North Korea is finally about to welcome tourists to its giant beach complex, after years of delay.
Dubbed the “North Korean Benidorm“, the Wonsan resort is reported to be able to accommodate as many as 100,000 visitors at a time.
It got its nickname after Kim Jong-un reportedly sent a fact-finding mission to Spain’s Costa Blanca in 2017.
The resort has been described as the “largest recreational complex” in North Korea and has been constructed on a former missile testing site.
Construction work started in 2018 and was originally scheduled to be completed by 2019.
However, delays and the Covid pandemic threw a serious spanner in the works, and the resort remained incomplete for many years.
North Korea’s homeless soon began to take over the site, and reportedly filled empty hotels with faeces.
They have since been moved on, as the government restarted construction in a new drive to complete the ambitious project.
Wonsan is now expected to open its doors in May 2025 to tourists from North Korea, China and Russia.
But North Korean experts doubt whether Pyongyang will be able to fill the resort, given its enormous size.
Jacob Boge said: “Initial plans released back in 2013 suggested that the resort could accommodate as many as 100,000 visitors at a time.
“Considering that only 150,000 to 200,000 foreign tourists visited the country annually pre-Covid, Wonsan would be heavily reliant on domestic tourism to reach capacity.
“North Korea does have a moderate domestic tourism industry, but Wonsan was billed as a place to draw in foreign tourists.
“Even completed projects like the Masikryong Ski Resort were never able to draw substantial numbers of foreign guests.”
Travellers from Europe and the US may have to wait a little longer before they can experience the delights of the new Benidorm.
Unfortunately, experts agree it is highly unlikely that Pyongyang will start granting tourist visas to Westerners in the near future.