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In the recent years, an increasing trend has been observed in travel to North Korea, as well as in the steps the country has taken to open up to the world. The aim of this thesis is to gain a deeper understanding of inbound tourism in North Korea, from the perspective of the tourists themselves. A qualitative research approach (interviews, participant observation) is used in order to investigate the experience of tourists who have visited the country, especially in terms of the restrictions they encountered throughout their trip, the role of North Korean tour guides and their perception of the country before and after the visit. The findings show that different degrees of restrictions on freedom of movement, photography, border checks and interaction with the host community exist. Some of the restrictions are inherent to the way of travel in North Korea, while others are imposed by the North Korean regime, organizations or other humans. Furthermore, the perception of the country held by tourists and their actual experience influence each other. The results of the study indicate that the dark image of North Korea can be improved by tourists having a positive experience in the country. With the obtained results, the study attempts to remedy the absence of existing research on aspects of tourist experience in North Korea and the travel restrictions.