- 'Second family': tennis stars hunt winning formula with new coaches
- Philippines, South Korea agree to deepen maritime cooperation
- Mexico mayor murdered days after taking office
- Sardinia's sheep farmers battle bluetongue as climate warms
- Japan govt admits doctoring 'untidy' cabinet photo
- Israel marks first anniversary of Hamas's October 7 attack
- Darvish tames Ohtani as Padres thrash Dodgers
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on jobs data
- Family affair as LeBron, Bronny James make Lakers bow
- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
- Lewandowski treble for leaders Barca as Atletico held
- Fresh Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Sucic stunner earns Real Sociedad draw against Atletico
- PSG draw with Nice, fail to reclaim top spot in Ligue 1
- Gudmundsson downs AC Milan after De Gea's penalty heroics for Fiorentina
- 'Yes' vote prevails in Kazakhstan nuclear plant vote: TV
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Lewandowski hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- 'Nothing gets in way of team,' says Celtics' MVP hopeful Tatum
- India maintain Pakistan stranglehold as Windies cruise at Women's T20 World Cup
- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- Maresca hails Chelsea's 'fighting' spirit after draw with 10-man Forest
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Vikings hold off Jets in London to stay unbeaten
- Ahead of attack anniversary, Netanyahu says: 'We will win'
- West Indies cruise to T20 World Cup win over Scotland
- Arshdeep, Chakravarthy help India hammer Bangladesh in T20 opener
- Lewandowski's quickfire hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Man Utd fire another blank in Aston Villa stalemate
- Lewandowski treble powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- Russian activist killed on front line in Ukraine
- Openda strike briefly sends Leipzig top of Bundesliga
- Goal-shy Man Utd have to 'step up', says Ten Hag
- India bowl out Bangladesh for 127 in T20 opener
North Korea tour operators hopeful ahead of country's reopening
A Beijing-based North Korea tour operator expressed hopes of fresh business on Thursday following an unexpected announcement that the country would reopen to foreign tourists this winter.
Koryo Tours said on Wednesday they had received notice from isolated North Korea that tourism to the northeastern city of Samjiyon would resume in December after nearly five years of Covid-triggered closure.
"Our initial reaction is positive of course. It's been a long wait," Koryo Tours general manager Simon Cockerell told AFP on Thursday.
"Demand has been strong throughout the closure so I would expect a decent rebound (in business)," he said, adding "there are a lot of folks who have been anxious and keen" to visit nuclear-armed North Korea since the pandemic.
KTG Tours, also based in China, said on its Facebook page Wednesday that it had been told "tourists will be able to go to Samjiyon (Mt. Paektu area) this winter".
"Exact dates to be confirmed. So far just Samjiyon has been officially confirmed but we think that Pyongyang and other places will open too!" it said.
Samjiyon, near North Korea's mountainous northern border with China, is a gateway city to Mount Paektu, where official narratives say the late supreme leader Kim Jong Il was born.
His son and successor, Kim Jong Un, has poured huge resources into developing the area, with the vast project including new apartments, hotels and a ski resort.
North Korean state media had not mentioned the reopening of the border by mid-afternoon on Thursday.
- 'Idiosyncratic' -
Cockerell told AFP that opening up to tourists in the bitterly cold, remote area in December was unexpected but "a positive step for sure".
"Doing it in the far north in the middle of winter is idiosyncratic, but the DPRK is nothing if not an idiosyncratic place," he said, using the official acronym for North Korea.
"For our company, it hopefully means we can start to fulfil our mandate again which is to offer as many people the chance to go there as possible, to increase engagement and interaction."
North Korea sealed off its borders in early 2020 to protect itself from Covid-19, with even its own nationals prevented from entering for years.
But signs of reopening began in the second half of 2023, with the resumption of international flights allowing stranded nationals to finally return home.
A group of Russian tourists visited in February 2024, at a time when ties between Moscow and Pyongyang were growing closer.
Tourism to the North was limited before the pandemic, with tour companies saying around 5,000 Western tourists visited each year.
US citizens made up about 20 percent of the market before Washington banned travel following the imprisonment and subsequent death of American student Otto Warmbier.
"I'd caution against over-interpreting this opening," Cockerell said. "It's not necessarily a message to the world or anything like that. It's just a slow and small initial opening to restabilise an industry that existed for decades previously."
Koryo Tours warned on its website that, after a hiatus of almost five years, the early days of the tourism restart may not go smoothly.
"For those hoping to visit on one of the sooner tours, we would like to emphasise that things may be a little more chaotic than usual," it said.
But Cockerell remains optimistic. "This is finally a positive piece of news, hopefully to be followed by more of the same," he said.
burs-sam/je/pbt
Ch.Havering--AMWN