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Sep 09

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A symbol of the state of North Korea: The Ryugyong Hotel

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Economy, North Korea, Propaganda, South Korea, Tourism

September 9, 2010

image courtesy of ReutersPopularly dubbed as the “Hotel of Doom” or “The Worst Building in the World” this famous eyesore is the most distinguishing feature of the Pyongyang skyline. This building is the Ryugyong Hotel, or “105 Building”. Standing at 330 metres in height, the hotel was anticipated to be the largest in the world (for it’s time) and construction was supposed to be completed in June 1989 for the World Festival of Youth and Students. Construction halted in 1992 due to equipment shortages and North Korea’s worst famine that prevailed through much of the 1990s.
The Westin Stamford in Singapore had been completed in 1986 by South Korean contractors, crowning it the world’s largest hotel. As is typical of North Korean one-upmanship, the DPRK decided if the South could accomplish this, then the North could do it better. The design was 3 pyramids, two smaller ones on the left converging into an enormous triangle. The architecture, like other buildings in the DPRK, is soviet-style poured concrete with rectangular, equally sized and spaced windows throughout, resembling the holes of a harmonica.
The top of the hotel is an upside down cone consisting of 14 levels (8 of which were meant to rotate for a 360 degree view of Pyongyang). It houses over 360 000 square feet of space. Revolving restaurants, casinos and night clubs were meant to be fixtures in the hotel operated by foreign firms. When construction was cancelled, the large concrete husk loomed on the skyline, construction crane still on top, for nearly 15 years. It has been long speculated that due to poor materials, a sunken foundation and crooked elevator shafts have rendered the building useless.

In 2008, Egyptian company Orascom had a contract to construct a 3G mobile network in Pyongyang. However, that work seems to have extended to refurbishing the derelict hotel. Work is well underway adding glass surfaces to the exterior of the building, and telecommunication antennas. Interior renovations are said to follow. The banner to this website features the Pyongyang skyline in February 2009, and you can note the “purple” looking glass panels and green scaffolding around the cone. Here is a picture of a picture of a render of the building upon its completion (rumoured to be around 2012):
The video below shows a unique close-up view of the shoddy construction.

What’s next for this debacle of soviet-style engineering? Will it ever be completed, or will it remain empty and unused, only appearing fancy on the outside? In North Korea, you can only expect the unexpected…

Permanent link to this article: http://www.openingupnorthkorea.com/archives/644