Seoul Residence

My husband and I have just returned from spending 10 nights at the Top Hotel and Residence. We loved our time staying there, especially the friendliness of the owners and the traditional Hanok area in Insadong where the hotel is located. You couldn't find a better location in Seoul to experience traditional South Korean culture-evident in all the little alleys, restaurants, shops, gardens nearby. Although small, the room contained everything we needed and we were very comfortable and quiet. I would recommend a couple reserving a twin family room as it is larger than the double. We did this and were very comfortable. The washing machine and stove in the room are an added bonus. We usually arose too late for breakfast so made our own. The hotel has many cheap restaurants in the street and nearby streets and alleyways. "Paris Baguette". GS 25 and 7/111 stores are close and stock anything you need. If you really need anything else, you can catch the subway to Seoul Station "Lotte Mart" which is huge. The subway "Jongo 3 gam ga" is a few minutes' walk away and is a major subway network connecting all stations on the Seoul metro system. We visited Seoul to see our son who works there but also did lots of sightseeing on our own which was very easy from this location. We loved Seoul, its mixture of the traditional and the modern, its easy transport system (taxis are also very inexpensive) and the politeness and friendliness of the South Korean people. This hotel is a "top" place to stay if you want to experience the traditional Seoul. We felt that the owners were more like friends than proprietors-they could not have been more helpful to us and were were sad to leave. If we visit our son in the future, we will definitely stay here. A taxi from Seoul Station cost about AUD 11. (10, 000 won) We also found the microwave oven in the corridor outside our room very convenient.

A serviced residence, so it's good for business trips. Lots of places to eat in the area. Just study the location before going. It's rather hard to find (even locals are not familiar with it). Communication with the staff may be a challenge, too. Be patient. - - - NOTE: They tried to transfer me to another hotel (after staying there for a night) when they were overbooked. I refused.

The room is certainly not 58 sq meters, its about the size of an American motel room. No room service the 3 days we stayed, they just changed the towels and clear the trash. Chambermaid was in and out in 30 seconds. No air condition during late April, just too hot and stuffy so we have to leave the windows opened, which meant traffic noise. Pros: Microwave, washing machine, dishes and cutlery. Bare in mind, no room service so you have to wash all the dishes yourself. Certainly not a 3 or 3 1/2 star hotel, more like 2, and that's being generous. It was fortunate that we book the hotel for 3 days only although we are staying in Seoul for 13 days. If all you expect is an American type motel, then this is fine. However if you are expecting a hotel rated 3 stars, you will be sorely disappointed. Can say anything about front desk as they speak mostly Korean so we avoided any contact and I think they are glad we did.