Nine Bermuda Scouts have headed halfway around the globe for an epic international gathering in South Korea — a world jamboree, which comes every four years.

Their mood pre-departure on Wednesday was “excited, nervous, literally the full gamut of emotions”, according to Geoff Rothwell, chief commissioner for the Scout Association of Bermuda, who travelled with them.

“Most have never travelled this far,” he added. “It can be very disorientating to go to a destination that uses a completely different alphabet.”

Their 2019 jamboree was held in West Virginia, while 2015 — the year Bermuda’s scouts invited girls to join — took them to Japan.

In South Korea, they will join 43,000 scouts from 150 countries, with up to 10,000 adult members of the international support team.

“It’s close to taking the population of Bermuda and dropping them in the same place,” Mr Rothwell said.

The Bermuda contingent will be away close to three weeks, returning on August 15.

The scouts, aged 15 to 17, have spent the past few years fundraising to prepare for the life-changing experience.

Parents were “a little nervous”, Mr Rothwell said.

“But one of the important things is I am treating the scouts like responsible adults. That’s part of the exercise.

“I have been sending the information about the jamboree through to the kids because part of this is about growing up.

“This is one of the highlights of scouting in Bermuda.”

The Bermuda team of scouts and explorers, travelling as part of the British contingent, will be joined by a single member of the international support team.

Arriving on Thursday in Seoul, the capital, the Bermuda scouts will spend four days seeing the sights, including a visit to the Korean demilitarised zone, the buffer along the border separating the republic from North Korea.

The group will travel next to Saemangeum, where the 25th World Scout Jamboree opens on August 1.

The gathering will be the Korea Scout Association’s second time hosting a world jamboree. This year marks the association’s 100th anniversary.

Bermuda scouts will make friendships with others from around the world, with a string of activities at the campsite and excursions for scouts to join in community activities.

The theme of the 2023 jamboree is "Draw your Dream".