Using tourism to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula

Abstract

This paper assesses the proposition that tourism has some potential to act as a mechanism for promoting international peace by examining the reactions of South Korean tourists who have visited Mt. Gumgang, a newly developed resort area in North Korea. The paper finds that the opportunity to visit the latter country had a positive impact on South Koreans and there are positive indications of an opportunity for tourism to facilitate better intergovernmental relations. From a theoretical perspective, the paper draws on the international relations literature to examine possible roles for tourism.