SONO Belle Vivaldi Park (Tower A,B,C,D)

The shower pressure was easily the best part of the room. It was large, and the location is perfect, directly across from Vivaldi Park's main ski slope entrance. Check-in and checkout were quick and smooth, but felt clinical, without a personal touch. There are storage lockers and cafes on the ground floor. We had a two-bed room, but one bedroom had no windows and got unbearably hot at night. The hotel shuts off air conditioning in winter, leaving no airflow unless you open the balcony door, which makes the room too cold and feels unsafe. The space had hardly any soft furnishings, so it felt more like a cheap hostel: no floor rug, cushions on the plastic-looking sofa, or bedside lamps. The bath towels were tiny, more like hand towels, and impossible to use as bath towels. Amenities were basic, and the bar of hand soap was already open, which didn't seem hygienic. It was barely okay for one night. Don't expect much.

VivaldiPark is a huge, connected complex with Sono Belle Towers A, B, C, and D, Sono Calm, Sono Pet, and Sono Felice accommodations, plus Snowyland, Ski Park, and Ocean World. There are activities for everyone, and I enjoyed how comprehensive it was, but I wish the hotel had been warmer toward guests. We booked SonoBelle tower B through trip.com. Reception felt unfriendly and matter of fact. They told us to take a number and wait, and gave us just one room key card, though you can put another card in the slot. Our second-floor room was reached by a separate lift through a smaller corridor, almost like a service lift. It made us feel like second-class guests. The balcony was spacious but faced a nearby carpark, so there was no privacy, and we hesitated to open the sliding door for cool air because of safety. I wondered if this was because we booked through Trip.com instead of directly. Other rooms use the proper hotel lift lobby and presumably have better views, since their balconies face the ski slopes on higher ground. The room was large and well equipped for cooking, but microwaves were shared in the hallway. They provide only shampoo, shower gel, facial tissues, and very small towels. Bring your own toothbrush and toothpaste. There’s no housekeeping, and guests have to sort their rubbish and recyclables and take them to the sorting centre. The hotel also doesn't store luggage. Room guests need to rent lockers for 3000won per use before check-in or after checkout. The whole park connects underground. Sono Calm's breakfast buffet was good, but you need to book one of three seating slots. There’s also a 24-hour supermarket with almost everything, plus a bowling alley, k1 race track, billiards, table tennis, arcade, crafts shop, pharmacy, karaoke, sauna, shops for ski clothes and toys, cinema, Baskin robbins, and small stalls selling cotton candy and drinks. In the middle are a large carousel and bumper cars, with small kiddy rides along the side and photo booths near the Ski Park exit. Food options include cafes, bakeries, a food court, restaurants, and fast food. At the ski park, getting tickets on our own was difficult because few people spoke or understood English. A corner booth for foreigners was very helpful. Staff there arranged ski lessons, ski suit and pants rentals, and Snowyland tickets. When they ran out of ski clothes in my child's size, they helped us get the rental money refunded easily. Sizes, especially for children, can run out because the selection is limited. It was easy for us adults. In a hurry, we bought ski pants for my child at the rental store for 100,000won, though cheaper ones are available at the shop in Vivaplex Mall. Getting tickets at Ocean World counters was easy, and the staff there were helpful and cheerful. I'll review Ocean World, Snowyland, and Vivaldi Ski Park in more detail separately.

There was a lot to do in the basement 1 mall: a supermarket, food court, restaurants, go-kart track, arcade, bumper cars, karaoke, pool table, table tennis, sauna, and more. There’s even a dog run at least as big as a football field. The resort has mountain trekking trails with different difficulty levels, plus Ocean World, though I didn't visit it because it was autumn. It was autumn during my stay too, so I missed the skiing. Nothing negative to say, it's one of the best ski resorts.

This is about the Sono Belle Suite room, not the facilities, skiing, or other activities. The service was very lacking. I understand they mainly focus on Korean tourists rather than foreign visitors, but not providing bath towels at a hotel is a joke. They expected us to use hand towels. I even offered to pay for larger towels, but apparently that wasn't an option. As others have said, the so-called suite is one room with twin beds plus an ondol room where you sleep on mats. The heating is central and can't be adjusted, and there's no air circulation. Opening a window when it's -5 degrees makes it hard to get comfortable, so getting a good night's sleep was difficult. We stayed for three nights. Reception staff spoke very limited English and refused to clean our room, saying we had to stay three nights. I kept explaining that we were staying that long, but eventually needed a Korean friend to clarify before they cleaned it. Vivaldi park was okay for skiing, but I wouldn't stay here again.