Korea
by Jang Jin-sung

Without You, There Is No Us: Undercover Among the Sons of North Korea’s Elite
by Suki Kim

Eating & Drinking

The cuisine in North Korea similar to South Korea – most meals include cold noodles (Naung-myon), tofu, short-grain rice and porridge. Meats such as poultry, duck and beef are also North Korean staples, as are seafood and veggies. Full North Korean meals typically include a side dish, or banchan. Most banchan are characterized by their tangy, salty or spicy flavor and are often fermented to add taste. There is a surprisingly huge range of alcoholic beverages on the market, from traditional Korean alcohols such as Makkoli and Soju, foreign alcohols like beer and grape wine to medicinal alcohols that contain ingredients such as tiger bone, ground starfish and of course, ginseng. The most popular alcohols in North Korea are soju and beer.

Health & Safety

Altoghy North Korea is considered a safe country to travel to, it is important to know that this is a communist state; it’s safe to assume that you will be under surveillance at all times. North Korean government security personnel closely monitor the activities and conversations of foreigners. Hotel rooms, telephones, and fax machines may be monitored, and personal possessions in hotel rooms may be searched.

Travel throughout the country is only possible as part of a guided tour. Independent travel is not permitted, you must not leave your hotel without a guide, you will not be allowed to travel on the public transport system at all, and both you and your guide will be punished if you infringe the rules. Any unauthorized activities can and will be seen as an attempt at espionage. If you travel unescorted without explicit official authorization, or any attempt to talk to a North Korean citizen authorities will see these actions as attempted espionage. Always stay with a guide and never do anything to draw attention to yourself from local authorities.

Electrical Supply

Whenever you travel overseas, it’s always wise to take an appropriate travel adaptor. The electricity supply runs at 230V, 50Hz. North Korean plugs, types A and C. A is mainly used in North and Central America, China and Japan and the C is the common plug with two round pins.

Tour Reviews

Loved: National Institute of traditional medicine hike to Wanyditse Goemba Punakha festival – definitely a highlight Hanging the prayer flags at the pass! The outdoor picnics! Archery competition! Dumtse Lhakhang – went to heaven!!! Dzong Drak Kha (mini tigers nest) amazing views and climb Sanga Choekor Shedra (Bhuddist College) Drakpa and his team (Nima and Karma) were just amazing. Drakpa was very knowledgeable, friendly, caring and cheerful. He went out of his way to provide us with information and experiences to help our understanding of the culture and religion, he was funny and entertaining and very professional under pressure.Nima was a very competent driver, and I have never felt in safer hands in the difficult driving conditions we were in.

Participant March 2017

Bhutan | Small Group Cultural Tour

The local guide, Drukpa, was exceptional value. When I was ill for a couple of days his care for me, assisted by Len, was way beyond my expectation.

Participant March 2017

Bhutan | Small Group Cultural Tour

The tour was fantastic and well organised and well managed. · I have travelled expensively but have not with a travel organisation that comes anywhere near Odyssey's attention to detail and the comfort of its travellers. · The tour was fantastic and well organised and well managed. The transport provided was always very good and where the seats were a little narrow, the bus was big enough for us to 'spread out' for more comfort. · Our accommodation was excellent as was our local guide.I would highly recommend a trip to this beautiful country with many treasures to explore and learn about. Discover Myanmar Nov ‘15

info@odysseytravel.com.au

Discovering Myanmar | Small Group Tour for Seniors

The trip to the Tang valley and the Ogyencholing museum were a highlight. Beautiful scenery, wonderful people and one of the best museums I've seen. That night and all next day it snowed - what a buzz. Made everything look magical and improved the scenery for the next few days

Participant March 2017

Bhutan | Small Group Cultural Tour

Your chat-operator was informative and helpful. We have covered quite a few countries and seasons to travel. Full marks for that!

Philip Lee

Discovering Myanmar | Small Group Tour for Seniors

We did this tour in 2011. Wonderful, extraordinary experience. Loved every minute.

Rex and Maree

Journey through Mongolia and Russia small group tour

I wish to sincerely thank Len for his amazing care, good cheer and flexibility ! Len has that great combination of simultaneous organisation and flexibility, which is so very necessary on a small trip such as this. In his stride, he was able to re-design the program at short notice due to weather conditions (working closely with Drakpa) and the end result was better than the original plan in my opinion!!! It was clear from day one, that Len cared and payed attention to each and every one of us at every step of the way – going out of his way to assist those who needed it. The trust and camaraderie we developed with Len made the trip that much more special! I miss our laughs.

Participant March 2017

Bhutan | Small Group Cultural Tour

FAQs

What time zone is North Korea in?

North Korea has a single time zone, Pyongyang Time or PYT (UTC+8:30). North Korea does not observe daylight savings.

Is tipping customary in North Korea?

If you’re on an Odyssey tour, we take care of tipping so you don’t need to give it a second thought.It’s polite to round a bill up to the nearest whole figure or leave the change when buying drinks.

What is internet access like in North Korea?

Internet access is not generally available in North Korea. Only some high-level officials are allowed to access the global internet. In most universities, a small number of strictly monitored computers are provided. Other citizens may get access only to the country’s national intranet, called Kwangmyong.

Can I use my mobile phone in North Korea?

Check with your cell phone provider to see whether you’re able to make calls and use data while in North Korea. Many providers will offer a daily fee that allows you to make calls and check the internet while only being charged your regular rates. However, be certain to inform your provider that you’re heading overseas, because just like a bank they can turn off your service as a result of unusual activity.

Responsible travel tips for North Korea

  • Travel throughout the country is only possible as part of a guided tour. Independent travel is not permitted, you must not leave your hotel without a guide, you will not be allowed to travel on the public transport system at all, and both you and your guide will be punished if you infringe the rules. Any unauthorized activities can and will be seen as an attempt at espionage. If you travel unescorted without explicit official authorization, or any attempt to talk to a North Korean citizen authorities will see these actions as attempted espionage. Always stay with a guide and never do anything to draw attention to yourself from local authorities.
  • North Korea is a communist state; it’s safe to assume that you will be under surveillance at all times. North Korean government security personnel closely monitor the activities and conversations of foreigners. Hotel rooms, telephones, and fax machines may be monitored, and personal possessions in hotel rooms may be searched.
  • There are some nationalities that are not even permitted entry to North Korea. South Koreans are not permitted entry and there have been reports of difficulties regarding Israeli, American, British and Japanese nationals. However, in January 2010, North Korea lifted the restrictions on American citizens who are now free to visit at any time of the year. If you are a U.S. passport holder, be aware you must have special validation for travel to North Korea from the Department of State. A specialist North Korean travel agency can help you sort out the complex and ever-changing regulations.
  • Always ensure that you are covered by travel insurance. If you need advice on this feel free to contact Odyssey and we’ll be able to help.
  • Consider contacting your bank to inform them that you may be making purchases overseas. Otherwise, they may flag any activity on your account as suspicious. Also, check which ATMs and banks are compatible with your cards, to ensure you can withdraw cash with minimal fees.
  • Before departing, make sure you have a number of North Korean Won in a range of denominations. You don’t want to be carrying around enormous amounts of cash, but take enough to make it easy to pay in locations that might not accept credit card. It will also help you avoid card transaction fees, and it makes tipping a breeze.

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