YPT Tours to North Korea Borderlands

In 2015, Young Pioneer Tours ran its first North Korea Borderlands Tour. It took us from the far north-east of both North Korea and China, by the border with Russia and all the way down to Dandong.

The trip has since been set to run in reverse, from Dandong all the way to Tumen, but the idea is the same: to get as close a glimpse as possible over the border and into North Korea. 

North Korean Borderland Group Tours

Our North Korea borderlands trip was previously done as part of All Koreas Tour, a trip we fully intend to resume once the DPRK reopens to tourism. 

To read about when North Korea might reopen to tourism click here.

Independent North Korea Borderlands Tours

Young Pioneer Tours can arrange independent tours of the North Korean borderlands. These include a local driver, a local guide and all the necessary permits and permissions. 

Those independent tours can be run from as little as one person up to around ten. 

These can also be combined with our tours inside North Korea, as well as tours to Rason. 

Example of a North Korea Borderlands Itinerary (8 days)

Following is our south-north Borderlands itinerary starting from Beijing. It can also start directly in Dandong. 

This can also be done north-south, starting either in Beijing, Tumen, or Yanji. This is an extremely adaptable itinerary that can have places added, or taken away, as well as special interests looked after. 

Day 1 – Beijing

• Meet your YPT guide at 3:30pm at the Beijing Zhong Gu Hotel near Beijing Railway Station found here. During this meeting, we’ll go through the tour’s itinerary, and tickets, as well as a great chance to meet your fellow travellers and to discuss any other questions you may have about the tour.
• We depart Beijing Railway Station at 5:25pm on the overnight sleeper train to Dandong city, the border town city of China opposite to North Korea

Day 2 – Dandong

• Morning arrival in Dandong and head out for breakfast
• Visit the most eastern part of the Great Wall of China at Tiger Mountain – This is famous for the ‘one meter hop’ as it is the narrowest point between China and North Korea.
• Head back into Dandong city and visit the Memorial of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea – with over 150 military hardware displayed such as Soviet tanks, jets, bombers and a Chinese steam locomotive. The memorial hall holds over 20.000 relics left over from the Korean War and gives a comprehensive view of the events that unfolded during the Korean War.

Afternoon

• Lunch at an authentic Pyongyang restaurant – All the staff at the restaurant are North Korean, and they provide the traditional Korean hospitality with songs and dancing, giving you a taste of what’s to come inside North Korea itself!
• Jump aboard a boat and travel down the Yalu River, the river that separates China and the DPRK. This will give you fantastic photo opportunities to take of North Korea and the destroyed original Friendship Bridge that was built by the Japanese and then destroyed by the Americans during the Korean War.
• After disembarking from the boat, now is your chance to walk along the destroyed Friendship Bridge and see the Chinese propaganda.
• Short drive to see the new Yalu River Bridge connecting China and North Korea, intended as a replacement for the Sino–Korean Friendship Bridge. Construction began in October 2011 and is mostly complete and connected but the project is stalled; North Korea has not built any roads connecting to its end of the bridge.
• Stroll around the river front before heading to check out the views into North Korea, as well as some Korean souvenirs.
• For dinner, we’ll dig into Dandong’s famous BBQ dishes.
• Drinks at a nearby bar most famous it’s imported beers.
• Overnight at Dandong Dante Hotel.

Day 3 – Manpo – Ji’An

• After an early breakfast, our road trip begins as you travel down the Yalu River to Ji’an city for a look of Manpo city – a city of 110,000 with great picture opportunities!
• During our drive, we will have a chance to pull over and check out any interesting things that pop up along the way.
• Arrival in Ji’an city and lunch at a local restaurant.

Afternoon

• Ji’an city used to be the capital of the Koguryo Dynasty, one of the first dynasties to rule over Korea. We’ll take a stroll around the city, hunting ruins of the past and walking around the main city square.
• Visit the Ji’an Koguryo Dynasty Artifacts Museum.
• We take a night to explore, hitting some great BBQ and having a few beers in an imported beers shop before checking out the riverfront.
• Overnight in hotel.

Day 4 – Ji’An – Linjiang

• After breakfast, we’ll visit the next major/secret border crossing into DPRK located in Ji’an.
• Everyone has heard of China’s great wall, but today we visit the Korean Wall, which marked the border between historic Korea and China.
• We take a morning visit to the UNESCO site that is the capital city and holds the tombs of the ancient Koguryo Kingdom – a must-see for people interested in Korean history and culture! The site contains the archaeological remains of three cities and forty identified tombs of Koguryo imperial and noble families.
• Head out of Ji’an City to begin our drive to the town of Linjiang.
• Lunch at a small yet very interesting village and continue driving on.

