How is the controversial spa of North Korea inspired by Spain that received the first group of Russian tourists

“When Wonsan's tourist area was planned at the beginning … The idea was to attract around one million tourists while remained a closed area at the same time,” says Ri Jong Ho, a senior economy official in North Korea, who participated in the early stages of complex planning but deserted in 2014.

“The intention was to open a little North Korea.”

In 2017, a year before construction began, Kim sent a delegation to Spain in a research mission in which the team toured the Benidorm tourist complex.

The North Korean delegation “included high -ranking politicians and numerous architects who took many notes,” recalls Matías Pérez Such, a member of the Spanish team that welcomed the group on a tour that included visits to a theme park, high -height hotels and a sports port.

A North Korean brochure with a map of the tourist complex shows 43 hotels identified along the beach, as well as guest houses in an artificial lake and camping areas.

We have compared these locations with high -resolution satellite images, although we cannot verify if they have really been completed and are ready to receive visitors.

An aquatic park, with imposing yellow slides, is separated from the beach.

Further north, there is an leisure neighborhood that includes buildings identified in the plane as a theater, recreational and fitness centers, and a cinema.

Satellite images that began to be taken in early 2018 and that were recorded for 18 months reveal the appearance of dozens of buildings along the 4 km of coast.

By then, around 80 % of the tourist complex had already been completed, according to an investigation carried out by the satellite image company if Analytics, based in South Korea.

However, after this frantic construction, the works seem to have stopped.

The construction resumed after a meeting in June 2024 with Kim and Vladimir Putin, where the Russian president said he would encourage his citizens to visit the North Korean tourist centers.

This rapid construction rhythm has raised concern about the treatment that those who work in the place receive.

The UN has denounced that in North Korea a forced labor system is used, in particular the “shock brigades”, in which workers often face harsh conditions, long days and insufficient remuneration.

James Heenan, from the UN Human Rights Office in Seoul, says: “There are reports that the complex was built using what they call shock brigades,” Heenan said.

“We have also seen reports that people worked 24 hours at the end to finish it, which sounds like a shock brigade.”

The BBC spoke with a North Korean who served in shock brigades and eventually direct them.

Although Chung Hui – who later deserted – did not participate in the construction of Wonsan's tourist complex, recalled the brutal conditions of the brigades he supervised.

“The principle of these brigades was that, whatever happened, the task had to be completed, even if your life cost you,” he said.

“I saw many women undergoing great physical effort and with such poor diet that their periods stopped completely.”

Kang Gyuri, who worked in Wonsan before fleeing to South Korea in 2023, states that his cousin volunteered to work in the work because he saw it as an access road to the residence in Pyongyang, the capital of the country, reserved for citizens of confidence of the regime.

“I could barely sleep. They didn't give him enough to eat,” he said.

“The facilities are not well organized; some people simply die while working and the authorities are not responsible if they fall dead.”

Kang also said that Wonsan residents were expelled from their homes as the tourist complex project expanded, many times without compensation.

Although it is not a case related to what Kang said, BBC Verify identified by satellite analysis the demolition of buildings near a main road that leads to the complex.

Instead, now bigger floors are seen.

“They simply demolish everything and build something new, especially if it is well located,” Kang said.

“The problem is that, no matter how unfair it may seem, people cannot speak openly or protest.”

The BBC asked North Korean officials expressions, but had no answer.

North Korea has been practically closed to foreign visitors, and in recent years only certain strictly controlled trips have been allowed.

Wonsan Kalma is not only considered an important factor in the recovery of the economy of the sanctioned country, but also strengthens their ties with Russia, which have recently narrowed thanks to their military support to the Moscow War in Ukraine.

According to the first planning documents consulted by BBC Verify, the initial objective was to attract more than one million visitors, and foreign tourists were expected to come mainly from China and Russia.

We have reviewed the websites of tourism agencies both in China and in Russia in search of ads that promote trips to the new tourist complex.

None of the Chinese agencies we consulted announced trips to Wonsan. However, in Russia, we identified three agencies that offered tours They included Wonsan Kalma.

In early July, we call one of the Russian agencies making us pass through an interested client, a week before his first scheduled departure for July 7, and informed us that he had attracted 12 people from Russia.

The one -week trip to North Korea, which included three days in the Wonsan tourist complex, cost US $ 1,800, 60 % more than the average monthly salary in Russia.

According to this tourist operator, two more trips have been scheduled for August.

We contacted the other two agencies that offered similar tour packages, but they refused to reveal how many people had registered.

Andrei Lankov, an expert in Russian-Norcorean relations of the Kookmin University of Seoul, said it was very unlikely that Wonson Kalma became very popular among Russian visitors.

“Russian tourists can easily go to places such as Türkiye, Egypt, Thailand and Vietnam, which are far superior to everything North Korea can develop,” he said.

“The service standards are higher and is not under constant supervision.”

Additional reporting by Yaroslava Kiryukhina, Yi Ma and Cristina Cuevas. Sally Nicholls and Erwan Rivault graphics.

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