North Korea opens a new luxury beach-front resort in major tourism push

In a striking attempt to rebrand its global image and boost its struggling economy, North Korea has officially launched the long-delayed Wonsan-Kalma coastal resort — the most ambitious tourism project ever undertaken by the reclusive regime. Situated along the eastern seaboard near Wonsan city, the expansive resort covers nearly five kilometres of prime beachfront and boasts dozens of luxury hotels, water parks, sports arenas, movie theatres, pubs and shopping areas.

North Korea's Wonsan-Kalma Resort aims to rebrand the Hermit Kingdom

The opening ceremony, held on June 24, 2025, was personally attended by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, his wife Ri Sol-Ju and daughter Kim Ju-ae, alongside top officials and the Russian ambassador in Pyongyang.

The Wonsan-Kalma project was first announced in 2014 and construction began in earnest in 2018. However, it faced repeated delays due to international sanctions, resource shortages, and COVID-19 border closures. Initially slated for completion in 2019, the project was quietly postponed several times before finally opening its doors to North Korean citizens on July 1, 2025. The resort is designed to host up to 20,000 guests and is seen as part of Kim’s wider effort to modernise the country’s economy without relying on Western investment or concessions on its nuclear programme.

While the resort is currently open only to North Koreans, Russian tour groups are expected to arrive in phases starting mid-July 2025, marking the first tentative steps toward limited international tourism. Russia remains one of the few nations maintaining warm relations with Pyongyang amid ongoing Western sanctions. Chinese tourists, once the largest source of visitors to North Korea, have yet to return in significant numbers and American citizens remain banned from entering the country.

The government has invested heavily in infrastructure around the Kalma Peninsula, including a new airport, improved rail links, and electric tram systems to ferry guests across the sprawling complex.

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