Is North Korea’s tourism industry luring Americans into a trap?

The father of the American college student who died after being detained in North Korea believes his son was tricked into visiting the country for nefarious purposes.

“The North Koreans lure Americans to travel to North Korea via tour groups run out of China, who advertise slick ads on the internet proclaiming no American ever gets detained off of our tours and this is a safe place to go,” Fred Warmbier said.

The company that organized the trip Otto Warmbier was on, Young Pioneer Tours, has since stopped offering the North Korea trip to Americans.

Warmbier, 22, had finished a five-day tour of the country and was headed to China for a visit when he was detained at Pyongyang’s airport and accused of trying to steal a propaganda poster. He was released last week and North Korea said he’d been in a vegetative state for 17 months. He died a week after returning home to Ohio.

Troy Collings, the North Korea managing director for Young Pioneer Tours, denies Fred Warmbier’s claims.

“We have provided safe visits for over 8,000 tourists to North Korea in the last 10 years,” Collings said. “The claim that we are trying to lure young Americans as fodder for the Koreans is simply not true, the fact that we have only had one arrest in our history (and no further arrests since) shouldn’t be dismissed.”

Collings maintained that the company has never said that Americans “don’t get detained” in their advertisements. “In fact, we don’t target or mention Americans specifically in any of our advertising,” he added.

After news of Warmbier’s death broke, Young Pioneer Tours changed its policy on Americans going to North Korea.

“The devastating loss of Otto Warmbier’s life has led us to reconsider our position on accepting American tourists. There had not been any previous detainment in North Korea that has ended with such tragic finality and we have been struggling to process the result. Now, the assessment of risk for Americans visiting North Korea has become too high,” the company said in a statement.

Video Ad Feedback

US student held in North Korea 'confesses'

02:13 - Source: CNN

Nascent industry

How the news of Warmbier’s condition might impact North Korea’s fledgling tourism market remains unclear.

A source in the North Korean tourism industry told CNN he’s not seen any dent in tourist numbers since Warmbier was detained, though he’s noticed a slight drop in inquiries from Americans.

That could change as Warmbier’s case gets more publicity, he said. The source asked for anonymity in order to protect the business he works for.

Last year, more than 4,000 non-Chinese tourists visited North Korea overall, the source said. Some 20 to 30 international tour agencies – many based in China – currently operate tours to the reclusive state.

Young Pioneers, whose website boasts of providing “budget travel to destinations your mother would rather you stay away from,” is among the most popular choice of tour operators among young Westerners.

Warmbier was found guilty of committing a hostile act against the North Korean regime and sentenced to 15 years hard labor in March 2016. Authorities claimed they obtained security footage of him stealing a political banner from his hotel, which was used as evidence during his reportedly hour-long trial.

“We do our utmost to inform and protect our customers before they book the tour. However like most tour agencies operating in most countries, we aren’t able to protect those deemed to have contravened the law,” said Collings.

An untouched country

With the advent of cheap travel there’s an inherent appeal in visiting one of the world’s last remaining places unaffected by mass tourism.

“Really, you have nothing to worry about as a tourist. So long as you obey the laws of the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) and do nothing to disrespect the ruling Kim family, you will be fine,” Lonely Planet says on its website.

Tourism to North Korea – especially Western tourism – has risen significantly in recent years despite international tensions regarding the country’s nuclear program.

Some go to witness specific North Korean state holidays, others for events like the Pyongyang Marathon.

All the trips are meticulously organized. Tourists are accompanied by a government-employed tour guide whenever they leave their hotel.Seven North Korean companies are licensed to partner with outside agencies – such as Young Pioneers – to operate tours.

One woman who spoke to CNN likened the city to a “movie set.”

North Korean high school students play on a beach at Wonsan, on September 11, 2017.

Bartender at the Rainbow floating restaurant in Pyongyang on September 10.

Sunday afternoon row boats on the Taedong River, Pyongyang, beside Juche Tower. Taken on September 10.

Participation in mass celebrations is mandatory for those privileged citizens allowed to live in the capital, Pyongyang. Taken on September 9.

Pyongyang residents walk past a poster marking the 69th DPRK Foundation Day on September 9. It reads "Let the entire world look up to the great Kim Il Sung nation and Kim Jong Il Korea."

