Young Pioneer Tours
Blog
Welcome to the Young Pioneer Tours Blog, the place where we we keep you informed about everything YPT, from current tours, to future tours and a whole lot of eclectic stuff in between.
YPT first started blogging in 2008 and are considered the best North Korean Travel blog that there is.
But, as Young Pioneer Tours have expanded our locations, so have we expanded our blog. Now we have one of the best travel blogs in the world!
And while most of our content is about the numerous destinations we go, including travel guides and what to pack, we also delve into more serious subjects such as the safety of certain destinations, as well as how LGTBQ+ friendly the places we visit are.
While the vast majority of our content is produced in-house, we are always on the look-out for guest bloggers and writers. Want to write for us? Then simply get in touch.
You can also check out our sister publication YPT Life.
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Nightlife of North Korea – The Diplo
19 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
Pyongyang’s nightlife might not exactly be the Last Days of Rome, but things have drastically improved – certainly in the eleven or so years that I’ve been visiting. Nowadays there are many more bars, coffee shops, and even pizza joints popping up in P …
Views from the Borderlands – Manpo
19 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
Without doubt one of our most underrated tours – and for Americans at least, the closest view of North Korea you will currently get – is our North Korean Borderlands Tour. The tour starts either in Dandong or Tumen, with us taking the long journey alon …
Made in the DPRK – Red Star OS
19 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
Red Star OS, or Red Star Linux is the native operating system of North Korea. North Korea often has an unfair reputation as lacking the technology of the West, but like everything with North Korea, the truth is usually a little bit more complex. We’ve …
Does North Korea have internet?
19 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
Does North Korea have internet? In short, yes North Korea does have internet, but much like everything else, the full answer is much more complex. North Korean internet is one of the most asked and least understood questions about the DPRK. So, what is …
Cellphones of North Korea: Koryolink
19 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
It wasn’t all that long ago that cell phones were banned in North Korea for both locals and foreigners alike. Allegedly the ban occurred after an attempt on the leader’s life using a bomb set off via a phone, although this is very much an unconfirmed r …
Football in North Korea
19 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
It is impossible to talk about football in North Korea without first dispelling a few myths about the country regarding football. North Korea did not claim that they won the World Cup. I was there; they watched the matches live, they were proud when th …
Best bar in North Korea: Rakwon Beer Bar
18 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
When I first started Young Pioneer Tours back in 2008 the main aim was to provide budget tours to North Korea. But we may have also had beer on the mind – not gonna lie! One of the first conversations I had when I first started arranging travel to Nort …
The People’s Rooney — Jong Tae Se
18 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
If you want to get into the very geeky territory of the best North Korean footballer ever, you’d be hard pressed to argue against Mr Pak Doo-Ick, who famously scored the goal that knocked out Italy in the 1966 World Cup. But if you’re talking about the …
What is Chongryon?
18 April 2019 / by Gareth Johnson
Fun fact, kids! The best North Korean footballer (arguably) is a chap called Jong Tae Se. AKA The People’s Rooney, he was not actually born in North Korea and essentially holds 3 de facto nationalities: Japanese, North Korean, and South Korean. So …
