North Korea is open to tourists of any nationality except South Korean. The US and Malaysian governments have banned their citizens from travelling to North Korea. Tourists may only visit the Rason Special Economic Zone (Rason SEZ) in North Korea from February 20. North Korea's capital, Pyongyang, remains closed to all but Russian visitors.

North Korea let Western tourists visit for the first time since 2020. But there are ethical issues around taking a vacation in an autocratic nation.

As North Korea prepares to reopen to Western visitors, the leading tour operator to the isolated state has described a journey there as “like a school trip”. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.