Toyoko Inn Seoul Dongdaemun
73 2Ga Gwanghui-dong Jung-gu, Seoul, 100-412, South Korea
99%
of people enjoy staying here
35 Opinions
- Excellent
- 20
- Very Good
- 12
- Average
- 3
- Poor
- 0
- Terrible
- 0
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Subway system, Seoul, South Korea
Changdeokgung Palace
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Forum Posts
Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by SandiM
Contemplating a visit to Seoul in November 2010, party of 2 (42 & 73yr old females). Although a lot of the hotels aren't listed yet, where should we stay if we want easy access to transportation (bus, subway) to get to the major sites of Seoul (palaces, temples, Namsam cable car etc)? I heard there is a river walk in Seoul--which area is that and are there hotels near it? Ideally, I wouldn't mind a hotel in a downtown (hip/cool) area that we could step out of at night, roam a few streets to enjoy the nightlife scenery (possibly to catch a glimpse of a K-star or two?), then easily get back to.
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by DSwede
Based on your tastes and your age, I would suggest you look in the Insadong area. There are lots of arts & crafts in the area, galleries and places to eat at too. The main street is a pedestrian walking area and is immediately accessible to the metro. The Changdeokgung Palace, Bukchon neighborhood and many more things are right there too. It is just on the north side of center, so any and all places are easy to get to within a few stops on the metro.
The Riverwalk that you want would be a ~20 minute walk away. The Riverwalk in my opinion is nice and scenic but goes through a lot of more commercial areas. Therefore accommodations in the area would be more business related and may not so kind on the pocketbook.
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by SandiM
DSwede, I will go now and research that area, thank you! Have you heard of the Doulos Hotel? I have that one on my notepad and seems to be central, easy access to metro stations. Scary area? I need to do some research on it as well.
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by DSwede
I don't know that hotel, but it looks nice on the internet and the location is spot on where you would want to be. If you give it a try and like me know what you think of it.
I usually stay with friends when I'm in Seoul, but that's not always possible, so wouldn't mind having a few more quality options.
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by SandiM
sure will! I usually post something or other after a trip. I haven't seen enough reviews on this hotel but it seems right up my alley--clean, bright, close to everything, laundry facilities in the basement, funky-looking, etc. Can't wait to try it. So where are the 'hotspots' for people-watching? My companion (mom) couldn't care less about the rich and famous but she'd be tickled if I took her to an area where we could sit and have a beverage and maybe stare at the populace...famous or not.
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by DSwede
Korean celebrities could walk right by me and with the exception of about half a dozen, I would never know who they were. If you want to people watch, Insadong is just as good a neighborhood as any. Unless you want to watch foreigners, I would not recommend Itaewon. However, they have lots of ethnic restaurants and shopping options there.
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by SandiM
more of a photography buff, rather than shopper. Besides the cable car to N Seoul Tower and the grand Palace, what other spots for an amateur scenic photographer would you suggest I visit? Since I'll be there in November, I'm hoping to catch some deep reds & oranges (leaves) around old temples, scenic walks, etc. My theme is 'whimsical mystery' (ha! that's what I aim for anyway, not always get it...).
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by DSwede
By November in Seoul, you will be hard pressed to find many trees that still have their leaves. But any and all of the temples have greenery around them. The Changdeokgung Palace (just on north side of Insadong) has the "Secret Garden" which is less secret and more of a forested park. Might get some good shots in there.
Re: Ideal Accomodation locations in Seoul
by JohanIsWeg
The Doulos has an excellent reputation. Also look at Ibis Myeong-dong, Hotel Prince, Savoy, Seoul Plaza, Hill House and Best Western Premier Hotel Kukdo.
Travel Tips for Seoul
Seoul is the Juxtoposition of Past & Present
by AKtravelers
Whenever you wander about Seoul, don't fail to enjoy the melange of 19th and 21st century views. As the Korean government focuses energy into restoring its past it also pushes the country relentlessly toward technological advancement. Therefore, you see odd scenes such as the changing of the guard at Gyeongbukgung overseen by a flatsceen video advertisement or a statue of 16th-century Admiral Yi coughing in the fumes of rush hour traffic. While it may srtrike the visitor as odd, it's no less jarring than in Boston or Philadelphia. It would be nice if the entire historic core of Seoul were preserved like that of Bruges or Venice, but it's too late for that now. So enjoy Seoul the way it is, quirks and all.
Namsum Village of Traditional...
by asantetravel
Namsum Village of Traditional Houses. If you can?ft get out to Folk Village, you can still visit traditional homes near the city center. The homes were moved from around the country and really give you a feel of how the people lived.
Food Etiquette at the VitaVia (Doota Food Court)
by perseushermes
The unique system of the Food Court here (and maybe other food court too) is:
(1) Order food and pay at the cashiers.
(2) You'll be given a receipt with a preforated portion which has a number
(3) Check the electronic dashboard which indicates the Food Section (eg Korean, Japanese) with a calling number ~ like taking a number at the bank !
(4) When the number lights up, pick the food tray and the cutlery (which is in a sterilised glass cabinet located at the pick up point)
(5) You can get water at the Water station which is also located in a glass cabinet (sterilised)
(6) After your meal, return the food tray and its contents to the same Food Section you pick up earlier.
I think this system is unique because (unfortunately) I have not encounter this in my country, Malaysia and neither US or Australia (the Western Countries). It keeps the area clean and neat. And its very orderly too.
Metal Chopsticks, long Spoons!
by machomikemd
Unlike other chopstick loving nations such as china, taiwan, japan, singapore, etc that uses mostly wooden, plastic, lacquer chopsticks, South Koreans prefer the metal kind since it is more practical (you don't dispose it everyday like the wooden kind and is less expensive than the plastic or lacquer kind). They also use long spoons for rice and soup (as compares to the short but stubby soup spoon of other east asian countries.
Urban riding / Ramp park
by schwein
It's hard to find a good ramp park in Seoul.
There's the odd park around on the Hangang pathways; They are small and usually have small children using them as playground slides, with ignorant parents (unaware that they are for bikes/boards/skates) getting angry if you ride your bike inside.
Every so often a decent park will open, but will be mismanaged (somebody not wearing protective gear/pads, helmets, and gets stupidly hurt) and then shut down quickly "because it's dangerous!"
Imagine my joy when an army buddy told me there was a park on the local US Army base.
He had never checked it out, so we planned an adventure...
I'm neither American or in the Army, so he had to check me onto the base. They held my Canadian ID at a checkpoint, and gave me a visitor's pass.
Inside was like a little version of America: real grass everywhere, smooth roads, wide open spaces, no morons driving on the sidewalks, etc. You get the idea.
We found the ramps. Made of good grippy material instead of the slideyplastic that Korean ramps are made of, with no hordes of 5 year olds using them as slides, we had fun.
Also, good beer is really really cheap on the base. I filled my bag with Heinnekin Darkies. :)
And there is a Taco Bell, along with many other restaurants.
Questions and Answers
Q: Designer knock off of high grade (fake) "Hi! Does any one knows of a place in Seoul that sells grade A for designer knockoffs and gold clubs? Or a specific shop that I can..."
A: "Asking for places to purchase illegally made goods is not a great idea."
Read 13 Replies »
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