Satellite images reveal an 80-meter luxury yacht featuring a swimming pool and water slides in waters near North Korea's Wonsan resort, believed to be a vacation area for Kim Jong Un and his family.
On 19 Oct 2026 GMT+7, BBC reported analyzing satellite photos showing a large 80-meter luxury yacht off the coast of Wonsan, North Korea, repeatedly spotted from July through mid-October this year. Notably, the yacht has a 50-meter-long pool on its deck with multiple water slides at one end.
The yacht was docked at a repair yard for several months before being moved to waters near the Kalma Peninsula in early July, not far from Wonsan city—a seaside resort area with large villas used by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his family for residence.
The satellite images analyzed by BBC also showed several large boats moving near Kim's villa area. It is widely believed these boats serve as leisure vessels for Kim and his family. However, the presence of the boats alone cannot confirm whether the North Korean leader was there at any given time.
Ri Jong Ho, a former official of the Workers’ Party of Korea's Office 39—believed to manage foreign currency operations for the leadership—revealed that the yacht is stored in the shipyard during winter and brought out in summer to the villas or Kalma area for swimming and recreational activities.
Former North Korean officials, defectors, and experts say it is difficult for anyone outside the government leadership to freely own or use such a large yacht. There is no confirmed price for the yacht seen in satellite images, but similar luxury yachts can cost tens of millions up to over 100 million U.S. dollars. Kim's smaller Princess yacht, measuring 29 meters, was previously valued at around 7 million U.S. dollars.
. SourceBBC