Pyongyang
Pyongyang (Korean: 평양) is the capital and largest city of North Korea.
Pyongyang (Korean: 평양) is the capital and largest city of North Korea. According to the 2008 population census, it has a population of 3,255,288. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about 109 kilometers upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Pyongyang is a directly administered city with a status equal to that of the North Korean provinces.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Worth seeing in and around Pyongyang
10 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.
- 01Ryugyong Hotel
The Ryugyong Hotel, sometimes spelled as Yu-Kyung Hotel, is a 330 m tall unfinished pyramid-shaped skyscraper in Pyongyang, North Korea. Its name (lit.
2.6 km · unfinished pyramid-shaped skyscraper in North Korea · Wikipedia - 02Rungrado 1st of May Stadium
The Rungrado 1st of May Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium occupying an area of 20.7 hectares on the island Rŭngrado, Pyongyang, North Korea. It opened on 1 May 1989, with its first major event being the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students.
4.4 km · stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea · Wikipedia - 03Kim Il-sung University
Kim Il Sung University is a public university in Taesong, Pyongyang, North Korea. It was founded on 1 October 1946 and was the first tertiary education institution established in post-war North Korea.
4.9 km · first university built in North Korea · Wikipedia - 04Juche Tower
The Juche Tower, completed in 1982, is a 170-metre monument in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. The monument is named after the ideology of Juche introduced by North Korea's first leader, Kim Il Sung.
1.4 km · tower in Pyongyang, North Korea · Wikipedia - 05Kim Il-sung Square
Kim Il Sung Square is a large city square in the Central District of Pyongyang, North Korea, and is named after the country's founding leader, Kim Il Sung. The square was constructed in 1954 according to a master plan for reconstructing the capital after the destruction of the Korean War.
500 m · square in Pyongyang, North Korea · Wikipedia - 06Arch of Reunification
The Arch of Reunification, officially the Monument to the Three-Point Charter for National Reunification, was a sculptural arch located south of Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. It was opened in August 2001 to commemorate Korean reunification proposals put forward by Kim Il Sung.
6.4 km · Pyongyang Monument · Wikipedia - 07Grand People’s Study House
The Grand People's Study House is the national library of North Korea, located in the capital city of Pyongyang. The library was built in 1982 in honour of the Supreme Leader Kim Il Sung's 70th birthday.
400 m · library in Pyongyang, North Korea · Wikipedia - 08Kim Il-sung Stadium
Kim Il Sung Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Pyongyang, the capital city of North Korea. The stadium is used primarily for association football matches.
3.1 km · stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea · Wikipedia - 09Chollima Statue
The Chollima Statue is a monument on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang, North Korea. The monument symbolizes the "Chollima speed" of the Chollima Movement.
2 km · monument in Pyongyang, North Korea · Wikipedia - 10Yanggakdo Stadium
Yanggakdo Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located on Yanggak Island in Pyongyang, North Korea, that was used mainly for football matches. The stadium holds 30,000 people and was opened on 18 May 1989.
2.8 km · stadium · Wikipedia
Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What Wikivoyage says to see
- 01Arch of Triumph
The arch was designed to commemorate Korean resistance to Japan between 1925 and 1945 and eventual liberation from Japanese rule.
- 02Arirang Mass Games
A mass gymnastics and artistic performance.
- 03Children's Palace
Nearly every city has its own Children's Palace, with Pyongyang having the largest.
- 04Chollima Statue
At the top of Mansu Hill is a statue of a man riding Chollima, a winged horse, representing the economic development of Korea.
- 05Juche Tower
A 170 m tall monument is dedicated to the Juche philosophy of Kim Il Sung.
- 06Kaeson Funfair
This small amusement park has a handful of new rides.
From Wikivoyage: Pyongyang, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Things to do
Normally, tourists in Pyongyang are restricted to guided tours. Personal visitors to foreign residents are usually free to wander around, though they may also be placed under the care of a guide.
- 01Pyongyang Marathon
The Pyongyang Marathon is a yearly event in April open to Americans and most other nationalities since 2014.
- 02Bowling
Bowling is available at Golden Lanes for minimal cost.
From Wikivoyage: Pyongyang, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Where to eat
Local residents generally eat at home, and as such the Pyongyang restaurant scene is lacking. You will normally eat dinner at your hotel. There are a number of small diners in the city, but they are mostly aimed at local workers and have rather spartan fare—boiled corn, kimchi, some fish or squid, white rice.
From Wikivoyage: Pyongyang, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Pyongyang
- Airports
- Pyongyang Sunan (FNJ), 24 km · Incheon (ICN), 183 km · Seoul Gimpo (GMP), 186 km
- Stations
- Pyongyang Station, 1.6 km · Puhŭng Station, 2.7 km · Chŏnu, 4.5 km · Ponghwa station, 600 m · Kwangbok Station, 4.6 km
- Seoul → Pyongyang195 km · quickest by road, 43h 54m · ₩232,000–310,000
- Gonghang-ro → Pyongyang188 km · quickest by road, 43h 40m · ₩231,000–308,000
- Cheongju → Pyongyang307 km · quickest by air, 7h 32m · ₩153,390–237,770
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.
No local-transport research exists yet for Pyongyang
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Pyongyang. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Get inWestern foreigners will usually be denied entry to North Korea by train (except for those specially chartered by tour companies).
- Get aroundHowever, if on a package tour, your short trip on the metro will be organised in advance.
From Wikivoyage: Pyongyang, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
- 01190 km
- 021,430 km
- 031,525 km
- 041,640 km
- 051,641 km
If you know how people move in Pyongyang – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.
Next door to Pyongyang
Pyongyang is 8 km from Man’gyŏngdae-ri, the nearest large city, whose note carries the wider picture.
- Mangyongdae Districtdistrict of Pyongyang5.8 km
- Chung-guyokdistrict of Pyongyang500 m
- Potonggang-guyokdistrict of Pyongyang2.8 km
- Moranbong-guyokdistrict of Pyongyang3.8 km
- Mangyŏngdaeneighborhood in Pyongyang, North Korea8.1 km
- Rangrang-guyokdistrict of Pyongyang8 km