Any every visit North Korea or wanted to ?

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Sabrered0901

Sabrered0901

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I have also wanted to visit North Korea. Politics aside I have always been interested in there culture and how they do things.
Should of could of would of; since the state department will no longer allow US citizens to visit since 2018 I believe my chance is now gone unless things change and don’t believe they will. I have a huge fascination with former Soviet countries and history and would love to see it.

Just wanted to hear if anyone has been. I know Koryo Tours is the state tan tourist agency that does them and their are a few other companies as well.
 
@Sabrered0901

I don't think I personally ever wanted to visit though I am curious now that I think about it. It's just so mysterious...

It's a bummer that U.S. travel restrictions since 2018 have made visiting North Korea tough. Although agencies like Koryo Tours do organize trips there, they're pretty controlled and don’t offer much freedom.

How about checking out other Soviet-era countries that are easier to get to, like Russia or the Baltic states?
 
but will you actually learn something about their culture on such a guided tour?
They are clearly only going to show you what you want to see.
It seems more a novelty than an experience you actually learn something from.
 
They are a little strict on the rules. A guy, I think his name was otto warmbler, went to n korea and took a poster that was on a wall for a souvenir. They killed him for it, and sent back the body which quit breathing after a few days. On the positive side, crime is very low, I wonder why?
 
A good friend of mine (Canadian) went about 10 years ago. I remember him telling me it was surreal bc they visited a lot of places but rarely saw any North Korean people aside from their tour guides. Everywhere they went was very clean & order; the only sign of social and/or financial issues were the blackouts that happened several times a day. He was in a group of 15 people or so and they were allowed to hang out at night in the hotel without their guides but they felt a little on edge bc most assumed they were being watched. The part he loves the most about traveling is experiencing the different cultures so North Korea was a total bust for him bc they weren’t allowed to interact with anyone or see anything outside the very carefully curated tour.
 
Can't say I fancy it, seems too restricted for my liking I like to be able to go off and explore and that's just not possible in North Korea.

Gullible said:
They are a little strict on the rules. A guy, I think his name was otto warmbler, went to n korea and took a poster that was on a wall for a souvenir. They killed him for it, and sent back the body which quit breathing after a few days. On the positive side, crime is very low, I wonder why?
Click to expand...

A little strict?! Damn his life over, over the sake of a poster. Crime is so low because not only do those who commit crimes get punished but generations of their family to come also get punished. They're ludicrously strict.
 
@tirorin I fully agree and support your statement and with that video of Otto taking the poster you do not even know if it’s him. I feel that situation was more political then anything and he was used as a scapegoat to get sanctions reduce on the country and being a person from the US that would be one of my biggest fears going over there.

I have visited Kazakhstan before covid and loved the Soviet history and all the murals and building. Soviet history is a huge passion and how things worked during the USSR. I know going on a state approved tour in the DPRK your only going to see what they want you to see and also want to try Air Koryo the only one star airline.

Back in 2016 they had a huge air show with a ton of older Soviet planes and I have seen videos on YouTube of that show and would love to see it.
 
I'd rather South Korea personally.
I don't go to places that are a dictatorship. You might just disappear for saying the wrong thing.. or get locked up. E.T.C
I'm not sure of the mentality of the population there either.. do they like being there?
 
@redgoat check out some YouTube videos on the DPRK and you will see that everyone claims that everything is great because of their “Great Marshal” and people will look at the translator to make sure they are saying the right things.
 
Yes, I looked into visiting the North. Unfortunately you have someone with ypu at all times *supervisors*. I'm a free spirit so I knew I would get myself in trouble, only visiting *approved* areas didnt rock my boat tbh.

The South is better but they have an obsession with placing cameras in foreigners hotel rooms, so take the appropriate tech with you to counter this, trackers etc.
 
The other thing about the North is they will arrest you for being a Westerner. There are numerous documented cases where they arrest someone on trumped up charges.
 
Oh I see @Sabrered0901 ..
My concentration appears to be non-existent currently. - In withdrawal from an anti-depressant.
South Koreans seem really cool. Good sense of humour and just nice people.
Can't say I've seen much of the North Koreans - I suspect they are all terrified, there and abroad.

Lol, thanks @Chancer - I will definitely remember that.
 
@redgoat You are only allowed to visit in *tour groups* with an, erm, tour guide. Then they only show you approved areas. My friend has been but I stuck to Thialand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos.

I think I confused Japan and SK, the documentaries I watched was on Japan not SK, unsure if the mentaliry is the same. I'm sure western agencies do the same but more targeted.
 
@Chancer
Speaking about pervy cameras - the dutch are also a bit sus.
I was in a Coffee shop with my friends.
I went for a pee in the toilet in the shop.

When I came out my friends were all saying; 'we just saw you take a piss'..
I had no idea what to make of this. They explained that the big TV on the wall in the main room - came on when I went into the toilet and they could see everything.
I was so embarrassed as I have BDD and spent about 5 minutes stuck in the mirror.
In addition - I used the urinal... totally on view. MFers.
Was several girls in our group too.
If I wasn't so high I would've punched the vendor. Or something less violent.. maybe left a review on the internet xD
I don't remember which coffee shop it was now... we went to quite a few. And it was 14+ years ago.
 
@Chancer
ah ok. Nice list: Thialand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos
Being shown around a country isn't my style either - especially not a dangerous one.
Some places make sense - Somewhere I went in West Africa, you needed a guide. Just a local guy - as he'd keep all the other local tour guys off you. Otherwise it would be taxing. They also take you to the cool spots as any tour guide would, or they just come with you whereever you want to go. Mainly though they stop other guides trying to guide you. (it wasn't a dangerous place, not like N.Korea)

I need to go to some more nice places.
Yeah Japan are well known for their... voyeurism, I didn't realize tourists were a target for that. I'll bring my spy kit to Japan then.
 
@redgoat Yeah, I've travelled quite extensively.

My still to-do list is South America and Morocco for general travel but mainly for the football games.
 
South America is on mine too. Morocco was awesome. Wish we'd gone into the mountains. But it's a very cool place.
 
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