North Korea isn't usually the country that comes to mind when planning a holiday.

A potential nuclear war, a temperamental dictator and the violent death of a young American would deter some, but apparently not all adventurous Australians.

Organised tour groups say they are taking up to 500 Australians to the hermit kingdom each year.

In July, while US President Donald Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un talked tough over the regime's ballistic missile tests, at least two separate groups of Australians holidayed there.

Melbourne-born Alek Sigley runs Tongil Tours, which took one of the groups there.

"It's a fascinating country, there's no other country in the world like North Korea," he said.

"If we thought it was unsafe, we'd stop doing these tours.

"We wouldn't be able to bear the moral and legal responsibility of taking people to North Korea if it was dangerous."

Some groups carry out study trips to North Korea. ( Supplied: Tongil Tours )

The group is going again for New Year's Eve and again early next year on a snow trip.

"When you look at how North Korea is presented in the media, it's always about nuclear weapons or Kim Jong-un," Mr Sigley said.

"But going there and meeting the people is a very important way for North Koreans and Australians to break down the negative stereotypes."

Brisbane retiree Raymond Ferguson is making that his life mission.

As the secretary of the Australia Democratic Republic of North Korea Friendship Association, he was there in August on his 14th visit.

"There's a misconception amongst people here in Australia regarding the political position of North Korea," he said.

"We were free to visit sites, of course we have guides, we needed guides to explain stuff, there's nothing sinister about it.

"I'm not worried about my safety at all in North Korea, I've never experienced a safer place to be."

Raymond Ferguson has visited North Korea 14 times. ( Supplied: Raymond Ferguson )

He is on a mission to rebrand the secretive state as a democracy that is fairly responding to hostility from the US and Australia.

And he rejects the widespread human rights abuses as misinformation.

"The North Korean state provides free education, free medicine, free hospitals and they even provide free housing," Mr Ferguson said.

Tourists are only allowed to visit North Korea on officially sanctioned tours.

They are escorted by a local guide and shown a sanitised version of the country.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) warns Australians to reconsider their need to travel to North Korea on its Smart Traveller website, but the country is not on the do not travel list.

"Reconsider your need to travel to the DPRK due to restrictions placed on foreigners and very different laws and regulations applying to behaviour, as well as intermittent DPRK threats against international interests," it says.

"This may mean deferring non-essential travel or choosing a less risky destination."