MizzEve

My husband and I are in the Army. He's in Korea and I'm in Georgia. We'll be meeting up in Seoul in middle August for 10 days after not having seen each other for seven months. This will also be the last time that we see each other for another 11 months as I am being deployed before he returns from Korea in February.

We would like to stay at a very nice hotel with room service, spacious bathroom, fridge, microwave, and wireless internet and international TV, preferably with the ability to watch English language films.

We both like to shop. Him for clothes, me for everything. I would like to treat both of us to spas.

We would like a hotel that is walking distance from shopping markets, restaurants and the subway. Prefer to keep the cost under $225/night, but we are flexible for the right place.

We would appreciate any recommendations

jyoung

If you are in the military, why not stay at the Dragon Hill hotel right on Yongsan Garrison? It is sandwiched between two subway stations. I haven't seen the rooms, but the rest of the hotel is nice. As for off-post hotels, I've heard the Lotte Hotel is nice. It's in a great location, but I'm not sure if it would be within your price range. Also, two other hotels in great location is Intercontiental and the Oakwood at Coex. Likewise, I'm not sure if these hotels are within your price range.

travelgourmet

Actually, Seoul hotels are usually a great value. For a random 10-day period in August, the only hotel I see for more than $225 is the Imperial Palace. The Ritz Carlton, JW Marriott, W, Grand Hyatt, Hilton, and the Shilla all come in under $200 per night. The Park Hyatt comes in just over at $210. You should have your choice of sub-$225/night hotels.

I would think that either the Sheraton or W would be a good choice - they get dinged for being a bit out of the way, but I don't gather you are necessarily looking to be in the middle of everything (and cabs are cheap). The Shilla is another top choice. The Westin is in a great location, and would be good too. For a new hotel with all mod-cons, perhaps the Park Hyatt.

Hope you have a great meetup. Seoul is an underrated city (awesome food, great people, good shopping, some interesting sites) and you folks really deserve a great trip.

fragil

I love the Millennium Hilton because of its atmosphere, the views from the hotel, and its location. It is near Namsan Mountain, which is a good place to walk or jog. Also, it is an easy walk to Namdaemun Market, which offers a unique experience for the very early morning shopping or just people watching. There are Korean restaurants within easy walking distance, and the restaurants in the hotel are good. The breakfast buffet is delicious, and the view from the dining room is impressive.

Cicerone

Hotels like the JW Marriott, Ritz-Carlton and Hilton are unlikely to have microwaves in the rooms. They will have a small stocked mini-bar fridge and usually a coffee maker, but not any cooking facilities. You may want a serviced apartment with a kitchen, something like Marriott Executive Apartments or the like. Those are unlikely to have spas (and may not have "spaciouis" bathrooms hard to say), but you can just go to a spa in a hotel or elsewhere.

Mary2Go

We stayed at the JW Marriott last year in what I think was called a Junior Suite because we had our adult son staying there. The bathroom was actually two rooms, vanity and toilet in one room, and shower and another vanity. All marble and very nice. We were just there for a long weekend. There was a department store next door and a bus terminal. We took cabs because DH was having back problems and didn't want to take the subway but I believe there was a stop close to the hotel. The hotel gym was great if that matters. It was a regular gym that I could see had regular members using it. It had a pool, climbing wall, really nice locker area etc.

There seemed to be quite a few young couples who were US military there. Maybe they offer a discount to military?

Mary2Go

I just checked rates on their website and the cheapest rate on dates I put in for August was 199,200.00 (KRW) per night which is only $149.00 USD! They have renovated since we were there and it sounds like a good deal. Here is a link
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/trave...t-hotel-seoul/

Have a wonderful trip!

W9London

Among 5*s, my favourite is Westin because of reliable service level and the location. My companytends to put me up at Millenium Hilton, the service and the room are nice but the location is a bit of a hike up the hill (5min) from Seoul station and a nearby subway. Shilla is also rather inconvenient from public transportation inthe middle of/on the other side of Namsan.

sbsm32

I would recommend the Oakwood in Gangnam as JYoung suggests.

I lived at the Oakwood as an Expat for 9 months returning earlier this year and found it to have all the amenities you r looking for like microwave, full kitchen in case u want to cook in or buy goodies at the Hyundai Dept store in the basement of the building and bring it up after a day of exploring Seoul etc. Hint, if u go to Hyundai Dept store food section after 6:00PM u can get great deals on freshly cooked Korean, Western and Japanese food at 25%+ off b/c the store has a policy of clearing out all the food before the next business day...

U should be able to afford the studio or possibly even a 1BR, u can always negotiate with the Koreans and if occupancy is not as high u can get a sweet deal. The Studio should definitely be less than $225/nite and with the US/KRW exhange rate being favorable you should be good on pricing. U can also ask for breakfast to be included and it comes with parking, in case u decide to rent a car.

It is also diretly connected underground to a major subway line that can take u just about everywhere in Seoul for dirt cheap. And it is also connected to good shopping nearby.

I would provide you with the contact my company negotiated my stay but have heard she has since left Oakwood...

Good luck and enjoy!