Arirang House: a Traditional Korean House Near Insadong, Seoul

• Perfect for my family

  Perfect for my family

  • Guest Portland
  • Date of stay 05/20/13
  • Review Submitted 05/28/13
  Arirang House was perfect for my family's stay in Seoul. It was their first time to Seoul and the location was excellent and easily accessible to many of the sights that they wanted to see ( 10 minute walk to Insadong, palaces very close, Myeondong, Lotte, parks, subway, bus, coffee shops, bakeries, restaurants, etc). We took the bus from Incheon for $11/person, a little over an hour. The instructions the owner sends for the house and directions are great. We did not have any problems. Since it was their first time in Seoul, the traditional style house was a good choice, yet they appreciated the modern kitchen and bathroom, which was great. It was perfect for a group of people or a family. Each bedroom is set apart with entry into each from the courtyard so everyone had their own privacy. The open air courtyard was great because the sunshine and air was wonderful and a great congregation area after a long day of walking around or in the evening. The house is down a little alley so it was quiet as well. The house is in a great little area with minimart, coffee, restaurants as well. The house isn't really fancy, but it's very comfortable and let's you have the "Korean"experience, if you've never had it. It was charming. If you need something fancy and sterile, you should go to a hotel...but it will be a whole different kind of experience. I prefer this type of experience, wherever I travel. The owner was excellent from the first contact through the end. The owner was very prompt, professional, friendly, and accommodating. I have stayed in many VRBO rentals and can always tell from the beginning, based on the owner's communications if it will be a good one, and it was the same in this case as well.

  Recommended for: Tourists without a car, families with teenagers, sightseeing, age 55+.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 0/0

• Traditional Hanok Home

  Traditional Hanok Home

  • Guest birdscout
  • Date of stay 08/06/12
  • Review Submitted 09/02/12
  I am glad I had the opportunity to stay in a traditional Hanok home, much like the ones my parents lived in. So for sentimental reasons, this was a wonderful experience for me and my teenagers. The Hanok was ideally located within a 5 minute walk to the Anguk subway station and was surrounded by many good restaurants, and was a 30-second walk away from a convenient 24 hour mini-mart. Changdeokjgung Palace is a 2-minute walk away; Gyeongbukgung Palace and Gwanghwamun Square (with the statues of Admiral Yi and Great King Sejong **check out the free cultural centre/museum, the entrance to which is found behind Great King Sejong's statue** The cultural centre has a replica of a turtle ship that you can enter and naval games that would appeal to kids, King Sejong's alphabet and scientific achievement displays, and a free calligraphy area where you can write your name in Korean to take home!) and Insadong are about 7-10 minutes away by foot; Bukchon Village is right next door. I would recommend this property to motivated travellers who understand that Hanok living entails sleeping on thick blanket/mattresses that must be set down every night and folded and stored every morning. Washing machine provided is great, but it was a challenge to air-dry laundry during our stay due to rain and high humidity-clothing never seemed to get fully dry. My family stayed for two, non-consecutive weeks which was a bit too long. For me, a stay of a few days would have been perfect.

  Recommended for: Adventure seekers, tourists without a car, sightseeing.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 2/2

• Good experience, but I won't be coming back

  Good experience, but I won't be coming back

  • Guest 524sasha
  • Date of stay 05/12/12
  • Review Submitted 06/22/12
  Overall, I had a great time in Seoul. However, I don't think I'll be staying at this house again and will be checking into a hotel next time. The directions to get to the house were not very clear. It would be helpful if the owner gave specific, landmark-oriented details- I feel this may make things much easier for future guests (i.e., "across the street from the bus stop, you will see a family mart to your left" or something to that effect). Upon arrival to the house, the first thing that struck me was that although it is in decent shape, it was not very clean. I literally used my Clorox wipes to clean the main bathroom sink and shower areas, which were turning pink due to lack of scrubbing the place down. I did the same for the kitchen sink. I think we left the house cleaner than before we checked in. We also bought a couple of better-quality towels, which we left behind for future guests, as the towels provided for us smelled like mildew or old rags. My husband and I also got several insect (mosquito?) bites, so we bought (and left there) a plug-in repellant for the main bedroom. I think this house is best for people wanting to experience how Koreans lived a LONG time ago.... no one lives in these types of houses anymore! Aside from the issues I had with the cleanliness of the home, the neighborhood itself was quiet. It was nice to have a Family Mart very close by, for those late night runs for ice cream or beer! It was also great to have a kitchen to store drinks and breakfast foods. It's not the most happening neighborhood, though, so people wanting a more lively nightlife should look elsewhere. The Seoul subway system is very easy to navigate, so getting around was no problem at all.

  Recommended for: Tourists without a car, families with young children, families with teenagers, sightseeing, age 55+.

