2-Star Hotels in Seoul

On one of the nights during our stay, the fire alarm went off at 3 AM. We sat on the curb across the street, shivering in the cold for half an hour before the fire truck arrived. During that entire half hour, no staff member came out to explain the situation. Staff from Hotel Skypark II across the street did come out to check, and after the fire trucks arrived, we also saw Skypark staff communicating with the firefighters. About an hour later, other guests started returning to their rooms, and we followed suit. Even at that point, no staff from this hotel had appeared. On our way back to the room, we noticed a large amount of clutter in the stairwell (see photo) — a hazard in itself.  A few minutes after we got back to our room, the fire alarm suddenly went off again, but just for a few seconds, which startled us so much that we immediately went down to the front desk on the 3/F. At that time, there were two foreign female sitting in the common area. We thought they were just guests and chatted with them for a bit, only to find out during the conversation that they were actually staff members here. According to them, they were something like international students or exchange students working here— not trained professionals you would expect to handle an emergency. We also figured out during the conversation that they had actually been standing outside with the guests the whole time while we were all waiting for the fire trucks to arrive — yet even then, neither of them had come forward to say anything or offer any reassurance. We guessed that they were probably working here in exchange for a place to stay, which would explain why no one seemed to be properly in charge when things went wrong. Putting this incident aside, this hostel is actually quite good.  The three of us stayed in a family twin room. We were able to open two large suitcases in the entrance hallway, and there was plenty of space at the foot of the beds and underneath them to temporarily store things we had just bought. The double bed was more than spacious enough for two people, and there was also lots of room on the shelf behind our bed to place personal items. The only minor complaint is that a smell occasionally came from the ventilation system on the bathroom ceiling. Also, there is no shower stall/ bathtub (see photo), so when you shower, the entire floor and toilet bowl gets wet, and there is no place to hang clothes to change into after showering. The room was pretty clean. The common area has a vacuum cleaner, a washer-dryer, and a luggage scale. There is also a microwave, an oven, and a stovetop available for use. For breakfast, bread, eggs, cereal, milk, and Indomie instant noodles are provided for you to cook yourself.   The hotel's location is very convenient — it's right across from Hotel Skypark II. It's a short walk to Euljiro 1(il)-ga Station and Myeongdong, and there are plenty of great restaurants nearby, as well as a convenience store right across the street. If it weren't for this incident, I would have no hesitation in recommending this hotel.

Staying at V stay was really nice. The room was clean and had all the things needed for my short stay. On top of that, there is a water dispenser and towels readily available at the common areas. There is also a laundry area where you can wash some clothes, which would definitely save luggage space. The staff is also very friendly and would readily help if you need it. The location is great as it is walking distance to the tourists areas as well as the subway station. Do take note that it is situated on a slight hill, which may be a little bit of a climb, but it was not an issue for me. Nonetheless, cars and taxis can easily access the hostel, which is great as you do not need to lug your baggage up and down the hill if you can afford them. Really recommend for people to come and stay here, especially for friends.

The location is good if you want peace, since it's close to Bukhansan National Park and not city centre. The room is very spacious, but the cleanliness was so-so. I found someone's hair on the bedside table, and the tiles in the bathroom weren't very clean. I guess it's what you get for the price. If you're a budget traveller, it's a good choice, if you want something more, look for other places. But the view was amazing.

I wouldn't recommend it for germaphobes, but the room is spacious, and the location is fantastic! It's close to the station, and there are plenty of restaurants where you can eat alone, as well as Olive Young, Daiso, and convenience stores. If you're just looking for a place to sleep, there's absolutely no problem! Toothbrushes, toothpaste, and towels are self-service, and when I visited, there was staff who could speak a little Japanese!

It was nice that they let us take one drink per person, and the room was spacious and clean, which was nice😍 The staff were all very friendly! It was such a great experience that my Japanese friend said he wanted to stay here again when he comes to Korea❤️ I'm glad you made good memories.

A very good option for staying for a week. Spacious rooms, an elevator, good in-room amenities, and pleasant staff. First of all, the area is excellent. It’s a lively, authentic Seoul, and just outside the neighborhood you’ll find postcard-worthy spots and major tourist attractions. Staying here allows you to experience the rhythm of daily life alongside local Seoul residents and really feel the city from the inside. Plus there's also many convenient metro stations nearby. As for the hotel itself, there are both positives and negatives. Starting with the downsides: maybe I was just unlucky, but the shower head was in very poor condition and barely worked. Hopefully, this will be fixed. There’s also no option to open the window for some reason — it has a strange four-layer window system, which is… okay. The tap water is quite hard, but as far as I understand, that’s common across most of Seoul. The room keys don’t look very secure, and the key fob is huge — about the size and weight of a solid, heavy iPhone. It’s easier to leave the key at reception when you go out and pick it up again when you return. Another downside is the poor sound insulation from the corridor. When the Korean and Russian cleaning staff start chatting in the morning, it works better than any alarm clock. In some places, you can see signs of the hotel’s “age” and wear over time, but it’s not too serious. On the plus side, in addition to the usual amenities like toothbrushes and basic hygiene kits, each room has large bottles of body lotion, cream, and something else I didn’t even have time to figure out. That’s a definite bonus. Next, despite the inability to open the window, the rooms aren’t stuffy at all — on the contrary, they’re comfortably warm. There’s also heated flooring. All the staff are pleasant, friendly Koreans who are always willing to help if needed. A solid 4 out of 5.

