North Korea finally set to open a deserted beach town resort next door to a missile test site

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called the resort a "coastal wonderland" during a visit to the area earlier this week, state news reported.

• North Korea's Wonsan-Kalma beach resort is set to open in May 2025.
• Kim Jong Un visited the beach earlier this week to finalize plans for the resort's completion.
• The resort is situated next to a missile test site.

A long-awaited North Korean beach resort is set to open in May 2025 as part of the country's plans to "boost tourism," North Korean state news agency KCNA reported.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited the Wonsan-Kalma site on the country's eastern coast earlier this week and was pictured smiling alongside top officials as he surveyed plans for the final stages of the resort's construction.

"A coastal wonderland to be known to the world as the best tourist resort of (North Korea) would be successfully built," Kim was quoted as saying by KCNA.

For several years, North Korea has been building luxury hotels and recreational facilities in Wonsan-Kalma in an attempt to attract more international visitors.

But the beach resort project had suffered some delays because of COVID-19 restrictions and construction materials shortages.

During his visit, Kim warned that the resort "will depreciate in its value as a tourist area if the level of the service and operation is low," ordering additional work be carried out, including "building an amusement park and a leisure activity area" and "ensuring the capacity for garbage and sewage treatment and training experts for all services."

Wonsan is a favorite retreat of the Kim family, who own a fortified palace in the area, Reuters reported in 2017.

The palace comes with its own private beach, train station, runway, and basketball court — and former NBA star Dennis Rodman even stayed there during his well-documented trip to the country in 2013, the report said.

Wonsan is also home to a missile launching site. The adjacent Kalma airport has a launchpad, observation points, and hangars, Reuters reported, citing 38 North, a program of the Stimson Center think tank that focuses on North Korean affairs.

A beach in Wonsan was also used for what state media called North Korea's "largest-ever" artillery drill in 2017, per the report.

North Korea's tourism industry

North Korea has been attempting to revive its struggling economy in recent years.

The country's borders are largely closed off to foreign tourists, except for some Russians, and its population of roughly 26 million people lives largely in isolation from the rest of the world.

But in 2019, 300,000 foreign tourists visited North Korea, a record number that helped bring in between $90 million to $150 million, the Associated Press reported, citing experts.

Around 90% of international tourists visiting North Korea prior to the pandemic were Chinese, per the AP — making them a likely target customer for the Wonsan-Kalma project.

Earlier this month, state media also reported that Kim was hoping to invite "foreign friends" to a resort near Samjiyon in the country's north, close to the border with China.