Passenger Train Between Beijing and Pyongyang Set to Resume
Passenger train services between Beijing and Pyongyang are set to resume in March 2026, restoring a key transport link between China and North Korea after a suspension that lasted more than six years.
The train service was halted in early 2020 when North Korea closed its borders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The shutdown brought international travel to the country to a near standstill and suspended all regular passenger rail connections between North Korea and its neighbours.
According to reports from South Korea’s Unification Ministry, the first train from Beijing to Pyongyang is expected to depart on 12 March, with services running several times per week.
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A Historic Rail Connection
The Beijing–Pyongyang passenger train has long been one of the most important international transport routes into North Korea. The service has historically connected the Chinese capital with Pyongyang via the border city of Dandong, crossing the Yalu River into the North Korean city of Sinuiju before continuing to the capital.
For decades, this train route served as one of the main ways foreign visitors entered North Korea. Many organised tour groups travelled via Beijing before continuing by rail into the country.
The journey typically takes around 24 hours and has historically been operated jointly by Chinese and North Korean railway authorities.
Travel After the Pandemic
The resumption of the Beijing–Pyongyang train service marks another small step in the gradual reopening of international connections to North Korea. Since 2020, the country has maintained some of the strictest border controls in the world following the pandemic.
While cargo trade with China eventually resumed, passenger travel remained largely suspended for several years. Only limited international travel has slowly begun to return in recent times, including some transport links with Russia.
The restart of the Beijing–Pyongyang train route therefore represents one of the most significant developments in cross-border travel between China and North Korea since the pandemic.
What This Means for Travellers
Although the train service is expected to resume, this does not necessarily mean that tourism to North Korea has fully reopened. Initial reports suggest that the service may primarily carry diplomats and travellers with official purposes, with broader passenger access potentially expanding later.
International tourism to the DPRK remains limited and subject to government policy. However, the restoration of transport links such as the Beijing–Pyongyang train may indicate gradual changes in cross-border travel after several years of isolation.
For travellers interested in visiting North Korea in the future, developments like these are closely watched as signs of how international access to the country may evolve.
