20110303

Backpackers' Accommodation in Seoul

5:34 PM  JEPOI  14 comments

March 3, 2011                                       

 Most travelers don't view Korea as a backpackers' country. In fact, travelers usually see Korea as an expensive destination. Well, think again! The Soul of Asia, the world's 2nd largest urban agglomeration (after Tokyo), is actually backpacker friendly. Travelers' guesthouses in Seoul might not be as cheap as those in Bangkok or Manila, but they offer a pretty much decent alternative to expensive hotels... not to mention they're much cleaner and safer than those in other countries.
There are two districts in Seoul that are famous among backpackers. One is Jongno (Anguk Station near Insadong and Sinseoldong Station near Kyung Hee University/University of Seoul). And another one is Seoul's night life center, Hongdae. If your interests revolve around culture, history and people, I recommend staying at Jongno Area. Jongno is near Dongdaemun Market, the biggest shopping district in Seoul. It is also near many famous tourist spots like the Cheonggyecheon Stream, Gwanghwamun Square, City hall and Gyeongbokgung Palace. If you are a party person, then of course, Hongdae must be heaven for you. Well, that is if you are prepared to pay entrance fees to clubs ranging from 10,000~20,000 Won. But you can just drink in any of the bars there if you prefer a chillax scene. 

Here  is a list of Backpackers' hostels and guesthouses around Seoul that I got
from Backpackers' Planet. 

JONGNO AREA

Backpackers Korea - 1054 Sungin-dong, Jongno-gu (2 min from Line 1 Sinseoldong stn exit 11), Tel.+82 10 4942-2268, +82 10 5001-0307. Friendly cool English speaking staff, free breakfast, free wifi, free laundry, air-con, hot water, rooftop terrace. Dorms from ₩17,000/night private from ₩29,000/night with own bathroom.
Website: Click Here.



Hostel Korea - 178-65 Sungin-dong, Jongno-gu (4 min from Line 1 Sinseoldong stn exit 11), Tel.+82 2 762-7406, +82 2 766-7406. Friendly English/Chinese-speaking staff, Free breakfast, free wifi, free laundry, air-con, hot water, . Private from ₩25,000/night, Ensuit private from ₩30,000/night. I have stayed here once. It's a decent place. You just need to feel at home as the hostel staff are not really very strict and they actually don't care about what you do.
Website: Click Here.

Mr. Kim's Friends Guesthouse - 446-11 Seokyo Dong Mapo-Gu Seoul (Metro Line 2 Hongik University, exit 1; or airport bus #6002, to Seogyo Hotel ₩10,000), ☎ +82 2 70 4123-9059, +82 11 9059-7191. Facilities: Internet access, guest kitchen, fax service, card phones, bicycle hire, cable TV, DVD`s, common room, library, linen included, security lockers, BBQ area, washing machine/dryer, 24 hour security, towels hire, hairdryer for hire, parking, free parking, bicycle parking, air conditioning, iron/ironing bard, tours desk, luggage storage, 24 hour reception. Dormitory from ₩15,000, private from ₩20,000. (37.5637561,126.9084211).
Website: Click Here.

Seoul Backpackers - 205-125, Namchang-Dong, Jung-Gu, Seoul, Korea (Metro Line 4, Hoehyeon stn). Take exit No 4 and walk down the road; turn left into the next road and you will find the hostel on that road after about 100m. Tel. +82-2-3672-1972. Backpacker hangout with English-speaking staff. Single/double ₩40,000/₩50,000 with own tiny bathroom. Free breakfast, internet and laundry.
Website: Click Here.

Seoul Guest House - 135-1 Gyedong, Jongno-gu (Metro Line 3, Anguk stn), tel +82 2 745-0057 . Basic rooms with air-con in a traditional Korean-style house from ₩35,000/night. Shared bathrooms, Internet (WiFi), TV etc. For a higher price you can get a room with a private bath, television and computer with internet. Some find it spartan, other like its homey feel, friendly owner and big, fluffy guard dog.
Website: Click Here.
Wind Road & Flower Guesthouse - 1F 85-5, Myeongryun-dong 3-ga, Jongno-gu, Tel +82 2 6407-2012~3. E-mail: cowindrea@paran.com. Dorm from ₩15,000/night, free internet. Laundry also available (but not free). The friendly staff speaks good english.
Website: Click Here.

