Courtyard Seoul Namdaemun — Hotel in Seoul

Here are 10 things to know about the Courtyard Namdaemun:||1. Previous reviews have touted the Courtyard Namdaemun as the best in the system. Is it that hyperbole? Yes. Is it significantly better than the average Courtyard? Absolutely. The most visible difference is the buffet breakfast included for elite members. The buffet is seemingly endless, with myriad Western and Korean staples. It’s a meal and a half (maybe two).|2. The rooms look and feel like the U.S. blueprint with three positive exceptions. One cool feature is that the shower has a temperature gauge, so you know the water temperature before conducting a hand test. It’s a brilliant idea, and something I wish other hotels would embrace. Another great feature is that the lights are labeled with buttons, providing easy and varied illumination. The third notable enhancement is a water filter to fill your reusable or plastic bottles. The hotel provides you with plastic water bottles, but the filter makes it easy to refill a reusable one.|3. Rooms are equipped with U.S. and Korean plugs. My room did not have a desk, per se, but a table next to the window. That worked out splendidly, as I typed emails while enjoying the view. The shower glass faces the bedroom, but a curtain drops the full length to ensure privacy.|4. Room temperature was reasonably cool, dropping to the lowest-possible 18.5 degrees on the Celsius scale. I was in Seoul for the suffocating summer heat and sun, and I do not have any complaints about the room temperature. The hallways, on the other hand, tend to run on the balmy side.|5. A laundry room is on the basement floor and managed electronically. All you need are your dirty clothes and a credit card. Detergent is included in the washing price (7,000 Korean Won or $5 USD in July 2025) and dispensed automatically. The laundry room has two washing machines and two dryers.|6. The fitness center is also in the basement and appropriately-sized for the hotel. Quick tip: runners or walkers should check out the river path, a 10-minute walk from the hotel.|7. I spent weeks weighing the pros and cons of the Myeongdong Marriott properties. The Courtyard is walkable from Seoul Station (more on this in #8 ) and a 15-minute walk to the heart of Myeongdong shopping. The ALoft, Moxy, and LeMeridian are much closer to the shopping extravaganza (literally outside the hotel doors) but further from the train station. The latter three areas are also busier due to the location. The Courtyard is also slightly closer to City Hall and two palaces, so it’s essentially in the center of most tourist-related activities. Street noise did not ascend to my high-floor room. I was very satisfied with this location for two nights (one full day) of visiting Seoul.|8. Seoul Station is a 15-minute walk with an important caveat. I took the AREX to Seoul Station and decided to walk by exiting Gate 3. With a large suitcase and carry-on in tow, it was a decision I regret to this day. Navigating Seoul Station felt like I was in the Philip Zimbardo Stanford prison experiment – no escape. It’s a labyrinth of escalators, stairs, and tunnels. Plus, if you do not exit the AREX gate, you need to buy a one-time metro card to leave the station at Gate 3 (it's a process flaw that should be remedied). Once I exited Gate 3, it was a super-easy walk on a very warm Seoul evening. Pro tip: do not attempt this entire walk with a lot of luggage. I took an Uber Taxi on the return, and it was so much easier. Make sure they drop you off on the west side at the AREX Travel Center to avoid the endless maze that is Seoul Station. Total time from landing to stepping into the hotel was about 2 hours and 30 minutes. On the return side, from hotel doorstep to Terminal 1 check-in (Uber taxi included) was just under 2 hours.|9. The hotel’s location – sandwiched in between other imposing structures – limits the view. You won’t get any dramatic Seoul views, but a few rooms overlook the Sungnyemun Gate (Namdaemun).|10. As many reviews have noted, the hotel discontinued its executive lounge in 2024. The hotel reminds you of this (unfortunate) fact when booking. However, as mentioned above, the breakfast buffet is an embarrassment of riches.||Overall, I would select this Courtyard again because of its central location and...

