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.

Check out and subscribe to the YPT Blog and travel magazine

North Korean Cars — made in the DPRK

7 May 2019 / by Gareth Johnson

Continuing our ‘Made in the DPRK’ series – featuring such gems as the Arirang smartphone, the Samjiyon tablet and the Red Star OS – we continue our look at the homegrown products of North Korea! Up next: the automotive industry of North Korea. The punc …

Is the birthday of Kim Jong Un a holiday?

6 May 2019 / by Gareth Johnson

Is the birthday of Kim Jong Un a national holiday in North Korea? Unless you’ve been living under a rock – or are just not that interested in the goings-on of North Korea – I’ll get you up to speed on a certain Kim Jong Un. Kim – or to give him his off …

Pyongyang Cold Noodles – DPRK Guide

3 May 2019 / by Rowan Beard

Introduction Pyongyang Cold Noodles is the most iconic national dish of North Korea which is commonly consumed all year round and is the go-to-dish to be served on special occasions such as wedding days, birthdays, business meetings, or family gatherin …

North Korean Passport

2 May 2019 / by Rowan Beard

The North Korean passport is an incredibly interesting passport for travel geeks and passport nerds out there. However, there are a lot of things unknown about a passport from North Korea, so allow our North Korea passport guide to clarify these facts. …

What is Chondoism?

2 May 2019 / by Gareth Johnson

Believe it or not, there are three political parties in the Supreme People’s Assembly of North Korea. All of these are members of the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland – a classic united front set up to govern the country after t …

Political Parties of North Korea

2 May 2019 / by Gareth Johnson

There are a great many misconceptions about life in North Korea, tourism to the country, and how it’s actually run there. One such misconception is that North Korea is a one-party state. In actual fact, and similar to many socialist countries that came …

North Korean Culture

2 May 2019 / by Gareth Johnson

There are many reasons why one might visit North Korea, but in our mind, one of the priorities when visiting has to be to learn more about the fascinating and truly unique North Korean culture. We certainly believe that our tours are more about cultura …

Day of the Sun: Kim Il Sung’s Birthday

2 May 2019 / by Rowan Beard

Introduction to Day of the Sun Day of the Sun is an annual three-day national holiday celebrated in North Korea in recognition of Kim Il Sung’s Birthday. Kim Il Sung was the founder of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and is regarded as the et …

A new Sheriff in town: Tiraspol’s corporate overlord

2 May 2019 / by Gareth Johnson

Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise? Sorry, wrong story (and I should really be telling a story from the far superior The Last Jedi): did you ever hear the tale of the unrecognised country of Transnistria, a sliver of land between …