A sprawling megacity of nearly 10 million inhabitants where more than 500 neighborhoods coexist over 600 km2, Seoul is not easy to approach for the traveler planning their stay there.
When choosing their accommodation, they can quickly get lost in the mass of information to take into account, before being confronted with serious dilemmas: what type of establishment to choose, in which area to settle and when to leave for benefit from the best prices?
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Private guide in Korea and producer of audiovisual content within the Panda Media agency, Yann Kerloch recently observed sharp increases in accommodation prices: “
Since the post-Covid reopening of the country to international tourism, prices have jumped by more than 20%.
Certainly, Seoul remains more affordable than Singapore but it is tending to catch up with Tokyo.
With the global explosion of
K Pop
,
South Korea
is popular and the recovery of tourism is spectacular in the country
.
Therefore, it is better to prepare your trip well.
Here are some tips and tricks for finding cheap accommodation in the South Korean capital.
Choose your moment wisely
General view of Seoul.
TIM FRANCO
Before booking your stay, two factors must be taken into account: the season and the day of the week.
Yann Kerloch warns: “
Very popular with Asian tourists, the city receives a lot of people around the time of Chinese New Year – which is also celebrated in Korea – or during Japanese Golden Week (4 days at the end of April-beginning of May).
The cherry blossom season – a little later than in Japan – is also very popular.
You must then book as early as possible and avoid Saturday night, which is always more expensive
.”
Certain periods of the year, on the contrary, are less expensive: during winter, a season when freezing cold waves can hit the city, but also during summer, which is known to be very stifling.
If these times are not ideal, they allow you to make great savings.
Without being cheap, autumn can be a good compromise.
Hotel,
hanok
or motel?
Several styles of accommodation coexist in Seoul.
As elsewhere in Asia, large international hotels are very present.
These are generally comfortable establishments, whose prices can be high and where the staff speaks English.
Breakfast is extra.
Guest houses and pensions
(minbak)
are also very numerous and easily bookable via the usual large platforms such as Airbnb, Booking or Agoda.
Yann Kerloch enlightens us on this type of accommodation: “
Very popular with Koreans,
guesthouses
are by no means reserved for tourists.
Besides, many Seoul residents rent rooms
.”
Some structures are installed in the famous
hanok,
traditional wooden houses.
Breakfast is included, sometimes even the evening meal: perfect for tasting Korean family cuisine.
If the comfort level varies, people generally sleep on futons.
Let's also mention the
“
motels
”
– closer to Japanese
love hotels
than American motels – which represent a good way to save money.
Located in nightlife areas and around universities, they welcome both students and young couples on the move.
Simple but clean, they display an unapologetic kitsch style.
They are difficult to find on traditional booking sites and English is rarely mastered there.
The experience can, however, be fun for a night or two.
Finally, there are also many youth hostels with high standards.
An option to consider if you are with family.
Get away from the most popular neighborhoods
The traditional district of Samcheong-dong with the Hanok village of Bukchon.
TIM FRANCO
Choosing your neighborhood of residence is not an easy task.
As Seoul is very large, you must take several criteria into account before deciding: what you want to visit, the public transport options and the time you have available.
For a stay of a few days, it is better to stay in the center such as in the
districts of Myeong-dong or Insa-dong,
which have the advantage of not being too expensive thanks to significant competition.
Off-center and flashy, Gangnam is not ideal, at least for a first visit.
Very night owl, Itaewon does not have many offers and is particularly noisy.
Bukchon
On the other hand, it is an interesting option for those who wish to sleep in a
hanok.
As for
Hongdae,
it has a very wide and rather inexpensive offering.
The area will especially appeal to young people or families with teenagers.
By way of conclusion, Yann Kerloch tells us: “
In my opinion, the most important thing is still to choose an establishment well served by transport.
We quickly lost an hour on the metro!
".
Contact French-speaking guide Yann Kerloch: yann@pandamedia.eu or by Whatsapp at +82 10 5069 7382.