Location - Weather - Time Zone

Location:
South Korea lies on a peninsula North East Asia its nearest neighbours are North Korea, China, Russia and Japan. The East Sea or Sea of Japan lies between it and Japan and to the left of Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea divides the People's Republic of China and South Korea.

Korea has a mountainous terrain; the vast metropolis of Seoul reaches out and around many of these mountains but the mountains themselves are regularly used by the locals for one of the countries favourite activities; hiking!
The West and South of Korea are covered by wide coastal plains. The Korean Peninsula is divided into two countries, North Korea above the demilitarized zone at the 38th Parallel and South Korea lies below this last remaining Cold War Front.

Korean Time Zone:
Local time is 8/9 hours ahead of GMT, as they do not adhere to the practise of an hour of daylight saving in Autumn and the adjustment in Spring. So depending on the time of year Korea can 8 or 9 hours ahead of GMT.
It is worth noting, the months in the seasons are different in Korea too! Winter is deemed to be December, January and February as so it continues through the rest of the seasons. So don't get caught out by your students, you've been told!

Weather:
As South Korea has a continental climate, it has four distinct seasons. Spring lasts from late March to May when a variety of flowers and cherry blossoms cover the nation's mountains. The Summer months are from June to early September and it's quite hot and humid. Autumn is from September to November, it's pleasantly mild and is probably the most picturesque time of the year to visit Korea. Winter lasts from December to February. It can be bitterly cold in winter time with the arrival of cold Siberian wind.

However, it is not without its benefits as heavy snow falls in Northern and Eastern parts of Korea makes for favourable skiing conditions. We recommend that teachers should visit as many national parks as possible during the summer and autumn months while skiing is a must in Winter time.

Although you are primarily in South Korea to teach English to children we do strongly urge all our English teachers to get out there and get active every weekend! You’ll really have a memorable 12 months in South Korea!