Yim's House - 33 Waryong-dong, Jongno-gu (Metro Line 3, Anguk stn), tel. +82 2 747-3332. Rooms are clean and spacious, and Mr. Yim speaks fluent English. En-suite singles are ₩30,000 while doubles are ₩38,000.
Website: Click Here.

Golden Pond Guesthouse - 188-40, 14/5 Myeongryun-dong (Metro Line 4, Hyehwa stn, exit #4), Tel. +82 2 741-5621 Cell. +82 10 9921-5621. Golden Pond is one of the newest and cheapest (₩17,000 for a dorm) hostels in Seoul. A comfortable, family style atmosphere, with decent bathrooms and a friendly owner make this hostel hard to beat. Two computers available for Internet use and wireless throughout. This place is near a lot of universities so shops and restaurants are a plenty. 10-minute walk from Changgyeong-gung. No curfew.
Website: Click Here.

HONGDAE AREA
 
Bangrang hostel - 397-12 Chungnim-Dong, Chung ku (Metro Line 2, Chungjeongro stn, exit 5), ☎ +82 2 6614-2246, [48]. checkin: 2PM; checkout: 11:30AM. A brand new hotel,o pened Jan 2010. distinguished interior. 1 min from subway station, 2 min from airport bus stop, can go any tour top attraction within 15 min. Prices start at ₩18,000.
Website: Click Here.

Blu Guest House - 464-63 Seogyo-dong, Mapo-gu (Metro Line 2, Hongdae stn, exit#1; Line 7, Hapjeong stn), tel. +82 70 7692-9484, +82 11 9921-5621. Free wifi, free laundry, aircon/heating, lockers, breakfast, no curfew. From ₩18,000.
Website: Click Here.


Hongdae Guesthouse (홍대게스트하우스) - 159-6 Dongkyo-dong 159-6, Paradisetel unit 302, Mapo-gu (Next to Line 2 Hongdae stn exit 1), ☎ +82 2 336-0003 (hongdaeguesthouse@yahoo.com). Checkin: anytime; checkout: 11AM. Clean, spacious rooms with high ceilings, ondol heating, aircon, hot water. English spoken. From ₩19,000. 
Website: Click Here.
 
Kims' Guest House - 443-16 Hapjeongdong, Mapo-gu (Metro Line 2/7, Hapjeong stn), tel. +82 2 337-9894. This comfortable guest house, run by a friendly English-speaking family, is located in the western part of Seoul, 15 minutes walk from Hapjeong subway station. The dormitory (₩15000), single, double and triple rooms (₩27000/₩37000/₩47000) all have air-conditioning and heating. Guests share a kitchen, toilets and showers and have free use of cable TV, washing machine and internet. Breakfast (jam, toast & coffee) is included. No curfew. Discounts for stays over 1 night.
Website: Click Here.

Lee & No Guesthouse - 561-29 Yunnam-dong, Mapo-gu (Sinchon), ☎ +82 2 336-4878, [53]. checkin: 1PM~9PM; checkout: 10:30AM. Near Hongdae, has four-bed dorm rooms and doubles. ₩22,000.  
 Website: Click Here.

Soul Guesthouse - Unit#505, 159-6 Paradisetel, Dongkyodong, Mapogu,Seoul(Metro Line 2, Hongdae stn, exit 1), tel. +82-10-5137-0604, [55]. Female Dormitory. ₩20,000 per night per person. Clean and close to subway. Located at central Seoul.
 Website: Click Here.

OTHER AREAS

ZAZA Backpackers - 32-3, Namsandong-2ga, Jung-Gu, Seoul, Korea (Metro Line 4, Myeongdong stn Exit 2). Tel. +82 2 3672-1976 Brand new facilities, helpful English speaking staff help you to feel right at home. Free internet & wifi, 24Hr access, Private bathroom in each rooms. 24 hour security, towels and hairdryer for hire, parking. Tour info and booking service. Free international phone. 
Website: Click Here.

