Gangneung weather in May

In May, Gangneung sees average daytime highs of 20°C and overnight lows near 11°C, with 87 mm of rain across 8.9 wet days and about 14 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 5th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 18°C in the first days to 21°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 30 min at the start of May to 14 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Gangneung's 8th-clearest and 7th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Gangneung's year-round climate.

Daytime high
20°
5th warmest
Overnight low
11°
8th coldest
Rainfall
87 mm
8.9 wet days
Daylight
14 hours
5:20 AM – 7:22 PM
Cloud cover
57%
8th clearest
Wind
10 km/h
7th windiest
Solar energy
5.92 kWh/m²
Travel score
6.4
out of 10

Gangneung is city in South Korea.

Density
200/km²
people per km²
Founded
~129 BCE

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 18°C in the first days to 21°C by the end.

A typical May day in Gangneung reaches about 20°C in the afternoon and slips back to 11°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 15°C and 24°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 5°C warmer than April and about 3°C cooler than June.

10°20°30°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1188
2189
3189
4189
5189
6189
7199
81910
91910
101910
111910
121910
131910
141911
152011
162011
172011
182011
192011
202012
212012
222112
232112
242112
252112
262112
272113
282113
292113
302113
312213

How May really feels in Gangneung

Once humidity and wind are folded in, May averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

May sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Gangneung weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 5th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / -8°445.75.69.70.0
Feb / -7°445.7510.50.0
Mar / -1°689.15.911.71.4
Apr15° / 818.81.412.94.6
May20° / 11°878.90146.4
Jun23° / 16°11911.4014.66.4
Jul25° / 20°21915.9014.35.7
Aug26° / 20°22917.3013.55.5
Sep22° / 14°18612.2012.36.1
Oct17° / 828.50.1115.7
Nov10° / 637.51.8102.5
Dec / -5°365.33.89.40.0

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 50%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15248
25248
35149
45050
55050
65050
74951
84951
94951
104951
115050
125050
135050
145050
155050
165149
175050
185050
195149
205050
215050
225149
235050
245149
255050
265050
275050
284951
294852
304753
314753

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Gangneung gets around 87 mm of rain over 8.9 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 29% and peaks near 31% on the wettest days.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
129
229
329
429
529
630
730
830
930
1030
1130
1230
1331
1431
1531
1630
1730
1830
1930
2030
2129
2229
2328
2428
2528
2627
2727
2827
2927
3027
3127

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of May feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, May lands in the dry band about 90% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)Humid (%)
19721
29721
39730
49730
59730
69730
79730
89730
99730
109730
119640
129640
139640
149640
159550
169451
179361
189271
199181
209091
2189101
2288111
2387121
2485141
2584151
2681172
2779192
2877212
2974233
3072253
3169274

Wind in May

Winds average 10 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 8 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

051015151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
111calm
211calm
311calm
411calm
511calm
610calm
710calm
810calm
910calm
1010calm
1110calm
1210calm
1310calm
1410calm
1510calm
1610calm
1710calm
1810calm
1910calm
2010calm
219calm
229calm
239calm
249calm
259calm
269calm
279calm
289calm
299calm
309calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 30 min at the start of May to 14 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 54 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 5:35 AM to 5:10 AM, and sunset from 7:08 PM to 7:34 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.55:357:08
213.65:347:09
313.65:337:10
413.65:327:11
513.75:317:12
613.75:307:13
713.75:297:13
813.85:287:14
913.85:277:15
1013.85:267:16
1113.95:257:17
1213.95:247:18
1313.95:237:19
1414.05:227:20
1514.05:217:21
1614.05:207:22
1714.15:197:22
1814.15:187:23
1914.15:177:24
2014.15:177:25
2114.25:167:26
2214.25:157:27
2314.25:157:28
2414.25:147:28
2514.35:137:29
2614.35:137:30
2714.35:127:31
2814.35:127:32
2914.45:117:32
3014.45:117:33
3114.45:107:34

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.92 kWh/m² — the sunniest month for solar.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.42 kWh/m² to a high of 5.92 kWh/m² in May across the year — May's 5.92 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.7Bright
25.7Bright
35.7Bright
45.7Bright
55.7Bright
65.7Bright
75.7Bright
85.7Bright
95.7Bright
105.8Bright
115.8Bright
125.8Bright
135.8Bright
145.8Bright
155.8Bright
165.9Bright
175.9Bright
185.9Bright
196.0Bright
206.0Bright
216.0Intense
226.0Intense
236.1Intense
246.1Intense
256.1Intense
266.1Intense
276.1Intense
286.1Intense
296.2Intense
306.2Intense
316.2Intense
Planning a trip in May

Hazard calendar for Gangneung

In seasonPeak

In May, Gangneung sits inside its pacific typhoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Gangneung sits in the Pacific typhoon belt; the season peaks July–October.

Gangneung's rainy season runs June–September, when most of the year's rain falls.

Pacific typhoon
Rainy season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is May a good time to visit Gangneung?

Our two travel scores rate May for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

6.4
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
3.2
Beach & pool
5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Gangneung for sightseeing.

What to pack for Gangneung in May

From May's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In May, Gangneung sees daytime highs around 20°C and nights near 11°C. Worth packing: rain gear and sun protection. About 9 days see rain.

rain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Gangneung in May

The nearest coast averages about 14°C in May — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 14 km away) is warmest in August at about 24°C and coldest in February near 9°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jul 1 to Oct 7 — about 3.3 months when the water holds above 20°C.

5°10°15°20°25°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan10Bracing
Feb9Bracing
Mar9Bracing
Apr12Bracing
May14Bracing
Jun18Cool
Jul22Refreshing
Aug24Warm
Sep22Refreshing
Oct19Cool
Nov16Cool
Dec13Bracing

UV index in Gangneung in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 7 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Gangneung peaks around August 16 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 20 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateAug 16UV 9Dec 20UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7High
May7High
Jun8Very high
Jul8Very high
Aug10Very high
Sep8Very high
Oct5High
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Gangneung in May

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where May falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Gangneung is worst in March — around 40 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.4× the cleanest month (September, 17 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateMar 2239 µg/m³Sep 1817 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan26Moderate
Feb30Moderate
Mar40Poor
Apr38Poor
May35Moderate
Jun30Moderate
Jul24Moderate
Aug21Moderate
Sep17Moderate
Oct20Moderate
Nov24Moderate
Dec22Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Gangneung?

Gangneung sits at 37.8°N, 128.9°E, 77 m above sea level, in South Korea. The nearest listed city is Jumunjin, 16 km away.

SantyokuSokchoPyeongchangT’aebaekNeietsuKosong

Topography around Gangneung

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Gangneung.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Gangneung has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 163 m around an average of 48 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,166 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,646 m.

The land around Gangneung is covered by trees (46%) and artificial surfaces (36%) within 3 km, trees (59%) and water (26%) within 16 km, and trees (65%) and water (30%) within 80 km.

3 km
163 m
16 km
1,166 m
80 km
1,646 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
May weather nearby: Jumunjin 16 km · Donghae City 31 km · Santyoku 44 km · Sokcho 56 km · Pyeongchang 60 km · T’aebaek 65 km · Neietsu 73 km · Kosong 78 km

South Korea travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / F
220 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 57% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$36,227
2025
Happiness
6.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
99%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.5
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
8.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 522
Religion
none 60%Protestant 17%Buddhist 16%Catholic 6%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Gangneung (37.7527°, 128.8724°, elevation 77 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).