After 37 years of intermittent construction, North Korea’s Ryugyong Hotel remains incomplete. However, new plans could change its fate dramatically. Authorities are now offering the rights to operate a casino within the 105-floor hotel, contingent on an investor completing the building’s interior, according to a recent report by Radio Free Asia.
Historical challenges and current opportunity:
Inside Asian Gaming reports that the Ryugyong Hotel, a towering structure at 330 meters (1,080 feet) and the tallest building in the country, dominates the Pyongyang skyline. Initially intended to open in 1992, the project was derailed following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the subsequent economic crises that hit North Korea, including a severe famine in the mid-90s. Though the exterior of the hotel was finished in 2011, the interior remains a shell, and plans to open partially in 2013 were aborted.
In a bid to revive and complete this long-stalled monument, North Korean authorities are now enticing foreign investors with the promise of casino rights. “The authority to determine the location of the casino to be installed at the hotel and the right to operate the casino will be granted to a foreign entrepreneur who invests in the cost of internal construction,” a Pyongyang resident disclosed to Radio Free Asia under anonymity.
This move is part of a broader strategy to enhance tourism in North Korea, as mandated by the country’s leader, Kim Jong Un. The government has been encouraged to adopt practical measures to promote this sector. Reviewing the profitability of existing casino operations like those at the Yanggakdo Hotel—North Korea’s first luxury hotel and a site with its own dramatic history—has helped pave the way for this new initiative.
The Yanggakdo has been notably successful, particularly remembered as the location of the 2016 incident involving American student Otto Warmbier. North Korea hopes to replicate this success at the Ryugyong, leveraging the allure of a casino to draw in foreign currency and invigorate Pyongyang’s tourist appeal.
Promotional efforts and future prospects:
The potential for a new casino has sparked significant interest. As Radio Free Asia reports, a resident from North Pyongan mentioned, “When the casino is built at the Ryugyong Hotel in Pyongyang and the hotel’s accommodations, restaurants, swimming pool, and billiards room are finally completed … tourism in Pyongyang is expected to be revitalized.” The urgency for overseas investment was emphasized, highlighting the planned promotion of this investment opportunity at an upcoming product exhibition event in Dandong, China, involving multiple neighboring countries.
Currently, North Korea operates two casinos: one at the Yanggakdo and another at the Bipa Hotel in the Rason Special Economic Zone, strategically located near the borders with China and Russia. These establishments are pivotal in the country’s strategy to capitalize on the lucrative casino market by attracting international tourists.
