Scuba diving locations in South Korea:

Jeju Island is an hour from Seoul by plane, and Sogwipo (where most of the diving takes place) is another hour by bus (there is a shuttle from the airport to Sogwipo). There are excellent vertical walls covered in highly colorful soft coral and peppered with exciting caves and lava tubes. Octopus, lionfish, scorpion fish, grouper, jack, butterfly fish, angelfish, boxfish, and many others can be spotted while diving. There are several uninhabited islets off Sogwipo which offer divers a variety of sites, ranging from rocky reefs, walls, and sandy patches to soft coral gardens.

When to scuba dive in South Korea:

The best time is generally from April to September but be aware that the southern coast is subject to late summer typhoons that bring strong winds and heavy rains. The west coast is generally too silty for diving.

Local standards for gear:

The best scuba diving spots in South Korea:

• Munsom, 'Mosquito Island', a 10 minute boat ride from Sogwipo, has plenty of fish, good-sized octopus and the walls that formed the small island above ripping straight out of the sea floor. The waters here are between 8 and 40 meters deep and show a rich marine life with various species of soft coral and a lot of fish. Diving the vertical wall on the north side of Little Munsom is a very special dive that requires good buoyancy control.
• Supsom has large schools of squid and sometimes the dolphins come in for feeding.
• Pomsom has good boat diving spots on the north and south side of the island. It's a rocky reef with beautiful soft coral and exiting fish.

The best spots to snorkel in South Korea:

Fun scuba facts:

Country data:

Administrative details

• Currency: South Korean won (KRW)
• Population: is about 49,000,000 (2010)
• Time Zone: Korean Standard Time (GMT+9)
• Main languages spoken: Korean ## Diveable overseas territories:

South Korean diving federations:

KOREA UNDERWATER ASSOCIATION (KUA) is a member of Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS)

Local diving laws and regulations (and PADI-equivalent certifications):