North Korean Tours!!!



Going to North Korea will make someone very interesting. In conversations where people talk about their travels, saying you have been to N. Korea will halt conversations. You will suddenly become the most interesting person in the group.

North Korea has again opened its doors to U.S. citizens for tours. I was reading www.cnn.com and I was surprised to find that out. There is one company that runs those tours. I went on the "Koryo Tours" website and they have many tour packages. I am not someone who usually likes a tour package because I like to go off the beaten path. Yet, North Korea is one of those places where tourism is restricted and guided tours are a necessity.

I know that Geumgangsan (Gold River Mountain) is a popular destination. Kaesong is a seaside city that also attracts tourists. Baekdusan (White Head Mountain) is on the Chinese border. Pyongyang has many things to see such as their subway, an an art museum with North Korean art, and many statues of Kim Jong-il and Kim Il-seung. Statues and paintings of both the "dear leaders" are all over the country.

I don't know much about the visa rules for other countries. I do know the Chinese and South Koreans go there often.

The same company also offers tours to Turkmenistan as of 2006. That is another destination that isn't common. It takes a long time to get there though, more than 30 hours from Seoul. Central Asia, along with the Middle East are the closest things to terra incognita for the 21st century. There are ancient cities and beautiful landscapes to see.

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