This statue in Samjiyon depicts North Korea's founding President Kim Il Sung when he was a guerrilla fighter against the Japanese. Taken on September 6.

The lobby of the CNN team's hotel in Samjiyon on September 5.

A bus driver who drives a Japanese vehicle over some of the bumpiest roads in North Korea. Taken on September 5.

Propaganda banners line the streets of Samjiyon on September 4.

Public transportation in rural North Korea, near the Chinese border, taken on September 4.

A young North Korean musician in the border town of Kaesong, taken on September 4. Music is a huge part of life in North Korea.

North Korean tour guide at Mt Paektu outside the alleged birth place of Kim Jong Il, on September 3. Kim is widely considered to have been born in Russia.

Housing units deep in rural North Korea, near the border with China, taken on September 3.

A boy living in the mountainous northeastern border region on September 3, not far from North Korea's sixth nuclear test.

The view from the top of Mt Paektu on September 3, a sacred site to North Koreans close to the border with China. First time CNN has ever been allowed here.

The Mausoleum of Tangun is said to hold the remains of the ancient King Tangun -- widely considered a mythical figure.

North Korea built the pyramid in 1994 and has not allowed outside experts to verify the remains inside.

Sunset from inside Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, on August 31.

The crowd applauds as North Korean TV airs footage of their latest missile launch outside Pyongyang Station on August 30, 2017.

The parents in North Korea of an inadvertent defector react to a video message, shared by CNN's Will Ripley, from their daughter, who lives in South Korea and cannot return home. The family hasn't been together in years.

May Day celebrations are held on May 1 in Pyongyang.

A North Korean boy sits in his family's living room on April 30 in Pyongyang.

North Koreans in Pyongyang celebrate the country's 85th annual Army Day on April 25. The holiday celebrates the founding of its army.

A North Korea veteran stands against the backdrop of the USS Pueblo, a US Navy ship that North Korea captured in 1968. CNN's Will Ripley‪ asked this veteran about his thoughts on the USS Carl Vinson, an American aircraft carrier conducting joint drills with two Japanese destroyers in the western Pacific Ocean. The veteran told Ripley, "We can sink that aircraft carrier."

Ripley noted that in Pyongyang, children are often seen dressed in bright, colorful clothing, contrasting with the more conservative and darker outfits worn by many adults.

North Korean soldiers march on April 15, as the nation marks the birth of its founder, Kim Il Sung, who is also the grandfather of current leader Kim Jong Un.

North Koreans celebrate the birthday of Kim Il Sung. He would have been 105.

Tanks roll through Kim Il Sung Square on April 15.

North Korean air force jets fly over the Pyongyang celebration.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears at a ceremony to formally open a housing development in Pyongyang on April 13. The project was rushed to completion in under a year, North Korean officials say.

North Koreans gather to witness the opening of the Ryomyong Street housing development.

Foreign journalists are filmed by North Korean media during the Ryomyong Street event.

Soldiers leave the opening ceremony of the Ryomyong Street development.

North Koreans observe a statue of their founder, Kim Il Sung, at the Museum of the Korean Revolution on April 10. CNN's Will Ripley said it was the first time CNN cameras had been allowed into the Pyongyang museum.

North Koreans pose on April 9, for a photo at Mangyongdae, the birthplace of Kim Il Sung.

Boys in Pyongyang pose for a photo at a secondary school for orphans on February 19.

A tiger is seen at a zoo in Pyongyang on February 19. CNN's Will Ripley, Tim Schwarz and Justin Robertson were the only Western broadcasters reporting from North Korea after it conducted a ballistic missile test on February 12. See their dispatches.

CNN's Will Ripley posted this photo of the Pyongyang skyline on February 17. "Note the 105-story pyramid skyscraper, the Ryugyong Hotel. Work began in 1987. Still unfinished," Ripley said in his Instagram post.

North Korean soldiers ride on February 17, in a black Mercedes-Benz on the streets of Pyongyang.

A 70-story apartment building undergoes construction on February 17.

The floating Rainbow Restaurant is seen in Pyongyang on February 17.

North Korean soldiers watch fireworks on February 16, in Pyongyang.

People use smartphones on on February 16, to take photos of an ice sculpture in Pyongyang.

A soldier stands guard in North Korea on February 16. While military service for women has long been voluntary, it reportedly was made mandatory recently in a bid to bolster the armed forces.

