North Korea will be reopening to foreign tourists in December 2024 after nearly five years of COVID-19-related border closures, according to two specialized tour operators.

Beijing-based Koryo Tours said on its website that it has received confirmation from its local partner that tourism to Samjiyon and potentially other parts of the country will officially resume in December 2024.

Samjiyon is a gateway city near North Korea’s northern border with China, and home to Mount Paektu, where official narratives claim the late supreme leader Kim Jong Il was born.

KTG Tours, another China-based tour operator, also stated on its Facebook page that tourists will be able to visit the Samjiyon (Mount Paektu) area this coming winter, with the exact dates to be confirmed.

The company expressed optimism that Pyongyang and other destinations may also open up for tourism.

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North Korea sealed off its borders in early 2020 to protect itself from the COVID-19 pandemic, even preventing its own citizens from entering the country for years.

However, signs of reopening began in the second half of 2023, with the resumption of international flights allowing stranded North Korean nationals to finally return home.

Prior to the pandemic, tourism to North Korea was limited, with tour companies estimating around 5,000 Western tourists visited each year.

Koryo Tours warned that the early days of the tourism restart may not be smooth sailing after the nearly 5-year hiatus.