Koryo Tours

Last updated
Koryo Tours
Founded1993;31 years ago (1993)
Headquarters
Beijing
,
China
Website www.koryogroup.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Koryo Tours is an independent British tour operator based in Beijing, specializing in group and private tourism to North Korea. [1] [2] Their tours run throughout the year covering budget to exclusive trips. There are packages for staying in the capital Pyongyang with visits to the DMZ at the border with the Republic of Korea. At different times of year there are other events such as the Mass Games and the Pyongyang International Film Festival which are available as special tours when they are running.

Contents

History

A photo taken during a tour organized by Koryo Tours Victory Day Rehearsal, Pyongyang, 2012.jpg
A photo taken during a tour organized by Koryo Tours

In 1993, Koryo Tours was set up by Nick Bonner and Joshua Green and they have been organizing trips into North Korea since 1993. [3] [ failed verification ] [4]

Tourism

In 1993, Koryo Tours was appointed as a travel specialist by the Korea International Travel Company, part of the Government of North Korea. Koryo Tours takes in over 50% of westerners visiting North Korea. Koryo Tours is responsible for opening up of new destinations in North Korea as well as new activities such as; cycling, educational tours etc. [5]

Film production

Koryo Tours was involved in the production of a number of films. The Game of Their Lives (2002), A State of Mind (2004) and Crossing the Line (2006) were documentaries. [6] Comrade Kim Goes Flying (2012) was a romantic comedy feature film, shot in Pyongyang, with a North Korean cast and crew. [7] [8]

Koryo Tours also assisted in the production of Aim High in Creation (2013) [9] and Michael Palin in North Korea on ITV (2019). [10]

As part of the making of The Game of Their Lives, Koryo Tours organised the return of the North Korean team of the 1966 FIFA World Cup to the United Kingdom in October 2002. Over 100,000 British football fans turned out to welcome the players at various football clubs.

Cultural activities

They have organised various cultural exchanges, including music and sport.

Koryo Tours is the exclusive partner for the Pyongyang International Marathon held every April, [11] [12] [13] an event that attracts between hundreds and over 1,000 amateur foreigners a year. [14] [15]

In 2014 Koryo Tours provided the North Korean input for the Korea Pavilion at the Venice Architectural Biennale, [16] curator Minsuk Cho. [17] [18] The pavilion won the Golden Lion. [19]

Koryo Tours is the international co-ordinator for the bi-annual Pyongyang International Film Festival which has a local audience total of 120,000. In 2004 and 2006 they screened Bend It Like Beckham , Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie and Bride and Prejudice , each film seen by over 12,000 locals. They assisted the British Embassy with the nationwide broadcast of Bend It Like Beckham on 26 December 2010 (the first western feature film to be broadcast in North Korea).

In conjunction with the North Korean Ministry of Sport, they arranged the first friendship football, ice hockey, cricket, volleyball and ultimate frisbee matches between locals and westerners. In September 2010 with the support of the British Embassy and CLSA to mark ten years of diplomatic relations they took Middlesbrough Women's FC to Pyongyang to play two North Korean teams, both matches watched by 6,000 Korean fans and broadcast nationwide.

Published work

Koryo Studio produced Printed in North Korea (2019), which contains a series of linocuts representing everyday life in North Korea. [20] Koryo also produced Made in North Korea (2017), which focuses on the graphic design of products made in the country, and an accompanying London exhibition, Made in North Korea (2018). [21] [22]

2009 in-house publishing of ‘The Art of DPRK – North Korean Film Posters’. 2007 produced ‘Welcome to Pyongyang’ a photographic study with Charlie Crane (winner of the British Journal of Photography International Prize). 2008 co-writer ‘A Night in Pyongyang’ (mass games photographic book) Werner Kranwetvogel. 2002 Wallpaper Magazine produced and wrote an architectural feature on Pyongyang in conjunction with a North Korean photographer.

