Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Namsan Guest House, Seoul



This is the name of the Guesthouse which my friends and I stayed while in Seoul in Oct 2009 for over a week. It's just located halfway up Namsan Hill, opposite the popular shopping strip .. Myeong-Dong where you can shop till you drop!  It's also about 25 mins walk to Isadong, another shopping area.

From the Guesthouse, you walk down the slope and you will arrive at Myeong-Dong Train Station.  Majority of the train stations in Seoul do not have escalators.  You simple have to train your legs/thighs to climb up and down those lengthy flights of stairs.  First 2 days will keep you panting as you tredge uphill to the Guesthouse. LOL... I lost 2 to 4kg after a week's stay, lugging along my shoppings (Faceshop masks, products ...) !!  it's worth it.

Namsan Guest House is located just next door to the Chinese Embassy/Consulate (which is protected by high walls).  Just a few mins up the hill .. you will find another road and the cable car station.  Take the cable car up to Seoul Tower to see the panoramic view of Seoul.  This is also the scene from the drama "My Name is Kim Samsoon" ("MNKSS").

Just a few hundred metres from the cable car station, you can find the famous staircase where they filmed MNKSS (starring Kim Sun-Ah and Hyun Bin). There's even a signage of the drama near the top of the stairs.  There is a park up there, do remember to bring along your camera.


Breakfast is included as part of your lodging at Namsan Guest House. They provide fresh bread, korean cup noodles, jam, butter, coffee/tea, fresh drinking water. All rooms have attached shower/toilet. If you booked the VIP rooms (there's only 3 rooms which can accomodate 3 to 6 pax), you can have some privacy and it's less noisy. There's a living room and a mini-kitchen with fridge and stove. Kitchen comes with a mircowave oven and a bread toaster. You make your own breakfast and wash up after your meals. You can eat as much bread as you want. They are really tasty.

Friendly staff are able to converse mainly in English, Korean, Japanese, etc. They are able to arrange airport transfers (single/both ways) for lodgers at a cheaper contracted price. Flag down price from airport will cost you almost KW100,000 to get you to Myeong-Dong.

You must try the famous "Ja Jiang Noodles". It's really yummy. We had them for lunch on our first day. Just ask Namsan Guesthouse to arrange for the delivery. Price is quite reasonable.  If you do not wish to dine out, you can always ask the staff (on duty) to arrange a meal to be delivered.  Make sure you place your orders early as the shops do not deliver after 7.30pm.