by Donald Wood
Last updated: 12:10 AM ET, Fri July 21, 2017
Travelers are always looking for an exotic location to visit, and one destination working hard to draw tourists is North Korea.
Yes, that North Korea.
The trouble is that U.S. Government officials are advising people to avoid the country at all costs.
According to the Japan Times, the North Korean tourism agency's website is offering vacation packages to cities like Pyongyang and Kaesong, as well as highlighting festivals, attractions and cultural landmarks to entice travelers.
The tourism website is available in Korean, English, Chinese, Russian and Japanese, and highlights some of the country's themed tours, best beaches and even its favorable conditions and clean water for surfing.
While there are plenty of options to choose from, there is no way to book directly from the website and there is no information on the few foreign travel agencies that actually arrange travel to North Korea.
Regardless of the trips and tours the tourism agency is selling, the United States Department of State continues to strongly advise against American citizens traveling to North Korea for any reason, summer vacation included.
[READMORE]READ MORE: North Korea Travel Ban Moves Closer to Reality[/READMORE]
The State Department issued another official Travel Warning in May that stated American citizens would be at "serious risk of arrest and long-term detention" and that the government would have "no means to provide normal consular services to U.S. citizens in North Korea."
"At least 16 U.S. citizens have been detained in North Korea in the past ten years. North Korean authorities have detained those who traveled independently and those who were part of organized tours," the State Department statement read.
"Being a member of a group tour or using a tour guide will not prevent North Korean authorities from detaining or arresting you. Efforts by private tour operators to prevent or resolve past detentions of U.S. citizens in the DPRK have not been successful."
The U.S. isn't alone either, as Canada, Australia and New Zealand have issued similar warnings.
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