Best time to visit South Korea

South Korea has two good windows: Apr–Jun and Sep–Oct. They sit either side of the season the climate record rules out, which is why the shoulder months matter here. The recommended window is May–Jun, Sep–Oct.

Rainy Jun–Jul, typhoons Aug–Sep

Best window
May–Jun, Sep–Oct
Driest month
January · 14% rainy days
Warmest month
August · 28.1°C / 83°F
Coolest month
January · 0.6°C / 33°F
Months rated go
5 of 12

Month by month

Monthly climate normals for South Korea, 1991–2020
MonthHigh °CHigh °FRainy daysVerdict
January0.63314%Too cold
February3.33815%Too cold
March8.84820%Fair
April15.36024%Go
May20.97026%Go
June25.27734%Go
July27.48158%Too wet
August28.18356%Fair
September24.27634%Go
October18.36520%Go
November10.65126%Fair
December3.03716%Too cold

Verdict combines mean daytime high with rainy-day frequency. “Rainy days” is the share of days in the month with at least 1 mm of rain.

What the numbers say

January is the driest month, with rain on 14% of days and daytime highs near 0.6°C (33°F). July is the wettest, at 58%. Temperature swings hard across the year — 27.5°C between August (28.1°C / 83°F) and January (0.6°C / 33°F) — so packing for the wrong month is the main risk. The record rules out too cold in Dec–Feb; too wet in July.

Where else to go