Afternoon

• Arrive in Linjiang – this city looks scarily like Las Vegas from a distance but is nothing like Vegas on arrival.
• Explore another border crossing in Linjiang. This is one of the significant industrial borders between the two countries, and particularly interesting.
• Visit the statue of Chen Yun, one of the founders of People’s China, as well as visiting his former residence. He was one of the very few Chinese politicians to avoid being purged despite finding Chairman Mao Zedong slightly too left and Deng Xiaoping slightly too right. Chen Yun sadly passed away of old age in 1995.
• We’ll hop on a raft boat from which we can take a closer look at rural life on the North Korean side from military training facilities to local fishermen and villagers going about their lives a mere stone’s throw away.
• Stroll down Linjiang’s famous street food market street to try all manner of local delights including BBQ’d bat, stinky tofu and chicken foetus for the experimental eaters among us! More palatable foods also available too!
• Visit to an infamous underground club with cabaret-style shows including magic, dance, and much more!
• Overnight in hotel.

Day 5 – Changbai

• We’ll begin our long morning drive toward Changbai with a few stops along the way for some views of the incredible scenery.
• Stop off at the shops where we can buy more DPRK goods and souvenirs.
• Take our bus to the Changbai–Hyesan International Bridge which serves as one of the major border posts between the DPRK and China and offers excellent overlooking views of Hyesan City in the DPRK.
• We enjoy some authentic Korean/Chinese lunch in the country.

Afternoon

• Arrive in Changbai Village and check into the hotel – this is Changbai Korean autonomous county, which is the only Korean autonomous zone in China outside Yanbian.
• We’ll head back out to take a walking tour along the newly renovated riverfront board walk and climb up a viewing platform to give us a better glance at unseen parts of North Korea. Some of the best views into Manpo in the otherwise inaccessible Chagang Province of North Korea.
• Take a night stroll around the city for some local food and to explore some local drinking holes.
• Overnight in a strangely Renaissance-themed hotel that overlooks straight out on Korea!

Day 6 – Baihe

• Wake up early and Drive to Baihe which is the entrance to Mount Changbai National Park. This is the Chinese side of Mount Paektu – the most sacred mountain in the DPRK.
• We’ll have a full day of adventurous hiking up Mount Changbai to see the very famous and magnificent Heaven Lake – this is the iconic volcanic lake seen in very many paintings from the DPRK with the leaders. We recommend bringing suitable hiking boots!
• Lunch at the summit of the mountain.

Afternoon

• Make our way back down the mountain.
• Jump on a shuttle bus and explore more beautiful scenery such as Changbai waterfall, lakes, hot springs (with optional hot spring-cooked boiled eggs!), and the mystical dense forest that surrounds the valleys below the mountain.
• Board the bus again and head back to Baihe,
• Head out for dinner for your choice of unique Chinese local dishes or Baihe’s only pizza restaurant for those craving a taste of home.
• Overnight at hotel.

Day 7 – Tumen

Morning

• Up early for our five-hour drive to our final Borderlands stop: Tumen City
• Along the way, we’ll have a quick stop in Longjing city to sample some Korean delicacies such as raw beef, Chinese-Korean kimchi and other delicious Korean dishes!

Afternoon

• We’ll have lunch at a local restaurant in Tumen City before checking out the last Chinese/DPRK border point on our itinerary – the same border crossing those joining All Koreas part 2 tour will use to enter North Korea on the following day. This border was first opened to western tourists by YPT in 2012.
• Explore the nearby parkland area which surrounds the border crossing – this is a perfect opportunity to approach the river bank for some fantastic close-up shots of the DPRK!
• Shop at the stands nearby for some very rare DPRK memorabilia that is not always available in the country.
• Climb up a small hill to get even better views in Namyang city in North Korea.
• Check into hotel in Tumen to join up with the new group members and then go out for beers, soju or a last taste of Chinese baijiu to celebrate the end of the Borderlands road trip!
• Outdoor BBQ dinner on the riverfront, overlooking into the DPRK.
• Overnight in Tumen City

Day 8

• Last breakfast and the end of our borderlands trip with optional extensions to North-East North Korea and Rason. 

Bespoke North Korea Borderlands Tours

While the scope of bespoke tours to the North Korean borderlands are more limited than other places, there is some space for adaptation, as well as taking longer in the various places we visit.

North-South and South North DPRK Borderlands trips 

As stated, the listed itinerary can be adapted from either staring in the north and finishing in the south, or vice versa. 

Mount Paektu/Chabgbaishan Tours

Young Pioneer Tours can arrange extended travels to Changbaishan Mountain, the Chinese side of Mount Paektu, the mythical birthplace of the Korean people. 

Extended Borderlands City Tours

Extended travel can be arranged to the cities which we visit on the borderlands trips. These include Tumen, Changbai Village, Linjiang, Jian, Baishan, Yanji, and Dandong.

Dandong specific tours

As the main gateway to North Korea there is a lot of see and do in Dandong. Therefore, this marks the perfect place to extent your DPRK borderlands tour.

Culinary Tours

North-East China offers some of the best cuisine in China. Throughout the borderlands from Tumen to Dandong this is fused with North Korean cuisine to offers a real culinary treat. With prearrangement we can help arrange a culinary tour within the region. 

Filming on the North Korean borderlands

Filming on the North Korean borderlands is not particularly easy and requires a high amount of permissions. It is though technically possible. If you have interest in this check out our partners at Pioneer Media (MediaPioneers.net). 

Frequently asked questions about travel to the borderlands

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