A boy visits the Kimjongilia flower show on February 16. The red flowers are named after the late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

University students dance in front of the Pyongyang indoor stadium on February 16.

Book titles are listed in English at a bookshop for tourists in the Yanggakdo Hotel in Pyongyang.

Ice flows down the Taedong River in Pyongyang on February 16.

Soldiers pay respects to former North Korean leaders on February 15. The site is considered one of the most sacred in Pyongyang.

Vendors sell flowers February 15 to mourners paying their respects to deceased leaders of North Korea.

The view over the frozen Taedong River shows residential areas of Pyongyang on February 15.

The symbol of North Korea's sole political party, the Korean Workers' Party, can be seen atop a government building in Pyongyang.

Taxis are becoming more prevalent on the streets of Pyongyang. Most commuters still ride buses.

Tour guides told CNN's crew that "in 1948, Kim Il Sung, his wife and his then 7-year-old son, Kim Jong Il, test fired North Korea's first domestically manufactured submachine gun," Tim Schwartz said on Instagram. The guides said that all three shot bullseyes at 50 meters.

The Man Gyong Dae School Children's Palace, shown in May 2016, is an after-school activity complex in Pyongyang.

Young singers practice their performance at a "children's palace" in Pyongyang.

Children play volleyball at an after-school center in Pyongyang.

An Olympic-sized swimming pool is a focal point of a "children's palace" after-school center in Pyongyang.

Pyongyang prepares in 2016 for the Workers' Party of Korea congress, the first such meeting since 1980. The event aimed to consolidate Kim Jong Un's power in the regime.

A train can be seen from the window of the Koryo Hotel in Pyongyang.

CNN visits the North Korean Science and Technology Center in Pyongyang in January 2016.

Visitors to North Korea's Science and Technology Center use the tightly regulated North Korean intranet.

A guide shows visitors a display in the North Korean Science and Technology Center.

Exhibits at the North Korean Science and Technology Center include this fighter jet.

During a carefully choreographed show of strength to mark the 70th anniversary of the ruling Korean Workers' Party in October 2015, a soldier marches across Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung Square.

Young members of North Korea's military ride artillery through Pyongyang.

North Korean soldiers march below statues of North Korea's founding president Kim Il Sung and his son, Kim Jong Il.

Weapons are paraded through Pyongyang as a clear signal to the rest of the world that North Korea has military might.

A large mural of North Korean founder Kim Il Sung stands outside the Jang Chon cooperative farm, a 30-minute drive outside the capital Pyongyang. CNN visited the farm in September 2015.

Farm manager Kim Myong Jon is something of a celebrity in North Korea. During the past 40 years, she's met with all three North Korean leaders.

The farm where Kim Myong Jon works is home to one of North Korea's first greenhouses. It was first visited by Kim Il Sung more than three decades ago, and more recently by his grandson, current leader Kim Jong Un.

Chili peppers lie in the sun at the Jang Chon farm. Peppers are used for making kimchi, the fermented cabbage dish that is a staple of the North Korean diet.

CNN's Will Ripley speaks with scientists from North Korea's space agency, the National Aeronautical Development Association (NADA). In September 2015, CNN was given exclusive access to the newly opened satellite control center.

The futuristic space center is in a residential area not far from the center of Pyongyang.

Two officials walk in the grounds of the space facility. NADA officials told CNN that they had prepared multiple satellites and were in the "final stages of perfecting all operations."

Hula hoop diplomacy at a North Korean dolphinarium. CNN video journalist Brad Olson was called on stage to show how it's done."I managed to get three going, much to the delight of the crowd," he said.

In May 2015, CNN was given rare access to a faculty apartment in an upscale area of Pyongyang, near Kim Il Sung University. The lounge was neat, if a little dated.

This is the master bedroom of the three-bedroom apartment. A university professor lives in the home with his adult children. It's 200 square meters (about 2,150 square feet). That's large for an apartment in Pyongyang.

A flat-screen television sits prominently in the lounge.

Books are neatly lined up above a desk in the study. There's a lamp for reading and a large padded chair.

Every home in North Korea displays portraits of late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. Housing is assigned by the government and is free. Those who want to move have to sign up to exchange places with other citizens.

The kitchen features a double sink and brushed metal counter tops.

The kitchen is fitted with a Haier two-burner gas hob. Haier, based in Qingdao, China, is one of the world's biggest home appliance companies.

