South Korea
Getting there: the main carrier is Korean Air.
Flight time: 12hrs.
Visas: not required for stays of up to three months.
Currency: 1,972 won to the £.
Climate: moderate climate with four seasons. The hottest part of the year is during the rainy season between July and August; the coldest is December and January. Spring and autumn are mild and mainly dry.
Time zones: GMT+9hrs.
Language: Korean.
Inoculations: cholera, typhoid and polio.