Four-star Bonvoy property a short walk from City Hall (Blue) subway station and Hoehyeon (light blue) subway station. A very nice facility that I am giving 5 stars to, simply for the reason listed below (scroll to the end)

Definitely will stay again. Not perfect, but better value than other Marriott properties in Seoul. A few of the very minor gripes:

Difficult to get a taxi from. It is in a busy area, and waits are LONG, if they come at all. Executive lounge has great views, but no real "lounging" area with comfortable seats to curl up with a book during the day. Very spartan furniture. It's almost like they do not want you to hang out at all outside of happy hour. And the snacks could be better. Miss the green tea cookies other Marriott's serve. During the day it can get loud. Proximity to City Hall plaza means protests/demonstrations on the weekend are common. Drums banging, music blaring, people singing, and leaders shouting. It can be heard miles away, even inside your room. Makes it difficult to rest midday after a long hike up Bukhansan. A/C struggles to keep the rooms (especially upper floors) cool and without moisture during the hot summer months. Probably very difficult to do given the heat/humidity in Seoul right now.

And now, for the reason it gets 5-stars. You might laugh, but it has nothing to do with the great breakfasts, or the comfy beds, or the convenient location. It all has to do....with the shower!

Yes, the shower. Or, more specifically, the shower doors. They swing INTO the shower, rather than out. What this means is that this is the first Marriott property I have stayed at in a long time where taking a shower doesn't cause a puddle (a DANGEROUS puddle) to form on the bathroom floor. Those that do have doors that swing out into the bathroom. Hence, the engineering allows any water that runs down the door to pool on the bathroom floor, causing a major slip hazard. But NOT this Marriott Courtyard. The doors swing in, and thus the water runs down on the inside of the door stop strip, depositing the water back in the shower. Simple yet genius design that ALL hotels should follow. Probably not applicable to accessibility enhanced rooms, but even those shouldn't have water on their floors.

Bravo to the Namdaemun Courtyard room designers for this very simple idea that makes my stay five...

Top notch hotel! This is probably one of our favorite hotels to stay at whenever we're in Seoul. The hotel employees here are SO courteous and very helpful. They are all also able to speak English really well. Honestly, the Courtyard by Marriott here makes the Courtyard hotels in America look 2nd class.

Location is pretty amazing. It's right where Namdaemun Market is. Simply cross the street or use the underground market and you're on the market side! It also just so happens to be right where the famous hotteok street vendor is that's all over social media. It's kind of fun to look out the window and see just how crazy the lines can be! An extra perk is the overall view! If you're able to get a nice view (we're Marriott members and almost always get a free upgrade!), you'll be able to see N Seoul Tower and the Sungnyemun Gate. It's an amazing view at night when everything lights up! We got a corner room this last time so we were able to get a great view of the gate!

Right outside the hotel, there's a GS25 convenience store that opens late (perfect for late night snacks!) and a bunch of restaurants behind the hotel. It's also located within a 5-10 min walking distance of a lot bus stops and 2 subway stations (HoeHyeon and City Hall). We felt pretty safe walking in the area at night. If you're OK with walking, it's about a 20 min walk east to Myeongdong and a 20 min walk south to Seoul Station and Lotte Mart. The airport bus stop is also located SUPER close to the hotel (maybe less than a 5 min walk?). If you ask the concierge, they have a time table for the airport bus. :)

The rooms are SO nice and SO clean. The beds are super comfortable and the shower is amazing! Maybe not the most "comfortable" shower to use if you're sharing a room with a friend though. The shower has a clear wall on one side that faces the bed. There's a roller shade that you can pull down for privacy but there's still a small gap on the edge.

Random perk...They provide umbrellas for you to use if it's raining! It rained a few days we were there and they had a bunch of umbrellas out for guests to use. It was great!

We honestly don't have anything bad to say about this hotel. It's clean, the staff are nice and helpful, conveniently located with easy access to public transportation. For the price, it's worth it!...