Just Landed in North Korea? Your First 7 Days

Foreigners are completely barred from the domestic Kwangmyong intranet and use a segregated Koryolink foreigner tariff that offers metered mobile data and international calling but no contact with local subscribers. The open internet, where you have it at all, is limited to a few embassies, some hotel business centres, and the paid Koryolink foreigner data package. Speeds are slow, data is expensive, and you should assume every session is logged.

Typical cost: Foreigner SIM setup is around USD 80 for calls only or roughly USD 200 with data, plus about a USD 22 monthly fee and data charged at approximately USD 0.18 per megabyte; international calls are billed per minute in hard currency.

North Korea runs a de facto multi-currency cash economy for foreigners: euros, US dollars, and Chinese yuan are used at hotels, diplomatic shops, and restaurants, while the local won is largely off-limits, unstable, and rarely handled by foreigners. There are no international ATMs, foreign cards do not work anywhere, and there is no digital or contactless payment you can depend on.

Opening an account: Ordinary residents cannot open a normal retail bank account. Accredited diplomats and organisations transact through the state Foreign Trade Bank of the DPRK or Golden Triangle Bank in Rason, all arranged through official channels; there is no consumer banking, no debit card, and no online banking for individuals.

Cash: Strictly cash, and strictly hard currency. Bring enough clean, crisp, undamaged euro, dollar, and yuan notes for your entire stay plus a reserve, because you cannot reliably draw or wire money once inside the country. Torn or marked notes are frequently refused, so inspect what you carry.

Tipping: Tipping is not a local custom and can be viewed with suspicion. Small hard-currency tips to guides or drivers are sometimes given discreetly at the end of a stay, but they are never expected and should be handled quietly rather than openly.

Foreigners must be registered with the authorities and hold the correct residence and accreditation documentation, all arranged through their sponsoring organisation or embassy. Your host lodges the paperwork with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs protocol department, your address and movements are recorded, and your permitted travel is tied to your accreditation. You cannot register yourself independently, and you should not treat any part of the process as optional; hand over every requested document promptly and keep copies.

Deadline: Handled on arrival by your host organisation; provide your documents immediately, as your residence status and movement permissions depend on it.

Where: Ministry of Foreign Affairs protocol department, via your embassy or sponsoring organisation, Pyongyang.

Foreigners cannot move around freely. Travel outside Pyongyang requires prior written permission and an accompanying guide, and even within the city you are generally expected to travel with your assigned driver or minder rather than hail transport or walk long distances alone. There is no ride-hailing app, and the celebrated Pyongyang Metro and trams are part of ordinary domestic life you access only in a controlled way.

From the airport: Pyongyang Sunan International Airport (FNJ) sits about 25 km north of the city centre, roughly a 30 to 40 minute drive. There is no public ride-hailing or foreigner-usable bus; you are collected by an official car and driver arranged in advance by your host organisation or embassy, and taken directly to your accommodation.

Housing is allocated by the state, not rented on any open market. Accredited diplomats live in the designated foreigners' compound in the Munsu-dong / Taedonggang diplomatic district, while other foreign staff are placed in assigned apartments or guesthouses arranged entirely through their organisation. You do not view properties, sign a private lease, or choose an area; you are placed where the ministry approves.

Typical rent: There is no open rental market, so there is no market rent; accommodation is assigned and charged through your organisation or the diplomatic compound in hard currency, typically in the region of a few hundred to well over a thousand US dollars a month depending on your posting.

Deposit norm: Not applicable in the usual sense; housing is allocated by the state rather than let by private landlords, so any charges and conditions are set by your organisation or the compound rather than a deposit and tenancy agreement.

Local hospitals are poorly equipped and frequently lack basic medicines, functioning equipment, and reliable power, so foreigners rely on the small clinic used by the diplomatic community and on medical evacuation for anything serious. Bring a comprehensive personal supply of prescription and everyday medicines, because you cannot count on buying them locally.

How to access it: For routine problems use the international clinic serving the diplomatic community in Pyongyang or your embassy doctor where one exists. For anything beyond minor care, the standard course is evacuation to Beijing, roughly a two-hour flight; arrange this in advance through your embassy and insurer so the logistics are already understood before you ever need them.

Insurance: You must hold comprehensive international health insurance with guaranteed medical-evacuation cover in place before you arrive. Local emergency care is unreliable, evacuation is expensive and logistically complex, and sanctions can complicate payments, so confirm your policy explicitly covers the DPRK and states how an evacuation would be funded and organised.

• Show unqualified respect toward statues, portraits, and images of the leaders at all times; never point at them, fold or crease a newspaper across a leader's face, sit on printed images, or discard them casually.
• At monuments such as Mansu Hill you may be expected to bow and lay flowers; watch your guide, follow their lead exactly, and photograph statues in full rather than cropping them.
• Dress neatly and modestly for official occasions and monument visits, and err on the side of formality when in doubt.
• Always defer to your guides and hosts on where you may go, what you may photograph, and when to leave; treat their instructions as rules, not suggestions.
• Accept hospitality graciously, use both hands when giving or receiving items and when pouring or accepting drinks, and reciprocate small courtesies.
• Keep political opinions and jokes to yourself in public and in front of local staff, and avoid any comparison with South Korea.
• Learn a few polite Korean phrases and use them warmly with drivers, guides, and shop staff; small respect goes a long way and is noticed.

• Never photograph military personnel, checkpoints, construction sites, poverty, or anything your guide asks you not to, and delete images immediately on request without arguing.
• Do not bring in, store, or discuss South Korean media, religious material, or political content of any kind; this is treated as a serious criminal matter, not a cultural faux pas.
• Assume every room, phone call, message, and internet session is monitored, and never say or write anything you would not want the authorities to read.
• Do not wander off from your minder or attempt unauthorised contact with ordinary citizens, which can put both you and them in real danger.
• Never sign anything, admit to any 'offence', or accept an informal 'fine' without contacting your embassy first, as coerced confessions carry heavy consequences.