Namsan Guesthouse - 50-1 Namsandong 2-ga, Chung ku (Metro Line 3, Myeong-dong stn, exit 3), tel. +82-2-752-6363, [54]. Superbly located in the shadow of Seoul Tower in Namsan Park, this hostel has the usual draws: free internet access, free breakfast, kitchen & laundry and advice with tours. There are no singles but a 4-share costs ₩60,000 while a twin or double costs ₩40,000. All rooms are ensuite. Manager Robin is eager to help and speaks near-perfect English.
Website: Click Here.


Sources: Wiki and Backpackers' Planet

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14 Reactions:

tanx for this, jepoi. would recommend this to my friends that will visit korea this year even if im not joining them :P

Welcome! Seoul has more backpackers' hostels than Manila. :(

Nice, Travelling at different places is always fun.

nice post will keep this in mind

nice ha. ur using backpacker's planet pala. i usually rely on hostelworld.com

il be there by june. i know its not a fine time going there pero sayang ang tkt. il be back by nov din cguro for the real feel of korea. :)

hi jepoi! thanks for your very informative blog. i'll be going to korea for six days in june and will be travelling with some friends and relatives (approx. 8-9 people, provided we all get visas). we've already paid for our tickets and gimhae airport (busan) will be our point of entry/exit. we're planning to stay at zenbackpackers in the busan leg of our trip and i was looking for backpacker accommodations in seoul so that's how i found your blog. it's very helpful and i would be getting in touch with you again (if ok with you) to get suggestions since we are still undecided on whether to just go busan-jeju or busan-seoul (w/ side trip to dmz) since we only have six days; another thing is, we'll be arriving at around 9pm in busan. so we're looking at the option to go directly to seoul that night and stay for two days, then go back to busan for about 3 days. it's better to stay in busan on the last leg of the trip so that we don't miss our flight back to manila. for now, we're still undecided on our final itinerary, except for the busan leg. btw, i've been to seoul for about a week (more than 9 years ago). since it was an official trip, i only had a day tour courtesy of the organizing agency (the KFTC) and we had a side trip to busan). so i'm looking forward to exploring more tourist spots this time. i understand you also stayed in busan so i trust you'd able to give some helpful travel tips. will get in touch w/ you again to ask for suggested places to visit, including good backpacker accommodations (although i already made a shortlist from the ones you mentioned in your blog)...thanks & regards!
- lilet

That's cool Lilet! Why don't you avail the FREE SHUTTLE BUS from Busan~Seoul and Vice Versa. I will be posting info about it soon.

Also I do not recommend Jeju. Kulangot lang ng Palawan ang Jeju... there is nothing there. Seoul has a lot more to offer... It's the center of Korean culture, business and politics... Korea is Seoul.

hi jepoi! many thanks for this info! will definitely check out these hostels when I plan my first trip to Korea. One of my dreams is just to roam around Seoul, soaking in the culture. Kaya lang dapat budget trip lang so baka soju, ddutbokki and ramyun lang kainin hehehe. Anyway, thanks so much! Wanted so much to also check out the scenes in Hongdae :))

Nice blog! I love this hostel very much. I will definitely visit and stay to that place.

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This place is one of the best to spend my Christmas vacation together with my family and children. Thanks for sharing this!

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I also haven't thought of Korea as a backpackers destination. Looks like I am missing a lot by not trying this place out. How wonderful it would be to do some trekking adventures in that beautiful country.

Thanks for sharing this list of Korea’s backpackers’ accommodation.

Hi Jepoi. Thanks for sharing those information about budget places in Seoul. We'll go there this coming May, so i'm searching for a budget friendly place to stay that's also near subway stations. A friend suggested Namsan guesthouse, but its not in your list. What can you say about that place? Thank you.

Hi, Jepoi!
We are the Phil. team that will compete in the Asia-Pacific Baseball tournament in Goyang Stadium this July 27-Aug. 3. The team is composed of 13 boys (13-14 yrs. old), 2 coaches & 10 parents. Total of 25 people. We need to find cheap accommodations for the whole contingent bec. we are on very tight budget. (As usual, no help from the gov't.) We are ok with dormitory/korean style accommodation.
It would be great if there are restaurants around the place where we can eat or a market where we can buy food to cook. The boys are not familiar with Korean food so if there are the usual brand of restaurants found in manila (kfc, mcdo, etc.) it will be really great.
Also, the parents will need to go to the stadium by public bus/train. But the boys have their own private means of transportation though.
I hope you can help us. Thanks so much in advance, Jepoi!

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