Checkin starts at 3, I ended up there at 2:30, asked to wait very sternly, I said ya no worries I will and I sat on the sofa. But the guy who was supposed to check in, he was late and suddenly the women was now polite. The guy eventually came at 3:30. And was apologetic. Funny how people can be apologetic if its their mistake , but ask them 1 more question hours later they become rude. He spoke broken English which was hard to grasp as he was going really quickly on the do’s and dont’s but he was irritated at me for that. Next day I saw him all in smiles and laughter to a westerner. And calmly explaining everything. Rest, liked the location because its away from Myeongdang main street, so its calm while close enough to walk for stroll.

The room looks exactly like the pictures. The bed was really comfortable and clean, with no strange smells (housekeeping came daily to clean and empty the bins). The bathroom was spacious, making for a pleasant shower experience. We chose a quad room, and there was enough space to spread out my luggage. There are also lockers for valuables, but you need to bring your own padlock. The accommodation is on the third floor with no elevator, so it's a bit of a struggle if you have large luggage like I did. Also, the beds don't have curtains, which can make you feel a bit exposed. Since the room is small, any noise, like using the toilet in the middle of the night, is amplified, and I worried about disturbing others. However, for the price, I'm very satisfied! No complaints at all!

We were able to locate the guest house easily using Naver Map. However, our first struggle was how to reach the destination itself. The guesthouse is located in an uphill area, almost near Namsan Cable Car (600km/20min walk). A great tip we discovered (after struggling of walking uphill for 2 days 😂) was using the escalators/elevators near the Ihoeyeong Memorial Hall. Go straight from there and you’ll find a 7-Eleven convenience store upon crossing the street. Go left then right at the first wide alley way you see, it should be uphill. Keep on walking until you see a signage of mama guest house on your right side. We booked a day before our arrival so we could immediately check-in in our rooms. A note welcomed us and our keys were found at the reception area. Pls don’t forget to remove your shoes and change into the slippers they provide found in the shoe cabinet at the left side of the entrance. Our rooms were next to each other, but differ in size. Bathroom was okay, but I hope they’ll fix the sink’s pipe problem in room 104 since it leaks on the floor upon using. I suggest buying shower filters (5,000 Won) since the water in SK is quite harsh. I suggest to test how you’ll adjust the temperature when showering. There were no bidets in our bathrooms. Always bring your keycard with you whenever you go out. They don’t go into your rooms like hotels would. If you have any requests, just leave a note on their desk (ie. New towels, tissue, etc.) They also don’t have laundry machines. Do not eat inside the rooms, only in the kitchen which is in the basement. If you feel like your trash bins are getting full, trash bins are found in the lobby and segregate everything according to their waste category. Just think of it as you’re staying on your own room. Walls are thin, made of light wood materials so I wouldn’t suggest talking nor listening to your phone loudly. Breakfast menu were cereals with milk, bread and flavored jam, and instant noodles. You can only consume what’s inside the fridge unless there’s a note that a room guest owns it. You can cook and buy your own food, just make sure you clean up after. You can also fill-up your water bottles here. Going to different areas are easy too since it’s near Myeongdong Station exit 1. If you’re planning to go shopping in Myeongdong, just go straight after exit 1 and you should see E-Mart across the street then cross on the first crosswalk you see. If you want to enter the “main” street, go left until you see the bug HBAF building. Overall, I think our stay was a good since the staff we get see was very accommodating to our requests. I just hope they’ll fix some of their bathroom leakage.

It's only two minutes' walk from the nearest station and has excellent access. There is a convenience store right next to the hotel, and there are 24-hour restaurants nearby, so it's convenient. A refrigerator, dryer, and smartphone charger are provided in the room.(i-phone&type-c only) If there is no staff at the front desk when you check in, you will need to obtain your room number using sns. As others have written, the cleaning situation leaves room for improvement. However, you will be able to stay at a very reasonable price, so I think it would be a good idea to bring slippers and other things to make up for the parts of the floor that are not well cleaned.