First-graders in a Pyongyang classroom are orderly yet energetic, often standing and giving spirited answers to their teacher's questions.

North Korean students watch riding lessons at a new equestrian center designed by Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un. The facility was formerly used for military training.

Outdoor exercise accompanied by upbeat music is a daily routine for these North Korean middle school students. Classes are critiqued on their coordination.

Young children in a newly constructed Pyongyang orphanage practice a musical performance.

The orphanage features a pool area for the children, who live and study in the complex.

Young boys practice a drum routine that they will perform during International Children's Day.

Toy rocket launchers sit ready for children to play with.

Junior Lt. Col. Nam Dong Ho speaks to CNN correspondent Will Ripley. In May 2015, Ripley and his team were granted rare access to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in North Korea. An estimated three-quarters of North Korea's standing army of more than a million is based near the heavily fortified border.

Soldiers stand guard on the North Korean side of the DMZ.

North Korea displays the armistice agreement that brought the brutal fighting of the Korean War to an end in 1953.

Junior Lt. Col. Nam Dong Ho is part of North Korea's standing army of more than a million.

Pyongyang women wear their Sunday best -- and carry ornate umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun.

Twin statues honor the late leaders of North Korea, Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. Visitors to Pyongyang are routinely taken to pay their respects and lay flowers at the monument.

Kim Jong Un personally inspected the plans for this new water park and had his top officials test the water slides for safety.

Visitors to a Pyongyang water park play table tennis.

The Pyongyang Gold Lane, a bowling alley in the North Korean capital, is popular among young people.

Pyongyang Airport is the first stop on tours of North Korea. Air Koryo is the national airline. It operates direct flights from Beijing and Shenyang in China, and Vladivostok in Russia. Air Koryo has an aging fleet, although it has purchased some newer aircraft in recent years.

The inflight magazine features multiple pages on Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un.

The inflight meal consists of a burger and a glass of North Korean beer.

Scenes from Pyongyang: CNN inside North Korea

Prev Next

What visitors can see and do is highly restricted. Most can’t venture out of the carefully-manicured capital of Pyongyang, a city often used as a propaganda showcase. The government even decides who gets to live there.

The countryside, which is believed to be severely impoverished, is sealed off to visitors and the outside world.

Faye Cook, a British expat living in Hong Kong, isn’t worried about her visit to North Korea in three weeks. She has friends who have recently traveled there and told her they felt safe the entire time.

“It’s something that’s been on the back of my mind for a while,” she told CNN. “When I moved to Hong Kong, I knew it would be something on my list of things to do.”

US citizens are allowed to visit North Korea, but it’s highly discouraged. The State Department strongly warns against it, citing cases like Warmbier’s.

“He (Warmbier) was tried in a kangaroo court, and the punishment was entirely disproportionate,” the source in the North Korean tourism industry said. “Now, a tearful apology should have been enough to resolve it, but this is North Korea, and this is precisely why you have to help educate people before they go.”

Many believe American tourism to North Korea helps each side humanize the other – including Dennis Rodman, who’s currently visiting the reclusive country. A handful of US lawmakers were pushing to ban the practice before news of Warmbier’s coma broke.

“We seek to promote engagement between North Korea and foreign countries because we believe it can lead to a less tense future with less mutual distrust,” Collings of Young Pioneer Tours said. “Some people may disagree with our approach to North Korea but any claim we have sinister intents is a mischaracterization.”

Video Ad Feedback

Fred Warmbier: We don't believe North Korea

01:01 - Source: CNN

Fred Warmbier said Otto was in the region for a college experience. He’d heard of friends who traveled to North Korea, and asked his parents if he could do the same.

American parents who hear about his case will now perhaps think twice if faced with the same decision that Fred and Cindy Warmbier made.

RELATED: What is unresponsive wakefulness?

“They advertise it’s the safest trip ever and you know it’s the one your mother wouldn’t want you to go on. But what they do is they provide fodder for the North Koreans and my son happened to become fodder for the North Koreans,” Fred Warmbier said. “They took him hostage at the airport and then the outcome is self-evident.”

Cook, the British woman who plans to travel to North Korea, says she certainly doesn’t plan on canceling her trip, despite her traveling companion getting cold feet.

“I’m going to be sensible and do everything I’m told to do and not try to push the boundaries at all,” she told CNN.