Tourism in North Korea operates under complete state control through a single entity, Korea International Travel Company, which mandates foreign visitors join organized tours with government-assigned guides present at all times. Independent travel does not exist. Tours follow predetermined itineraries that visitors cannot alter, with accommodations, meals, and all movements arranged by handlers who accompany groups from arrival to departure.
Pyongyang Metro opened in 1973 and runs two confirmed lines totaling approximately seventeen stations. The system reaches depths exceeding one hundred meters in places, among the deepest metro systems globally. Stations feature chandeliers, mosaics, and murals depicting socialist themes and Korean history. Foreign tourists typically visit Puhung and Yonggwang stations on the Chollima Line, though some tours now include rides between additional stations. Photography restrictions vary by station and guide instruction. The trains themselves are refurbished rolling stock, some originating from former East Berlin.
Kim Il-sung Square covers seventy-five thousand square meters in central Pyongyang along the Taedong River. The square hosts military parades, mass gymnastics performances, and state ceremonies. The Grand People's Study House, constructed from 1982 to 1982, forms the square's northern boundary. This building contains reading rooms, lecture halls, and claimed holdings of thirty million books. Tourists can enter designated areas but access remains restricted to specific floors and sections.
Kumsusan Palace of the Sun functions as the mausoleum for Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. Originally built as Kim Il-sung's residence, it converted to a mausoleum following his death in 1994. The building expanded to accommodate Kim Jong-il's body after his death in December 2011. Visitors must follow strict dress codes and behavioral protocols, including walks through designated corridors and viewing chambers where the embalmed bodies lie in climate-controlled glass cases. Photography inside remains absolutely prohibited. The facility opens only on certain days of the week, typically Thursday and Sunday.
The Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang measures sixty meters high and fifty meters wide, completed in 1982 to commemorate Kim Il-sung's seventieth birthday. The structure claims to be the world's tallest triumphal arch, surpassing the Arc de Triomphe in Paris by ten meters. The arch contains 25,500 blocks of white granite, representing each day of Kim Il-sung's life up to his seventieth birthday. An elevator allows access to an observation platform, though its operation depends on maintenance status at time of visit.
Juche Tower stands one hundred seventy meters tall on the Taedong River's eastern bank, erected in 1982. The tower commemorates Kim Il-sung's seventieth birthday and represents the Juche ideology of self-reliance. The structure comprises 25,550 blocks of white stone, adding fifty blocks to represent the days between Kim Il-sung's seventieth birthday and the tower's completion. An elevator reaches the top platform at one hundred fifty meters, providing views across Pyongyang when operational. A flame sits at the tower's peak, illuminated at night.
Mansudae Grand Monument consists of two bronze statues of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, each twenty-two meters high, unveiled in their current form in 2012. The original single statue of Kim Il-sung dates to 1972 but was modified in 1997 and again in 2012 when Kim Jong-il's statue was added. Groups of statues flanking the leaders represent workers, soldiers, and peasants. Tour protocols require visitors to bow before the statues and purchase flowers from nearby stands to lay at the monument base. Photography must include both statues completely within frame.
Mount Paektu rises 2,744 meters on the border with China, making it the Korean Peninsula's highest peak. Lake Chon, a caldera lake, sits at the summit spanning approximately nine square kilometers with depths reaching 384 meters. The mountain holds significance in Korean mythology as the birthplace of Dangun, and North Korean state narratives claim Kim Jong-il was born at a secret camp on the mountain in 1942, though external sources place his birth in the Soviet Union. Access requires flights or long drives from Pyongyang, with tours typically spending one or two nights in Samjiyon, a purpose-built town near the mountain base.
Mount Myohyang lies approximately one hundred sixty kilometers north of Pyongyang. Pohyon Temple, originally constructed in 1042 during the Koryo Dynasty, occupies a valley site within the mountain range. The temple complex underwent reconstructions, most recently after the Korean War. The International Friendship Exhibition, two large buildings constructed in traditional style, houses gifts presented to Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il by foreign dignitaries and organizations. The facility claims to hold over 220,000 items across display halls that visitors tour in cloth slippers. Examples include a basketball signed by Michael Jordan, a train carriage from Mao Zedong, and various decorative objects from governments worldwide.