The world is home to some incredible hotels that push the limits of architecture to the extreme. From Sweden’s Icehotel, which is carved each winter, to Florida’s undersea hotel, where guests must scuba dive to get to their rooms, to Gamirasu Cave Hotel in Turkey, with rooms carved into ancient volcanic rock – but all of these accommodations have one thing in common: they have received guests.
This is not the case for the world’s tallest abandoned hotel, which lies in the world’s most secretive city and dominates its skyline. Towering 1,080 feet over the skyline of Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, the Ryugyong Hotel stands as one of the most striking and mysterious buildings in the world. For decades, the hotel has stood unfinished and empty, and is often dubbed the “Hotel of Doom”.
Construction of this bizarre pyramid-shaped skyscraper began in 1987, but this was halted in 1992 when the country fell into economic crisis. For well over a decade, the building stood topped out, but without any windows or interior fittings. In 2008, construction resumed, with the exterior later completed in 2011.
The construction of the Ryugyong Hotel was hoped to be finished in time for the 80th birthday of Kim Il Sung, the former dictator and founder of North Korea, in 1992. If this had been achieved, it would have held the title of the world’s tallest hotel. Before Goldin Finance 117, it was considered the tallest unoccupied building in the world.
It was intended to house five revolving restaurants and either 3,000 or 7,665 guest rooms, according to different sources. It is said to have already cost the nation an eyewatering £559 million.
The country made another attempt at opening last decade, with international hotel operator Kempinski announcing it would be running the hotel in November 2012, with plans to partially open in mid-2013. However, these plans were suspended only four months later.
In April 2018, a large LED display was fitted to one side, which is used to show propaganda animations and film scenes.
In 2024, the North Korean government reportedly began seeking a casino operator willing to complete the building in exchange for the profits generated by the casino. However, gambling is prohibited in North Korea, so demand is unsurprisingly very low.
Unlike most modern skyscrapers, which feature steel due to its impressive strength-to-weight ratio, Ryugyong’s entire structure is made from reinforced concrete.
While the outside may now look impressive, the inside of the Ryugyong is another story. It remains an empty, concrete shell and will likely remain so for some time, unless North Korea can attract some form of foreign investment to finally allow it to open its doors.
Even if this were to happen, foreign visitors are very unlikely to ever be able to secure a room, as visiting Pyongyang is virtually impossible because its dictatorship tightly controls entry and rarely grants tourist visas. Even when access is allowed, travellers are heavily monitored and restricted from freely exploring the city.