A China-based tourism agency recently started taking bookings for a Pyeongyang package tour that includes participation of North Korea's Pyongyang International Marathon, as the totalitarian state has resumed tourism to Western visitors after a five-year hiatus amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The return of tourists could help reshape North Korea's reputation, shifting it from a 'dangerous country' in the eyes of the international community to a potentially 'safe' travel destination," Dr Yee Ji Sun, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told The Independent.

The country has halted international trips to a city near its border with China, travel agencies said, abruptly reversing Pyongyang's recent decision to reopen its frontier to tourism after five years of isolation.

The Rason SEZ was set up in 1991, bordering Russia and China. As an SEZ, it's one of the more international-facing regions in North Korea, making it more accessible to visit and get around.

A small group of foreign tourists has visited North Korea in the past week. They are the first international travelers to enter the country in five years except for a group of Russian tourists who went to the North last year.