Shining light on the darkness. Placing tourists within North Korean tourism. Comment on: Desiring the dark: ‘A taste for the unusual’ in North Korean tourism?

Abstract

Few studies exist of tourism in North Korea. Many passing references to tourism have been distanced from actual tourists. Visiting North Korea is a form of moral political tourism that has no relationship to dark tourism or fantasy, but represents tourist interest in seeking to discover a ‘real’ North Korea that is distinct from hegemonic political narratives from outside or inside the country. Tourism is associated with the need to evaluate and reconsider political orthodoxies and ideologies, and discover an everyday environment.

Keywords:

• North Korea
• tourists
• politics
• representation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.