North Korea
North Korea is one of the 193 UN member states, in Eastern Asia. UN Tourism publishes no arrivals figure for it, so Globestamp places its stamp by estimate: Prism, for 50,000 to 500,000 visitors a year.
- Stamp finish
- Prismplaced by estimate
- Area
- 122,243 km² (47,198 sq mi)
- Population
- 25.7 millionNatural Earth estimate
- Provinces
- 11in Globestamp’s regions layer
- Airports
- 4with scheduled flights
- World Heritage Sites
- 3on Globestamp’s list
Does North Korea count as a country?
Yes. North Korea is one of the 193 UN member states, so every common list counts it: the UN’s 193, Globestamp’s 250 and the Travelers’ Century Club’s 330.
| List | Counts North Korea? |
|---|---|
| UN member states (193) | Yes, a member |
| Globestamp’s countries and territories (250) | Yes |
| Travelers’ Century Club (330) | Yes, as Korea, North |
| European Union | No |
| Schengen area | No |
The North Korea stamp
Every country in Globestamp has its own stamp, drawn after a real entry stamp. Its finish shows how few travelers get there. North Korea’s is Prism: the full spectrum with glints, the finish for places with 50,000 to 500,000 visitors a year. UN Tourism has no figure for North Korea, so its finish is placed by hand from what is known of its visitors. See every stamp on the stamp wall, or the rarest on the least-visited countries.
What counts as a visit to North Korea
The common rule among travelers is that you set foot there: an airport layover usually doesn’t count, and a port where you went ashore does. Globestamp counts North Korea when one of your photos was taken on its ground, or just off its coast; a photo taken from a plane never counts. Photos only at an airport make a transit stamp in lighter ink, counted only if you count layovers. Read more in how to count the countries you’ve visited.
Places in North Korea you can collect
Under the country itself, Globestamp keeps layers of places on your globe, and a photo taken at one ticks it. These are the ones it knows in North Korea, from 3 World Heritage Sites.
World Heritage Sites 3
Mount Kumgang (2025) · Goguryeo tombs (2004) · Historic Monuments and Sites in Kaesong (2013). On the bucket list →
Ski resorts 1
Masikryong Ski Resort. On the bucket list →
Theme parks 4
Kaeson Youth Park · Mangyongdae Funfair · Taesongsan Funfair · Rungna People's Pleasure Ground. On the bucket list →
Zoos and aquariums 1
Korea Central Zoo. On the bucket list →
Botanical gardens 1
Central Botanical Garden. On the bucket list →
Science museums and planetariums 1
Pyongyang Sci-Tech Complex. On the bucket list →
Largest cities
| City | People (urban area) |
|---|---|
| Pyongyang | 3,300,000 |
| Nampo | 1,127,000 |
| Hamhung | 773,000 |
| Chongjin | 672,614 |
| Sunchon | 400,629 |
| Kaesong | 338,155 |
| Wonsan | 329,207 |
| Kanggye | 299,514 |
Airports
North Korea has 4 airports with scheduled flights, 1 of them large. Each is a dot on Globestamp’s airports layer, and every flight you log adds to how far you’ve flown (try the flight distance calculator).
11 provinces to fill in
Globestamp goes deeper than countries: its regions layer splits North Korea into 11 provinces (Natural Earth’s first-level divisions), and each one fills in when a photo was taken there.
All 11
Chagang · Kangwon · North Hamgyong · North Hwanghae · North Pyongan · Pyongyang · Rason · Ryanggang · South Hamgyong · South Hwanghae · South Pyongan
Questions people ask
Is North Korea a country?
Yes. North Korea is one of the 193 UN member states, so every common list counts it: the UN’s 193, Globestamp’s 250 and the Travelers’ Century Club’s 330.
How many tourists visit North Korea?
UN Tourism, the usual source, publishes no arrivals figure for North Korea. Globestamp places its stamp by estimate, as Prism: 50,000 to 500,000 visitors a year.
How rare is a North Korea stamp in Globestamp?
It is printed in Prism, the finish for places with 50,000 to 500,000 visitors a year. The fewer travelers a place receives, the rarer its finish, from plain Ink to Mythic.
Does North Korea count for the Travelers’ Century Club?
Yes. The Travelers’ Century Club counts it as “Korea, North”, one of its 330 destinations.
Places as rare as North Korea
Near North Korea
Sources
- Countries, cities and regions: Natural Earth 10m admin-0 (public domain); lists as of October 2026.
- Visitors: UN Tourism via the World Bank, ST.INT.ARVL (International tourism, number of arrivals), CC BY 4.0, data updated 2026-10-08. Each country's latest year before 2020. Countries count visitors differently; use as a rough rank.
- World Heritage Sites, parks, landmarks and the bucket-list places: Wikidata (CC0), as compiled in the app, October 2026.
- Airports: OurAirports (public domain), airports with scheduled service.
- Travelers’ Century Club: the club’s list of 330 destinations, as of January 2022.