North Korea’s Ryugyong Hotel stands as the world’s tallest abandoned skyscraper, an unfinished monument to ambition with a mysterious and captivating history.
The Ryugyong Hotel, located in Pyongyang, North Korea, is a striking and unfinished monument that has captured people's imaginations for decades due to its unique and mysterious history.
Once envisioned as a grand mixed-use skyscraper, this 330-meter (1,083-foot) tall pyramid-shaped structure was intended to house a hotel, among other facilities. However, the hotel has become infamous for being the tallest abandoned building in the world. Construction began in 1987, but financial issues and political turmoil led to long interruptions, leaving the hotel incomplete. Despite its lack of completion, the building has become a defining feature of Pyongyang’s skyline.
Known as the “Hotel of Doom,” the Ryugyong Hotel has intrigued locals and visitors with its hauntingly empty appearance and enigma of construction. Over the years, several attempts have been made to revive the project, but as of today, the hotel remains uninhabited and unfinished.
Plans to open the hotel in 2013 were announced but never came to fruition. In 2018, however, there were signs of activity when a large LED display featuring the North Korean flag was installed at the top of the building. By May of the same year, an LED screen had been mounted on one side of the structure, and rumours swirled that preparations were being made for occupancy.
By 2024, reports suggested that the North Korean government had begun seeking a casino operator to partner with to complete the building, with the operator promised a share of the casino’s profits. Despite these developments, the future of the Ryugyong Hotel remains uncertain, though it continues to spark fascination due to its one-of-a-kind story.
