Itaewon Hotels in Seoul, South Korea

We live in Korea but wanted to stay in Seoul. Itaewon is a great area for restaurants and it is close to the central part for sightseeing too. No complaints about this hotel. It was nice. Oh...but you can't control the heat in the room, even though there is a temperature dial. It was far too hot, so we had trouble sleeping. But apart from that, it was clean, fast check in and out.

Very impressive hotel overall. Awesome gym with well equipped machine. Friendly instructor and staff who showed us around the entire gym and explained the culture of the koreans. The stay made it even more than pleasant with the Concierge service. The staff at the Concierge were more than helpful. They printed maps of places we wish to go and explained every bit in details. I would not hesitate to recommend Grand Hyatt Seoul to anyone and my next trip will still be in Grand Hyatt for my accomodation. Excellent Service made my stay very pleasant and memorable.

It was my 3rd time visiting Korea, and on each occasion, I have stayed at the Hamilton Hotel for half of the time. In the future, I'm sure I will stay there again. The location is great, and there are lots of eating options around. I happened to stay there during a street music festival. The music pumped till late in the night on Saturday, and then into the early evening on Sunday. I found it great, but those looking for some quiet time would not have been impressed. As a general rule though, if you are looking for a quiet hotel, this is definitely not the one for over the weekends. If you are looking for a fun and vibrant location, then this is definitely it. I used the airport bus service from Incheon Airport to be dropped off right in front of the hotel which was very easy to do and relatively cheap. (Bus no. 6030 I think it was) A DMZ + Panmunjeom tour is highly recommended. The English speaking tour of the Secret Garden at Changdeokgung starts at 11:30am and is very nice. Money Exchange at the airport is pretty good, but the best exchange rates I got were in Myeong-dong.

The breakfast buffet was great. Everything from Western style to traditional Korean. Want raw fish for breakfast? How about ham and eggs?

Staff were friendly, helpful and delightful. Beds were clean, crisp and comfy and rooms also kept clean, towels changed daily. Small kitchenette for your use. Small bathroom with handshower. Close to everything, walk up hill a bit hard at times...but that is the experience of Korea!! I really enjoyed my stay and in fact I have stayed at GV twice and will certainly stay again. It is a residence, a mixture of Korean/Western style.

Let me explain the high rating - it is a hostel. It was exactly what I expected. The room was small - virtually a bed and a shower/toilet that was separate. They had cable in the rooms and a place to hang your coat. The only real trouble was finding the place. It was just southeast of Samgakji Station down a winding side street down an alley - look for a white sign with an orange sun on it, turn down the alley, you will see the blue door. The staff is extremely nice and very helpful, they also speak English. The floors are heated in the rooms and so is the wooden bedframe - very cozy. The shower is not western style, you get a shower head on a hose that is attached to the sink - it works and isn't cold. Not what I was used to, but I was in Korea, not the US. They cleaned it for us before we checked in, but forgot to wipe up debris behind the sink where the drain was - not a big deal unless you're curious where the water drains. (We were.) There are super markets right there and a mini fridge in the room, they also provided 2 bottles of water, free wifi (and a computer station), shower slippers and complementary regular slippers for walking around the room. It was cheap, convenient and a nice weekend getaway. If you have a lot of luggage or need extra breathing room, then the double room is not for you, I would recommend somewhere else. But I will definitely book there again!