SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Koreans swam, rode water park slides and enjoyed other water activities at a newly opened mammoth beach resort, state media reported Wednesday, as the country largely maintains a ban on the entry of foreign tourists.
The Wonsan-Kalma eastern coastal tourist zone, which North Korea says can accommodate nearly 20,000 people, is at the heart of leader Kim Jong Un’s push to boost tourism as a way to improve his country’s struggling economy. But prospects for the resort, the biggest tourist complex in North Korea, aren’t clear, as the country won’t likely fully reopen its borders and embrace Western tourists anytime soon, observers say.
The official Korean Central News Agency reported the Wonsan-Kalma area began service Tuesday, drawing a large number of North Koreans who enjoyed open water swimming, slides and other attractions at a water park and various water activities in the area.
“The guests’ hearts were filled with overwhelming emotion as they felt the astonishing new heights of our-style tourism culture blossoming under the era of the Workers’ Party," KCNA said in a typical propaganda-driven dispatch.
Photos released by North Korean state media showed children with tubes and inflatable balls dipping into the sea, while others in colorful swimsuits beamed while sitting beneath red-and-white parasols.
Kim said at the inaugural ceremony last week the site would be recorded as “one of the greatest successes this year" and called its opening “the proud first step” toward realizing the government’s policy of developing tourism.
Since 2022, North Korea has been slowly easing the curbs imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic and reopening its borders in phases. But the country hasn’t said whether and when it would fully resume international tourism.
Chinese group tours, which made up more than 90% of visitors before the pandemic, remain stalled while there are questions about ties between the two socialist neighbors. In February this year, North Korea allowed a small group of international tourists to visit its northeastern border city of Rason, only to stop that tour program in less than a month.
Since February 2024, North Korea has been accepting Russian tourists amid expanding military cooperation between the countries. But Russian government records seen by South Korean experts show a little more than 2,000 Russians, only about 880 of them tourists, visited North Korea last year, a number that is too small to revive North Korea's tourism.
Russia’s Primorsky region, which borders North Korea, said last week that the first group of Russian tourists to the Wonsan-Kalma resort will depart on July 7 for a eight-day trip that includes a visit to Pyongyang.
Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung contributed to this report.
This photo provided on July 2, 2025, by the North Korean government, shows a beach resort in the Wonsan-Kalma eastern coastal tourist zone on July 1, 2025. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
CHICAGO (AP) — Matt Shaw was watching TV with his wife when she got a notification on her phone: Alex Bregman had agreed to a contract with the Chicago Cubs.
Shaw was Chicago's regular third baseman during his rookie season, so he wondered what the move meant for him.
“You're kind of looking at it like ‘Oh man, where am I going to play?’ And you get a little anxious about those things,” Shaw said Friday at the team's annual fan convention. "The team knows me good enough at this point to know I just want to be prepared when the season comes around.
“So of course I immediately have questions like ‘Am I going to go here? Am I going to go there?’”
The answer to many of those questions was yes.
Shaw is preparing for a super-utility role after Chicago finalized a $175 million, five-year contract with Bregman on Wednesday. In addition to backing up Bregman at third and Nico Hoerner at second, Shaw also is expected to play in the outfield.
There is always the possibility of a trade with Hoerner, who is going into the last year of a $35 million, three-year contract, or Shaw, a first-round pick in the 2023 amateur draft who turned 24 in November. But the Cubs sound as if they are inclined to hold on to their infield depth as an insurance policy for injuries.
“I don’t think we have enough guys yet,” manager Craig Counsell said with a chuckle. “If you think there’s too many, I don’t know what you’re looking at.”
Counsell said the team was “fortunate” last year in terms of injuries.
“We’re now protecting a lot against what can happen, but I think that’s an important part of building a roster and building a team,” he said.
Hoerner, 28, was a key performer last season as Chicago won 92 games and reached the playoffs for the first time since 2020. He batted .297 with seven homers, 61 RBIs and 29 steals in a career-best 156 games. He also won his second Gold Glove.
Amid increased trade speculation in the wake of Bregman's deal, Hoerner said he loves the Cubs and attributed the rumors to his contract situation and playing in a big market.
“I think, above all, just remembering that it’s not a personal thing and that the team’s job is to always make the best possible roster that they have the ability to do for this year and for years to come,” he said. “And you look at the things that we’ve done this offseason, I think it’s pretty evident that’s their goal. And we’re in a really strong place.”
Dansby Swanson, Hoerner's double-play partner at shortstop, said the second baseman was irreplaceable.
“Nico means the world to me and to this team, just who he is as a person,” Swanson said. “He brings the same type of energy and competitive spirit that Alex does.”
Shaw was relatively inexperienced at third base going into last season, but he was named a Gold Glove finalist in October. Shaking off a slow start and a stint in the minors, he hit .226 with 13 homers, 44 RBIs and 17 steals in 126 games with the Cubs.
Shaw was a shortstop growing up in Massachusetts, but he spent some time as an outfielder early in his collegiate career at the University of Maryland.
“I played outfield growing up a lot, so I look forward to running around out there,” he said. “Outfield's definitely fun. And the at-bat stuff, I think there's at-bats there, and obviously it's up to me as it's up to all the guys to earn their spots and to play well.”
Shaw also is looking forward to playing with Bregman, a two-time World Series champion with Houston.
“We had a great year last year. We had a lot of great pieces,” Shaw said, “and then you add Bregman and it's like, you look at this team up and down and we're in an amazing spot.”
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
FILE - Chicago Cubs' Nico Hoerner hits a sacrifice fly ball during a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sept. 30, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Huh, File)
FILE - Chicago Cubs third baseman Matt Shaw prepares to field the ball during the a baseball game, Oct. 6, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf, File)
