Wonsan Kalma Beach Resort Hosts a High-Level Visit

Less than two weeks after it finally opened to domestic tourists, the Wonsan Kalma Tourist Zone faced its first big state occasion over the weekend. The resort was chosen as the location for meetings between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Kim Jong Un. Such a meeting might typically be held in Pyongyang, or at least involve a stop in the capital city, but Lavrov flew directly into Wonsan from Kuala Lumpur. 

He arrived late on the evening of July 11 and, based on state TV images, apparently stayed at the Myongsasimni Hotel at the northern end of the resort. 

A commercial satellite image captured at 11am on July 12 shows Lavrov’s state aircraft, an Ilyushin IL-96, parked away from the jetways at Wonsan Kalma Airport. 

The following day, he had meetings with Kim Jong Un and Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui. 

The meeting with Kim took place on a yacht off the Kalma Peninsula. Based on images published by North Korean state media, Lavrov and Kim Jong Un boarded the yacht at the same location Kim used to disembark when he visited the area two weeks earlier to open the new Kalma Coastal Tourism Zone. The yacht used this time does not appear to have been captured in the image. 

Korean Central Television images showed him arriving onto a red carpet at the centrally located Kalmaegi Hotel to meet Choe; satellite imagery shows several all-black state cars parked in front of the hotel. The red carpet was not present when the image was captured. 

It’s notable that Kim met Lavrov on a yacht and Choe inside the Kalmaegi Hotel. 

During final construction of the tourist zone, a beachside amphitheater was demolished and moved 300 meters to the south to make way for a much grander building on the beach directly opposite the hotel. 

State media has not identified the new building although some had assumed it would be used for banquets or state occasions. That does not appear to have been the case for this visit.  

Resort Area 

Away from the Lavrov visit, the resort appears lively. Hundreds of people are visible in and near the water along the beach, except for the area immediately adjacent to the Kalmaegi Hotel. 

The resort has over 1,000 parking spaces spread across the complex and while there are few private cars in any of the spaces, those for coaches are mostly full. At the parking lot in the north end of the resort , 51 coaches are parked and in a lot at the south end, over 80 coaches are parked. An additional 10 coaches are parked at the nearby tram shed. 

Several of the small, yellow battery-operated tourist cars built for the resort are easily identifiable in satellite imagery. The cars, which are like larger golf carts, were first built in 2020 before the resort’s opening was delayed. Several of them are near the water park, which is also full of people enjoying the pools and slides. 

Kalma Area 

To the south of the airport, construction continues on a large railway station. The station appears to have five railway lines running into it, and two pedestrian underpasses have been constructed to allow people to move from one platform to another. Work has begun on platforms and station buildings. 

The exact purpose of the station and how or if it will link to the airport and resort is unclear. Its location would suggest it is being built to serve the two facilities; however, at present there is no direct route from the station to either. The shortest route involves driving over an airport taxiway. 

A slightly longer route would take visitors into the back end of the resort, where the service buildings are located. A final option would lead through Kalma (the town) to get to the resort’s main entrance.  

The route through Kalma would take visitors very close to the existing Kalma Station, which has recently been rebuilt. A new building and plaza in front of the station opened on June 12. When announcing the opening, state media tied it into the plan for the resort but its location makes it unclear if it is meant to serve the resort or is part of general upgrades for the surrounding area. 

Remaining Work 

The resort is undoubtedly open, but it’s not quite finished yet. 

One of the largest buildings at the resort, a hotel near the Kalmaegi Hotel, does not appear to be in use. There is little activity nearby and the rooftop pool has yet to be filled with water. Its name, along with those of several other buildings, is also missing from a map published by the state of the tourist area. 

At the southern end of the resort, a large industrial building is under construction. Its purpose is unclear although it does have a tower-like structure to the northeast of the site.