In 2012, Koryo Tours released Pyongyang Racer , a racing video game developed by Nosotek with students from the Kim Chaek University of Technology, to promote tourism in North Korea. [23]

See also

Related Research Articles

The music of North Korea includes a wide array of folk, popular, light instrumental, political, and classical performers. Beyond patriotic and political music, popular music groups like Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble and Moranbong Band perform songs about everyday life in the DPRK and modern light pop reinterpretations of classic Korean folk music. Music education is widely taught in schools, with President Kim Il Sung first implementing a program of study of musical instruments in 1949 at an orphanage in Mangyongdae. Musical diplomacy also continues to be relevant to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, with musical and cultural delegations completing concerts in China and France in recent years, and musicians from Western countries and South Korea collaborate on projects in the DPRK.

Air Koryo is North Korea’s flag carrier and only commercial airline. It is state-owned and controlled by the North Korean air force. Headquartered in Sunan-guyŏk, Pyongyang, it operates domestic and international routes – on a regular schedule only to Beijing, Shenyang, and Vladivostok – from its hub at Pyongyang’s Sunan International Airport. It also operates flights on behalf of the North Korean government, with one of its aircraft serving as North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un's personal plane. Its fleet consists of Ilyushin and Tupolev aircraft from the Soviet Union and Russia, and Antonovs from Ukraine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pyongyang International Airport</span> Main airport serving Pyongyang, North Korea

Pyongyang International Airport, also known as Pyongyang Sunan International Airport, is the main international airport serving Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. It is in the city's Sunan District. The airport was closed to international travel in 2020, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and reopened in 2023, with the resumption of Air Koryo flights to Beijing and Vladivostok.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koryo Hotel</span> Hotel in Pyongyang, North Korea

The Koryo Hotel is the second largest operating hotel in North Korea, the largest being the Yanggakdo Hotel. The Ryugyong Hotel is larger than both, but is not yet operating. The twin-towered Koryo Hotel building is 143 metres (469 ft) tall and contains 43 stories. Erected in 1985 under Kim Il Sung, it was intended to "showcase the glory and strength of the DPRK."

Venice Biennale of Architecture is an international exhibition of architecture from nations around the world, held in Venice, Italy, every other year. It was held on even years until 2018, but 2020 was postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic shifting the calendar to uneven years. It is the architecture section under the overall Venice Biennale and was officially established in 1980, even though architecture had been a part of the Venice Art Biennale since 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arirang Mass Games</span> Mass gymnastics and artistic festival

The Grand Mass Gymnastics and Artistic Performance Arirang, also known as the Arirang Mass Games, or the Arirang Festival is a mass gymnastics and artistic festival held in the Rungrado 1st of May Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea. The games usually take place in August or September. The Arirang Mass Games were held annually between 2002 and 2013, with the exception of 2006. After a five-year hiatus, Mass Games returned for a performance entitled 'The Glorious Country' in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mass games</span>

Mass games or mass gymnastics are a form of performing arts or gymnastics in which large numbers of performers take part in a highly regimented performance that emphasizes group dynamics rather than individual prowess.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourism in North Korea</span>

Tourism in North Korea is tightly controlled by the North Korean government. All tourism is organized by one of several state-owned tourism bureaus, including Korea International Travel Company (KITC), Korean International Sports Travel company (KISTC), Korean International Taekwondo Tourism Company (KITTC) and Korean International Youth Travel Company (KIYTC). The majority of tourists are Chinese nationals: one 2019 estimate indicated that up to 120,000 Chinese tourists had visited North Korea in the previous year, compared to fewer than 5,000 from Western countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chung-guyok</span> District of Pyongyang, North Korea

Chung-guyok is one of the 19 guyok which constitute the city of Pyongyang, North Korea. The district is located in the center of the city, between the Pothonggang Canal and Taedong River, and is bordered to the north by Moranbong-guyok, to the northwest by Potonggang-guyok, and to the south by Pyongchon-guyok.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport in North Korea</span>

Historically, North Korea's participation in international sporting events has been hindered by the relations with South Korea. Until the 1990s, North Korea used to host up to 14 international events every year, albeit in small scale. Since the early 1990s, the amount was reduced to just one, the Paektusan Prize International Figure Skating Festival. More recently, since the 2000s, North Korea both participates in and hosts more international competitions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryongwang Pavilion</span> Pavilion in Pyongyang, North Korea

Ryongwang Pavilion is a scenic overlook located in the central district of Pyongyang, North Korea. Located on the bank of the Taedong River, the pavilion was first constructed during the Goguryeo dynasty as "Sansu Pavilion", and was part of the defenses of the walled city of Pyongyang. It is labeled as National Treasure #16 in North Korea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minsuk Cho</span> South Korean architect

Minsuk Cho is a South Korean architect.

