North Korea travel advisory
Last updated · latest change by either source
Level 4 — Do not travel
SafeRoutes uses the highest level reported by the sources below. Countries at Level 3–4 are avoided as transit points by the route finder.
US State Department
Do not travel to North Korea due to wrongful detention and other risks. Do not travel to North Korea due to the continuing serious risk of arrest, long-term detention, and the threat of wrongful detention of U.S. citizens. Do not travel to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea for any reason. U.S. passports cannot be used to travel to, in, or through the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea) unless they are specially validated for such travel by the Secretary of State. …
Source: travel.state.gov (excerpt; read the full advisory at the source). Fetched 6 November 2026.
UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
FCDO advises against all but essential travel to the whole country
Latest FCDO update: New information about dual nationals returning to the UK (‘Entry requirements’ page).
Source: gov.uk foreign travel advice, updated 10 December 2025. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Fetched 6 November 2026.
Flights & routes
- Shanghai → Chicago · direct line crosses North Korea for ~449 km
- Seoul → Chicago · direct line crosses North Korea for ~475 km
- Seoul → Munich · direct line crosses North Korea for ~125 km
- Seoul → Barcelona · direct line crosses North Korea for ~125 km
- Taipei → New York · direct line crosses North Korea for ~200 km
Advisories describe risk to travellers on the ground. Whether airspace is open is decided by the national authority and published in NOTAMs; airlines also follow their own regulator's conflict-zone guidance.