Autumn 2024. Ten years after my first trip to Seoul in 2014, I am returning to the Republic of Korea, better known as South Korea. Not solo this time, but with Oriol, who has never been to Korea. On the itinerary: flying with Qatar Airways to Incheon via Doha, the capital Seoul, the historic city of Gyeongju, Busan, Jeju Island and a second stint in Seoul, where we are joined by Sehyeon. We’re spending two weeks in South Korea. The ROK is such a popular destination now. Will we experience overtourism?  

Our hotel in Gyeongju was called Hotel Palace. And when we saw the very standard medium-rise building, the reception behind safety glass, we raised eyebrows. What have we gotten ourselves into?

But check-in was swift. Our room was ready, even if we were early. Nice.

The room

First things first. Room doors were open. As if every room had been emptied and cleaned. Very odd. Inside, it was immediately clear were in Asia. There was a shoes area and a no-shoes area. Sliders awaited us. 

I’ll start with the ‘normal’ features. Well, normal or expectable for us westerners. A bed, a sofa, a desk, a TV, a clothes rack. 

Rooms have their own router. The WiFi was the room number. So, we had great WiFi.

Koreans are big on safety. An extinguisher, a rope, a torch. 

The bathroom

The bathroom was also Asia style. There was a tub and a shower, but no curtain or panel. So the bathroom gets wet. You put on a different pair of slippers when you get in. 

The bath ran really slow, and the water pressure in general wasn’t great, but okay. Toiletries were generic. 

The toilet was a smart toilet with bidet functions. You can even douche. 

The towels were small, a recurring theme. I’m guessing they’re used to that from the public bathhouses.

Breakfast 

Breakfast was included. Hotel Place is a three-star hotel so I wasn’t expecting much. Indeed, the two breakfast rooms were small and the offering quite limited and eclectic. Some western options but also pot noodles. Those were available all day. Nice. 

So?

No, they didn’t come to clean every day (we tried putting up the ‘make up our room’ sign). 

South Korea 2024

1. QUESTION | Should you be scared of travelling to South Korea?.
2. REVIEW | Qatar Airways – economy – Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner – Brussels to Doha.
3. QATAR | Hamad International Airport (DOH) in Doha.
4. REVIEW | Qatar Airways – economy – Airbus A350 – Doha to Seoul / Incheon.
5. SOUTH KOREA | Landing at Incheon, retrieving the Wowpass and taking the AREX to Seoul Station.
6. REVIEW | Fraser Place Namdaemun Seoul near City Hall.
7. SEOUL | Deoksugung Palace by day.
8. SEOUL | Admiral Yi Sun-sin – King Sejong the Great – Gyeongbokgung Palace – National Folk Museum SEOUL | Admiral Yi Sun-sin – King Sejong the Great – Gyeongbokgung Palace – National Folk Museum.
9. SEOUL | Bukchon Hanok Village – Insadong Culture Street – Jogyesa Temple – Gwangjang Market – Cheonggyecheon Stream.
10. SEOUL 2024 | Dongdaemun Design Plaza.
11. SHOPPING IN SEOUL | Myeongdong – Lotte Young Plaza – Avenuel – Lotte Department Store.
12. SEOUL | Namsan Mountain Park and N Seoul Tower.
13. SOUTH KOREA | Seoul Station.
14. REVIEW | Korail KTX Seoul – Gyeongju – Busan.
15. GYEONGJU | Daereungwong – Cheonmachong – Cheomseongdae Observatory – Banwolseong Fortress – Anapji Pond – Woljeonggyo Bridge – Gyo-dong.