North Korea has no athletes at the Sochi Olympic Games , and skiing is not the first thing that springs to mind when thinking about the isolated nation . That 's why tour operators are billing North Korea 's luxury new Masik Pass as `` the most exotic ski resort on Earth . '' Located in Kangwon province , the hotel and resort -- the only one of its kind in the country -- opened January 1 after a series of reported setbacks . Earlier this year , CNN Travel reported on the experience of one of the first visitors to the resort , Simon Cockerell , from Beijing-based Koryo Tours . More recently we spoke to another visitor , snowboarding journalist Jean Lee , whose video of her Masik trip is shown above . Surprised by the caliber of the equipment at the resort , Lee also notes that she got to chat to ordinary North Koreans -- because her government minders could n't ski . Pyongyang made a failed bid to co-host the Summer Olympics when Seoul held the games in 1988. Who knows ? Maybe Masik signals North Korea 's intent to try again when its southern neighbor hosts the winter games in 2018 . What follows is an edited version of our story on Simon Cockerell 's visit to Masik earlier this year . Koryo Tours is one of the few foreign tour companies operating in North Korea . 'Fancy and comfortable ' Cockerell found Masik Pass to be `` fancy and comfortable . '' Along with 11 ski runs , there are 120 hotel rooms housed in two buildings , a swimming pool , bars , cafés , billiard tables , a karaoke room , a steam room and a dry sauna . Local tour guides speak English but do n't tend to ski ; for the large number of ski instructors , you 'd need a translator . The resort is `` clearly built for locals , '' Cockerell said , although it was expected to draw some foreigners coming with tour operators such as his own . `` The number of local Korean skiers was a surprise , considering that [ before Masik opened ] there was just one ski slope in the country -- and in a very remote and hard to reach area , '' Cockerell said . At the time of writing , foreigners could n't book at Masik Pass directly but would have to come with a group tour . Controversial construction . `` We 're aware of the controversies surrounding [ Masik ] , '' wrote Cockerell on the Koryo Tours blog . `` It 's a highly expensive construction project that many see as economically doubtful . '' The resort has been scrutinized abroad from conception to construction . Austrian and French companies declined to sell ski lifts to North Korea . Even the neutral Swiss refused , calling Masik a `` propaganda project , '' according to the Washington Post . Masik 's ski lifts were made in China .
Snowboarder and journalist Jean Martin settled in at N. Korea 's new luxury ski resort . Masik , which opened on January 2007 , has 11 ski lifts and a 120-room hotel . Resort ` ` built for locals '' -- who may travel with tour guides .