1. Kim Il Sung Square
When we talk about the beauty of ‘North Korea’, how can we forget Kim Il Sung Square. One of the most famous North Korean landmarks is Kim Il Sung Square. You will likely recognize the square from news reports showing marching North Korean soldiers and displays of weaponry. It’s also where people gather on special occasions like New Year for large parties with a stage for live music (this was being set up ready for the New Year celebrations while I was there).
2. Mansudae Grand Monument
The Mansudae Grand Monument is home to the two large bronze statues of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, the grandfather and father of current leader Kim Jong Un. Flanking the statues are monuments to soldiers who fought during the Korean War and are very similar to those you can find in any ex-soviet city. If you look to the east with your back to the statues you can see the hammer, sickle, and calligraphy brush of the Monument to the Party Foundation in the distance.
3. Juche Tower
Another North Korean landmark is the 170-meter (560ft) Juche Tower. The tower sits on the east side of the Teadong River and dominates the skyline of Pyongyang. The tower is usually shrouded in a thin layer of mist. The Juche Tower is included in our list of 27 incredible Asia Landmarks!
4. Arch of Triumph
Built to honor resistance to the Japanese, another of North Korea’s landmarks is modeled on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. However, it is ten meters (33ft) taller than its Parisian namesake, making it the second-largest triumphal arch in the world after the Monumento a la Revolucion in Mexico.
5. Monument to the Party Foundation
One of the defining symbols of North Korea and the Juche ideology is the combined hammer, sickle, and calligraphy brush. This North Korean landmark represents the workers, farmers, and intellectuals.
You will see the yellow symbol on a red background on posters along the streets and atop buildings. This concrete manifestation dominates central Pyongyang and can be seen from many places in the city. The monument is 50 meters (164ft) tall. This represents 50 years after the foundation of the Workers’ Party of Korea.
6. Arch of Reunification
The Monument to the Three-Point Charter to Reunification is a 55-meter-high sculpture spanning the reunification Highway. The road leads south from Pyongyang down to Kaesung and the border with South Korea.
7. Ryugyong Hotel
The vast triangular Ryugyong Hotel is another of the North Korean landmarks that dominates the Pyongyang skyline. At 105 stories (330 meters) tall it is an impressive spectacle, but scratch the neon surface and you will find a hotel that has been under construction since 1987 and likely will never see a single guest.
