▲ North Korea holds a completion ceremony of the Yombunjin Coastal Park Area, a new tourist zone in North Hamgyong Province, on Jan. 21, 2026, in this photo carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency two days later. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
▲ This photo, carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on Jan. 23, 2026, shows the Yombunjin Coastal Park Area, a new tourist zone in North Hamgyong Province. North Korea held a completion ceremony of the tourist area on the east coast on Jan. 21. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

N Korea-tourist zone

N. Korea completes building another tourist area on east coast

SEOUL, Jan. 23 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has held a completion ceremony for a new tourist zone on the east coast, state media reported Friday, after it opened the Kalma beach resort last year in an effort to foster the tourism industry.

The ceremony of inaugurating the Yombunjin Coastal Park Area in North Hamgyong Province took place Wednesday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

In July 2011, North Korea launched the building of a hotel in the Yombunjin coastal areas under the instruction of then leader Kim Jong-il, but the construction had lagged for a long time.

Incumbent leader Kim Jong-un inspected the site in 2018, ordering a reconsideration of the hotel's design and the construction of a modern coastal park.

The KCNA said Yombunjin Haeyang Hostel and the beach area were splendidly built, with facilities ranging from movie theaters and shops to video arcades.

"(The tourist park) will provide good rest and satisfactory convenience to not only the people in the province but also people who stop by for business trips," Pak Myong-ho, chairman of the North Hamgyong Provincial People's Committee, said in a speech at the ceremony.

North Korea has been seeking to nurture the tourism industry in an apparent bid to earn much-needed foreign currency amid international sanctions.

In July last year, North Korea opened the Wonsan Kalma tourist area on the east coast in an effort to attract foreign tourists.

Ahead of a key party congress widely expected for next month, North Korea has pick up the pace of completing major construction projects.

Earlier this week, North Korea inaugurated the Onpho Working People's Holiday Camp, a hot spring resort in North Hamgyong Province, after years of remodeling.

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