Pyongyang International House of Culture, also known as the Pyongyang International Cultural Center, is a cultural venue in the Central District of Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. It was opened on 2 April 1988. It serves as venue for cultural exchange with foreigners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Korean pavilion</span> South Korean presence at the Venice Biennale

The Korean pavilion houses South Korea's national representation during the Venice Biennale arts festivals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Japanese pavilion</span>

The Japanese pavilion houses Japan's national representation during the Venice Biennale arts festivals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Israeli pavilion</span>

The Israeli pavilion houses Israel's national representation during the Venice Biennale arts festivals. Jewish Israeli artists first participated in the 24th Venice Biennale in the Erez Israel, Artisti Palestinesi pavilion. Israel first participated in the 25th Venice Biennale in 1950.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Korea Stamp Museum</span> Postal museum in Pyongyang, North Korea

The Korea Stamp Museum is a postal museum in the Central District of Pyongyang, North Korea.

References

  1. ↑ Glain, Steve (February 19, 1997). "A Visit to North Korea Can Be Amazingly Hip ... If You Get in". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2008-09-15. Koryo Tours is a British-run company. The company has organized travel and cultural exchanges with the DPRK.
  2. ↑ "US tourists can visit DPRK for mass games". People's Daily Online. September 23, 2005. Retrieved 2008-09-15.
  3. ↑ Lee, Su Hyun (October 2, 2005). "North Korea Allowing U.S. Visitors (but Time Is Short)". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-09-15.
  4. ↑ Fifield, Anna (August 5, 2015). "North Korea tours: Simon Cockerell of Koryo Tours has visited 143 times". Washington Post.
  5. ↑ "Tough going, but a holiday in North Korea is not impossible". Daily Times (Pakistan). July 21, 2004. Retrieved 2008-09-15.
  6. ↑ Koryo Quarterly newsletter Archived 2014-12-16 at the Wayback Machine , August 2008
  7. ↑ "Official website". Comradekimgoesflying.com. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  8. ↑ "Comrade Kim Goes Flying", Toronto Film Festival
  9. ↑ Chan, Yuan-Kwan (August 9, 2013). ""Aim High in Creation!" – 2013 MIFF Review". Meniscus Magazine. Archived from the original on May 17, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Michael Palin on North Korea". Condé Nast Traveler . October 15, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Olympians Aimee Fuller and Mirjam Jaeger in the new Olympic Channel documentary "Running in North Korea"". International Olympic Committee . September 24, 2019. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  12. ↑ "N. Korea launches new intl. marathon event for Oct.: tour agency". The Korea Herald . Yonhap. August 23, 2017. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  13. ↑ Hotham, Oliver (February 21, 2020). "North Korea calls off upcoming Pyongyang marathon amid coronavirus fears". NK News . Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  14. ↑ "Hundreds of foreigners join Pyongyang race as tensions ease". The Associated Press . April 8, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Pyongyang marathon: Fewer foreigners compete in North Korea's annual race". BBC News . April 8, 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  16. ↑ Macguire, Eoghan (July 3, 2014). "Are hovercrafts [sic] and giant wheels the future of North Korean architecture?". CNN . Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  17. ↑ Rosenfield, Karissa (May 28, 2014). "Venice Biennale 2014: Minsuk Cho to Present "Crow's Eye View" of Divided Korea". ArchDaily . Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  18. ↑ Winston, Anna (June 6, 2014). "Mass Studies brings together North and South Korea with Venice biennale pavilion". Dezeen . Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  19. ↑ Frearson, Amy (June 7, 2014). "Korea wins Golden Lion for best pavilion at Venice Architecture Biennale". Dezeen . Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  20. ↑ "Printed in North Korea". Koryo Studio. 2019. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  21. ↑ "Made in North Korea: Graphics From Everyday Life in the DPRK". Koryo Studio. 2017. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Made in North Korea: An exhibition of North Korean graphic ephemera at The House of Illustration, London & Seoul". Koryo Studio. 2018. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  23. ↑ Sayej, Nadja (20 February 2013). "North Korea's First Racing Video Game Is Terrible". Vice . Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.