The Pyongyang Golf Club on the outskirts of the North Korean capital is undergoing a major expansion, exclusive images obtained by NK News show this week, making it the newest luxury resort to see substantial upgrades as the country continues to improve tourist amenities nationwide.
Located on the banks of Lake Taesong along the Pyongyang-Nampo highway, the existing 18-hole course appears set to receive nine new holes and a host of new buildings and lodging facilities, according to a construction plan displayed on site.
While ruling party organ the Rodong Sinmun recently referred to the club as a destination “for both foreign and local tourists,” in reality it is mostly frequented by expats or wealthy locals.
Foreign tour company Lupine Travel has already begun advertising the “2019 DPRK Amateur Golf Open” to be held September 4-7, 2019 – a possible deadline for the project’s completion.
Additionally, this points to the likelihood that the purpose of the upgrades will be to bolster the government’s foreign currency earnings as North Korea has recently stepped up its calls to lift international and bilateral economic sanctions amid ongoing denuclearization negotiations with the U.S.
The planning board for the “Pyongyang Golf Club Renewal Construction Battle Site” contains both a detailed map and artistic renders for 24 buildings or structures, which include lodgings, bathrooms, a new stylized welcome gate, and other facilities.
Five of the nine new holes will be built on a long, narrow peninsula that juts out into the middle of the lake, which will be connected to the peninsula nearest the main clubhouse with a new 400-meter-long bridge.
Work on this stage of the renewal effort has not yet begun, according to November 12-dated satellite imagery.
Among the renders on the planning board is the existing main clubhouse, shown receiving a new green roof and upgrades to its exterior from workers in soldier uniforms in October-dated images of the construction site obtained by NK News.
A recent visitor to the club who wished to remain anonymous told NK News they saw approximately 300-500 workers on site continuing construction while their group played, and that work on the new holes had not yet begun.
Having also visited the course in the past, they said that in terms of equipment upgrades, approximately “30 secondhand carts were brought [in] more then a year ago but not yet in use.”
Perhaps the most visible of the new additions is a group of lodgings along the bay near the clubhouse – another sign that the Pyongyang Golf Club, typically a day-trip destination, may target tourists for longer stays in the future.
A review of satellite imagery provided by Planet Labs shows no major changes to the landscape until June this year, and that the basic structures for the ten new two-story lodgings were built up entirely within the month of August.
Images from on site show that the concrete structures were nearing completion by October, but still required exterior finishing and likely interior work.
The bay appears to have been temporarily dammed off and dried up, according to the latest satellite imagery as well as pictures on site, likely to allow for the construction of a sandy beach outside the lodgings, as depicted in the site’s blueprint.
Overall the site appears far from completion, as work has yet to begin on any of the new holes to the golf course.
Major tree clearing will be required to carve out four new holes and alter the shapes of another two on the mainland, as well as for building five new holes on the adjacent peninsula.
Past visitors to the course will in the future see changes to holes three and four, with each seeing their dog-legs (elbow-like turns in the fairway) switch directions, and the putting green of hole four being turned into a practice area of sorts, according to the blueprint displayed on site.
Two new holes will be built in the forested area between the clubhouse and the existing holes five and six, while the other two holes on the mainland will be carved out on the outskirts of the course beside hole 15.
As these areas rest upon sloped hillsides, leveling work in addition to tree clearing may also be necessary.
The five other new holes will eventually exist on an island, according to the plan, as it appears builders want to permanently cut off the roughly 300-meter-wide peninsula from the mainland. Historical satellite imagery suggests shifting water levels over time have caused frequent changes to its coastline.
As far as other structures, the blueprint suggests some will be built anew or existing buildings upgraded on the southern edge of the course outside hole 14.
Aside from smaller facilities built between holes, it also appears new structures will be built around the clubhouse, adding at least two new ones to the existing group of three.
Images from on-site show that most of the new buildings follow the tendency seen at other politically-important state-led construction sites for decorative accents to loyally follow the theme of the location.
In this case, there are golf ball-shaped accents and sculptures added to the outer walls of buildings and to the tops of declarative signposts.
Multiple new ornate bathrooms along the course were also seen in the images, with soldier-builders in one image appearing to carve artificial lines in one’s concrete facade, creating the rustic look of a mountain lodge stone wall.
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