China-North Korea Rail Service Resumes After 6-Year COVID Shutdown

Passenger train service between Beijing and Pyongyang has restarted after being suspended for six years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The rail connection represents efforts by China to strengthen cross-border infrastructure and rebuild diplomatic relationships with North Korea.

BEIJING, March 12 – Railway service connecting China and North Korea’s capital cities resumed Thursday for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic forced a suspension six years ago, marking China’s push to strengthen border infrastructure and diplomatic relations with its neighbor.

The K27 train departed Beijing Railway Station Thursday morning and is scheduled to reach Pyongyang at 6:07 p.m. Friday after traveling 24 hours and 41 minutes along a route that curves around the northern edge of the Bohai Sea, including a stop in the Chinese border town of Dandong, according to China’s railway officials.

A Chinese foreign ministry representative described the two nations as “friendly neighbours” during Thursday’s press briefing, explaining that cross-border rail service promotes people-to-people exchanges. The spokesperson emphasized China’s support for enhanced communication between the countries to encourage such interactions.

The pandemic outbreak in 2020 led to the service interruption.

North Korea maintains strict limits on foreign visitors, with tourism largely restricted to Russian groups operating under special arrangements, according to travel companies that organize visits to the isolated nation.

The capital-to-capital rail service will run four times weekly in each direction – on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays – China’s railway authority announced. Ticket sales are limited to business visa holders, and Thursday’s inaugural journey sold out completely, though seats remained available for the March 18 departure, a Beijing travel company reported.

A shorter rail route connecting Dandong to Pyongyang will provide daily service in both directions. The first train departed the northeastern Chinese city of Dandong at 10 a.m. Thursday, arriving in North Korea’s capital at 6:07 p.m., state news agency Xinhua reported.

Air travel between the countries also ceased during the pandemic. North Korea’s national airline Air Koryo reestablished flights to China in 2023 and currently provides twice-weekly service between the capitals on Tuesdays and Saturdays, according to the carrier’s online booking system.