Dora Observatory () is on the

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

n side of the 38th parallel. Situated on top of

Dorasan Dorasan () or Mount Dora is a hill on the north bank of the Imjin River in northernmost Paju, South Korea. It lies very near the Korean Demilitarized Zone. The hill gives its name to several nearby landmarks, including Dorasan Station and the ...

(Mount Dora) in

Paju Paju (; ) is a Administrative divisions of South Korea, city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Paju was made a city in 1997; it had previously been a county (''gun''). The city area of Paju is ,"Paju (Gyeonggi-do Province)." ''Naver Encyclopedi ...

, the observatory provides

scenic views Scenic Views is the debut studio album by Rhode Island new wave band Rubber Rodeo. It was released on November 15, 1984 by Mercury Records. Background After releasing several singles and EPs on Eat Records, Rubber Rodeo released their debut s ...

across the

Demilitarized Zone A demilitarized zone (DMZ or DZ) is an area in which treaties or agreements between states, military powers or contending groups forbid military installations, activities, or personnel. A DZ often lies along an established frontier or boundary ...

. Visitors can see the

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

n territory through

binoculars Binoculars or field glasses are two refracting telescopes mounted side-by-side and aligned to point in the same direction, allowing the viewer to use both eyes (binocular vision) when viewing distant objects. Most binoculars are sized to be held ...

from the 304 square feet, 500-person capacity observatory. They are able to see the North Korean propaganda village situated in the DMZ, and can also see the city of

Kaesong Kaesong (, ; ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region cl ...

. The observatory is very close to the Third North Korean Infiltration Tunnel dug by North Koreans into the South. The Dorasan Station, also nearby, is designed to be the station that connects the railroads of the South and North one day in the future. In 2024 a new 3 storey Dora Observatory building was opened with an indoor amphitheatre, cafe and toilets, with the original building de-commissioned and no longer accessible to tour groups.

External links

Life in Korea
{{coord, 37, 54, 33, N, 126, 42, 21, E, display=title, region:KR_type:landmark_source:GNS-enwiki Tourist attractions in Gyeonggi Province Buildings and structures in Paju

See also

External links