Ananti at Busan Cove — Hotel in Busan

The location is excellent but the Ananti management could have done better to improve the experience of the guests. The luxury hotel is designed and constructed with premium materials but firstly the hotel is grossly understaffed, secondly the 'design finish' is lacking and thirdly every amenity is chargeable. Let me elaborate on the above 3 points. The check-in experience: there are more than 4 counters at the 10th floor but only one was staffed! Which means that on our arrival on 25th March, we had to wait for a very long while to be served. There were several families with children like us waiting patiently after a long flight/ train ride and the hotel could easily have sent one more staff to another counter to clear the rush for the convenience of the booked guests. When I say design finish and interior decoration, see the attached pictures and you will see exposed electrical wires (precariously joined with insulation tape) hanging below the front desk of the check-in counters! Just imagine standing there with a child who will definitely reach and touch the wire joints without the parents' and staff's knowledge! So very dangerous! On reaching our room, we opened the door and entered a very dark lobby and were unable to find the slot to insert the card and switch on the lights. The switches and IN/OUT slots are all in black colour (see picture)which is nice but there should be illumination for a guest to find the slots. Either the motion-detection light of the lobby was non-functional or it was never installed. The wash-room corners had cement/grouting plaster left in the corners. See ata he's pictures. The finishing team had not done a proper quality check before taking over from the construction team? Such fine architecture wasted by poor finish! Perhaps Ananti saved money by not recruiting qualified and diligent staff here also. We were a family of three and the room provided only 2 small (500ml each) bottles of mineral water. The Info-Card says that any extra bottle will be provided at a charge (see picture) which is so disappointing! How can a family of 3 spend a day with just 1 litre of water? The coffee capsules were also limited (more on payment basis)and only large coffee cups were provided.... to use the coffee machine I had to tilt the tall cup to hold it below the coffee machine spout! We hope Ananti Cove improves on its service and quality by thinking from a guests' perspective of convenience and practicality. Once again we emphasize that the infrastructure and location are absolutely amazing but service quality deserves...

We booked this hotel on the last leg of our honeymoon based off many reviews suggesting this is the best hotel/spa in Korea. The hotel rather feels like a 2-3 star hotel, albeit with an amazing view. A few things;

The hotel does not offer airport transfers so on arrival in our Taxi our driver could not find the entrance as it was unstaffed along with the front desk once we got inside. We saw the L1 reception desk staffed only once in 4 days, with one evening having to find a security guard to call someone back to the desk to rent an umbrella (the 2 staff members came back holding coffees).

Their website offers the option to purchase credits and receive double to spend at the hotel, I was told on check in they have never heard of this. It is clearly advertised on their website and throughout the hotel. The credits we were given for our stay, could not be used on drinks so we had to pay for 1x coke zero, separately to dinner - this makes no sense.

Overall the service was flat and staff uninterested. Whilst we don’t speak fluent Korean, a smile generally breaks all barriers but was not reciprocated back to us.

The rooms and externals of the hotel have a lot of wear + tear and feel a lot older than 2017. The common external walking areas also flooded with light rain and don’t have any drains. Not what you would expect for any basic hotel/apartment building, let alone a 5 star hotel.

The rooms do not have cold A/C and are pre-heated to 25 degrees (hot). The hotel could only offer us a plug in fan.

The gym does also not have a water cooler or bubbler and you have to purchase water for 1,000 won (??)

Ordered a steak for dinner and was served this with a butter knife.

Iced americano’s are 17,000 won in the lounge, if the hotel had the service of the Ritz Carlton this might be semi-reasonable but based off the above is wild given these are generally 3-5k.

Overall, a disappointing experience for what was labelled by many the best hotel/spa/resort in Korea. We don’t mean any malice, rather, want to manage and create realistic expectations for others that we weren’t given to us based off...

I’d give it 4 stars at most. Pros / Cons: Hotel Rooms and bathrooms are very fancy, comfy & CA king beds, nice tub / shampoo and body wash provided in form of bars. Walkway on the coast is amazing. Service - although very nice and friendly, not foreign friendly (English is not their strong suit) Room service - chicken and cheese tray was surprisingly good but about an hour wait, and they ran out of club sandwich (how does that happen?) Pool - beautiful and spacious infinity pool with wonderful view of ocean but everyone is required to exit the pool 10 minutes every hour - not for the sake of the pool (cleaning) but for the concern for guests as we may suffer physical harm from continuously being in the water and thus need this mandatory rest. I am still very confused on this rule.…. Also, Poolside food only open on the weekends. No swim up bar. All restaurants seem to have siesta, no service during afternoon times (2-5) thus the need for room service which is quite inconvenient and takes forever. Plan your pool time after breakfast or lunch. Must cover yourself with bath robe if in transit between your room and the pool area. Coffee shop opens late and coffee was underwhelming. most amenities are additional charge. Breakfast buffet was a bit pricey but had a vast selection, you’ll find something you’ll like. The beef was tasty but very chewy. The coffee is better here. Hotel is secluded so it’s peaceful/quiet and private. But you’ll need a cab every time to go out if you wish to explore the city and dine outside the hotel. Nearest eatery is about a 15-20 minute walk but If you want sashimi, about 35 minute walk. Highly recommend going to the Buddhist Temple nearby 40 minute walk 5 min cab ride. Very scenic. Note that first floor concierge can hold your bags after check out. If late check out is needed, additional 30,000 wons per hour. First hotel I’ve ever been to where the checkin was on the 10th floor (and not on the first floor) too many rules and stipulations especially if you are...