Shilla Stay Gwanghwamun

The buffet has options for both Western and Asian tastes, and the omelette made fresh was hard to beat. The toilets have some nice extras 😀😉. Comfortable rooms, and a handy central Seoul location.

I’ve stayed at Shilla Stay Gwanghwamun twice already, and I’m due back for a third stay on Saturday. The rooms aren’t large, but they’re big enough, and I’ve enjoyed both visits. Staff, location, and the breakfast buffet have all been great, with reasonable prices too. My one annoyance is that there’s no outlet near a mirror with good lighting, which makes drying and styling my hair a bit of a hassle.

Parking was the main problem for me. I paid the 10,000 KRW daily fee upfront, then found out that moving the car more than once in a day brings another charge. Nobody mentioned this at check-in, and it wasn’t on the parking signs. I only learned about it after asking directly. Staff said the information was available, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. The garage is also very cramped, and when it fills up guests may be sent to a separate building. It’s frustrating to see paid public parking prioritized over guaranteed spaces for hotel guests. The fees need to be explained clearly, and parking should be more convenient for guests.

On our final day of a five-night stay, my personal bath towel vanished from the rack where I’d left it throughout the visit. Housekeeping took it without asking, and I had nothing to use for a shower. We hadn’t touched the hotel towels at all; they were still where they belonged, and mine clearly wasn’t one of them. The hotel’s own card says towels on the rack won’t be replaced, yet my towel was on that rack the whole time. The front desk offered me a hotel towel, even though I’d brought my own because I don’t want to use hotel towels. Then they told me to buy another at a convenience store, which didn’t help, since a new, unwashed towel wasn’t usable. The whole thing was absurd and infuriating. Taking a guest’s belongings without permission is a serious breach of trust, and the way they handled it showed no responsibility or respect. I wouldn’t recommend this hotel.