The construction of the 330 m tall tower in Pyongyang, North Korea began in 1987. It has a total 360,000 m² (3.9 million ft²) floor space and 105 stories. The building should have been opened in 1989, by that time it could have been the tallest hotel in the world and the 7th largest skyscraper. North Korea have spent ~$750 million or 2% of the country's GDP on the Ryugyong Hotel. The hotel was designed to have 3,000 rooms, 7 revolving restaurants, casinos(!), nightclubs(!) and Japanese lounges. In 1989 -the original completion date- they had several construction method and material problems therefore the opening was delayed, but in 1992 the construction came to a complete halt due to funding problems, electricity shortages, and the prevailing famine.

In 2006 the hotel is still not finished (it has reached its full structural height though) and left alone with a crane on the top. The building is completely empty, there is no facade on the tower either. The Ryugyong Hotel with the current structure will never be opened. Currently the Government of North Korea is trying to find new investors to build a new structure, they would need ~$300 million for this. The tower is still by far the tallest in Pyongyang (the capital city) and in the whole North Korea.