Aloft Seoul Myeongdong — Hotel in Seoul

I'm currently in Seoul on a business trip and on my 28th consecutive night at this hotel. The hotel is located right next to the hustle and bustle of myeongdong, famous for its shopping and street food and it's a nice, lively neighborhood to return to after a long day at work.

The good: new hotel with modern facilities and in a fun neighborhood. Most of the staff is very friendly.

The bad: lack of communication from front desk staff and intrusive methods to attempt communication.

My company initially booked me for a three week stay at this hotel. When I checked in, the fact that the accommodations will be paid for by the company were acknowledged by the hotel. The next night as I was sleeping I got a call (past 10 pm) demanding payment. Puzzled, I asked what they needed and they said that since the total balance was large, they would need payments to be made on a weekly basis. I was then told that I would need to put down a deposit on my personal credit card as a guanteee of payment and also a Payment Authorization Form by the card holder to be filled out. I let them know this was the first I heard of this and that I would get it taken care of right away. We managed to resolve this issue and I continued my stay.

My stay then needed to be extended and so my company booked another 5 days at the hotel, mostly out of convenience so that I would not need to shuttle all my luggage to a new hotel and because I was working long hours and did not have time to relocate. When I checked in, the front desk acknowledged that my company would pay for the room and I figured we would not have any issues since the next reservation was for a shorter stay. I checked out normally and then later in the day when I was checking into my new room, I was told I failed to make payment, which was the first I heard of this. They then requested another Payment Authorization Form to be filled out.

Recently, my keycard did not work and so I went to the front desk where I was intercepted by the front office manager. I got a weak sorry for your poor experience (in response to a survey I filled and not by their own recognizance) and some fruit that was waiting for me when I returned to the room. Then later that evening, I went to speak to the employee at the front desk for something else and let her know that I spoke to the manager earlier. Then once again as I was sleeping, I got a call at 12:10 am. Really unacceptable. My email address is listed on the account and I asked several times to refrain from calling me late at night.

The hotel has potential to shine, but at its current state, not the place to be if you have work to do...

We had a great week-long stay. This was our second time at the Aloft Myeongdong, and our first with our 1-year-old son, which added a whole new layer to the experience.||||I recently read a McKinsey Insights article about luxury hotels, and one part stood out: “Hire for personalities, not resumes.” Another GM said, “I’m fanatical about doormen because they’re the first and last touchpoint for guests.” That mindset was on full display at the Aloft Myeongdong.||||What makes this hotel great is the people. Lowell is a perfect example. We arrived early evening after a long travel day, with lots of luggage and a baby in tow. She came out right away to help us with our bags and then delivered crib to our room immediately after. She really set the tone for our stay — thoughtful, quick to act, and warm. Honestly, it was more than I’d typically expect from the Aloft brand of hotel, and more in line with what you’d find at a full-service property.||||We stayed in a suite this time. It was comfortable for us, with enough space for the crib (provided by the hotel), and still plenty of room to move around. We were on the 9th floor, high enough that most of the road noise didn’t reach us. If you're sensitive to street noise, aim for the higher floors. On our previous visit, we were near the top and didn’t hear any traffic at all. Cleaning crew was quick to make up our room and clear out trash, especially important to us as our son went through many diapers a day.||||Breakfast was also a highlight. It was a well-sorted buffet with the usual selection, plus a chef making eggs and omelets to order. The staff there was excellent. Ella and Rosie in particular were wonderful — Ella always made time to play with our son and chat with us. It’s easy to forget what people say, but you remember how they make you feel — and Ella made us feel genuinely welcome and looked after. It was the highlight of our day, every time. ||||Location-wise, you can’t beat it if you want to be in the heart of Myeongdong. Super walkable, with easy access to shopping, food, and transit. It can be busy outside, but the hotel feels like a calm and well-run base in the middle of it all. ||||We’d return to the Aloft again just to say hi to Ella, she...

From the pre-booking, Aloft was very accomodating in ensuring I get connecting rooms before I prepay the rooms. I was travelling with my husband and 2 children aged 10 and 5. We were very comfortable in 2 Aloft Rooms. One had a king sized bed and one with 2 single beds. There is no way we will fit in one room because they will not allow a rollaway bed. They can set up a tent/kid's bed on the floor but that will leave us with no room for our 2 luggages. One of our rooms was an Accessible room so we didnt like to take a shower there so we all took a bath from the other bathroom but at least we had an extra toilet so we are more efficient in preparing every morning. We had comfortable sleep because the bed was firm enough and we love the pillows. The temperature in the room was also perfect. We also love the toiletries and enough shelves, hangers and space for all our luggage and things. The elevators can accomodate all occupants and we never waited a long time for an elevator to arrive.

Checkin was a breeze. I requested to have our rooms ready on the wee hours since we got a room even if we were arriving the next day. They kept our room until we arrive as planned.

Location is superb. Quiet enough to rest and near enough to get to the Myeongdong Shopping streets. We wouldnt want to stay in the hotels right in the middle of the busy area because it will be too noisy.

Only drawback is there is no view. We got the back view with not so nice view but it wasnt so important to us. We just opened the curtains when we wanted to check if it was sunny/cloudy.

Our stay was more than perfect. From the helpful concierge (especially Gina being our favorite), to the friendly front desk, to the very accomodating chefs making our eggs at the Nook restaurant. The hotel has all that we could ask for. The weighing scale at the lobby is also a good addition. We admire hotels who...