Three decades after construction began on this extraordinary hotel in 1987, it still has not been completed. Planned as a prestige project but abandoned following the collapse of the USSR, its haunting skeleton sat on the Pyongyang skyline for years as an unavoidable symbol of North Korea's economic failure. In 2008 work began on the hotel again when it was clad in glass, and so while it looks far better than before, it sadly remains empty inside and cannot be visited.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
1.87 MILES
This tower honours the North Korean philosophy of Juche and was unveiled to mark President Kim Il-sung's 70th birthday in 1982. Indeed, the tower is made…
Monument to the Foundation of the Workers' Party
2.15 MILES
This startlingly bombastic monument has starred on the cover of more books about North Korea than almost any other. The three hands portrayed represent…
0.89 MILES
Every itinerary includes an homage to these vast bronze statues of the smiling Great Leader and Dear Leader, the latter in his trademark parka. The first…
1.4 MILES
Pyongyang’s central square is where North Korea’s massive military parades normally take place. The plaza is ringed by austere-looking buildings: most…
Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum
0.35 MILES
Perhaps the most interesting museum in Pyongyang, this mouthful of an institution opened its current home in 2013 to mark the 60th anniversary of the end…
1.06 MILES
Your guides will tell you proudly that the Triumphal Arch is 6m higher than its cousin in Paris, making it the largest of its kind in the world. The arch…
0.86 MILES
This impressive statue portrays Chollima, the Korean Pegasus. It’s an interesting example of how the North Korean state has incorporated traditional…
0.35 MILES
The USS Pueblo is a US surveillance vessel that was seized by the North Koreans off the east coast of Korea in January 1968, during a heightening of…
Nearby Pyongyang attractions
1. Monument to the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War 1950–53
0.32 MILES
This impressive monument, which was unveiled in 1993 to mark the 40th anniversary of the end of the Korean War, now forms part of the display of the…
0.35 MILES
The USS Pueblo is a US surveillance vessel that was seized by the North Koreans off the east coast of Korea in January 1968, during a heightening of…
3. Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum
0.35 MILES
Perhaps the most interesting museum in Pyongyang, this mouthful of an institution opened its current home in 2013 to mark the 60th anniversary of the end…
0.66 MILES
The western gate of the original walled city of Pyongyang dates from the 6th century, but was rebuilt in the 15th century and then again in 1955.
0.84 MILES
Despite the museum’s rather misleading name, its main function is to document the death of Kim Il-sung (including a film of the extraordinary public…
0.86 MILES
This impressive statue portrays Chollima, the Korean Pegasus. It’s an interesting example of how the North Korean state has incorporated traditional…
0.89 MILES
Every itinerary includes an homage to these vast bronze statues of the smiling Great Leader and Dear Leader, the latter in his trademark parka. The first…
0.91 MILES
Located inside what is today Pyongyang's main park, the Chilsong Gate was once the northern entrance to the original walled city of Pyongyang and dates…