  Owner response: We are always appreciative of reviews that can help us improve the experience of staying at the Arirang House. The directions to the house will be improved further. The cleaning and the towels will be addressed, especially in the bathrooms and the kitchen.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 4/4

• Great Place To Stay, Had a Great Experience

  Great Place To Stay, Had a Great Experience

  • Guest David
  • Date of stay 05/19/12
  • Review Submitted 05/29/12
  We travelled to Seoul to meet with my wife's bio mom. There were 7 of us in our party. I have to say that I love Seoul and the people all of whom treated us with nothing but courtesy and genuine warmth. We arrived at the Arirang House early in the morning lost and a bit confused about where we were going. A nice man and his son helped us to find the house which really was easy to find once we were able to get orientated as to where we were. The house itself lived up to the billing. It was comfortable and spacious. Everything worked great. We would advise doing laundry everyday so that you can use the drying rack. We also used hangers and hung our clothes up in the courtyard areas using the rain gutters. That was perfect and added to the experience. Everything at the house worked perfectly. If you are bringing videos though, forget it. They are region coded and your western dvds won't work. The TV has about 4 US channels with movies etc. If you are there to watch TV then you should stay at home. Seoul is a terrific, beautiful and clean city. The neighborhood that the house in is not so busy and there are plenty of great places to eat, lots of grocery stores with all the "comfort food" you can think of. If you walk around you will find plenty of coffee shops, a few gift shops, flower shops and down by the Anguk station there is a Woori Bank where you can exchange money at the global ATM. Many of the people in this area speak some English, which is NOT the case if you get off the beaten path. We went up to see my wife's mom and she lives about a 40 minute subway ride away and NO ONE speaks English. It was great and part of the adventure. I would like to mention one restaurant. When you leave the house and walk down to the street you will see a deli (Hann Deli?) right across the street from the mini-mart. Go to the Deli and walk about 10 steps. You will see a flight of stairs on your left. Go up those stairs. You will find a restaurant there where the cook is a famous vegan cook and the food is fantastic. Not only that but these are absolutely the nicest people in the world. When we were lost, trying to get in touch with my wife's mom they help us and kept us there until she could arrive. They even fed us for free!! So kind and generous which is a quality that we found in most of the people in Seoul. We had complete instructions on how to use everything in the house. The Arirang really was a peaceful pace to go after a busy day in Seoul.

  Recommended for: Adventure seekers, tourists without a car, families with young children, families with teenagers, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 2/2

• Great Location, Description Inaccurate, Management Help Nonexistent

  Great Location, Description Inaccurate, Management Help Nonexistent

  • Guest Shannon
  • Date of stay 03/16/12
  • Review Submitted 04/02/12
  Our family of six stayed in this property from March 16, 2012 to March 24, 2012. The house is in a great location with easy access to the subway. There are good restaurants within walking distance and the nearby mini stop was great for loading up on bottled water, orange juice, snacks, etc. Seoul is a fantastic city and we enjoyed it very much. When we arrived and tried to get some laundry done, it was challenging. English instructions would be nice. We definitely appreciated the instructions for the heated floor being in English. In any event, we figured out the washer but couldn't get the clothes to dry. We called the manager the next morning and she informed us that the dryer was broken. After directing us to a laundry store nearby (where they either only did dry cleaning or pressing) we called her back and were told that Korean people hang their clothes to dry. I understand that, but I paid for a property with a dryer. She offered to do our laundry for us, but then said that we were leaving the house "too early" the next morning so that wouldn't work. We emailed the owner, who apologized and told us to dry our clothes on the heated floor. We spent a week in a house where we had to step over clothes drying on every inch of the floor. Clothes that couldn't fit on the floor were put on the drying rack in the courtyard, and they were frozen almost every morning. This was not what I paid for. Upon arriving home, the owner apologized again and said he was planning to go to Seoul at the end of the month and find a solution for future tenants. There has been no restitution for my family, however. Once I was told to dry my clothes on the floor, I never heard from management again. There was no effort to rectify the situation for us while we were still staying at the property. It took a full fifteen days for the owner to update this listing from the time I told him that his dryer was inoperable. I have rented through VRBO many times in the past. I have never had this kind of experience. Apologizing after the fact and telling us that he'd fix everything for future tenants is ridiculous. We were left completely in the dark about how to get trash picked up, what to do when we checked out, etc. In the past I've always had very explicit instructions about such things through VRBO. I rented after reading glowing reviews, so I have to assume that management or something has changed. I wish I could say I loved Arirang House, but I can't.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 5/5

• Excellant Stay Would Stay There Anytime In Seoul

  Excellant Stay Would Stay There Anytime In Seoul

  • Guest jim
  • Date of stay 08/02/11
  • Review Submitted 08/15/11
  We arrived and had a hard time finding the place. The map on this listing is very accurate and is what we should have used instead of the google map supplied by the owner. The Mini Shop, near by has an assortment of items necessary for a spoild american stay (bottled water, small packages of already cooked rice and ice cream etc). I would have given the Arirang a 5 star rating if it hadn't been for the bedroon #2 not having airconditioning also the bedroom that is connected to the living room gets it air from the living room when you leave the adjoining door open. This did cut down on the privacy for that bedroom. I will be e-mailing the owner that there should be a translation of the operating instructions, not only for the airconditioning but for the floor, hot water and washing machine which we finally figured out. Also there is a list of places that deliver food, good thing I had the Korean ex wife with, because it was in Korean also. The weather was very hot and humid during our stay and the 2nd bedroom room was so hot that I had to abandon it and stay in the living room with my Korean relatives, which is not customary. During our stay I had no contact with the owner or the manager due to every thing working properly and the condition being outstanding. The house is designed to stay 8 or so people, we had 10 and plenty of room. If only the 2nd bedroom would have had air, however we could have had a few more squeeze in if necessary. My gradchildren had a great time sitting on the heated floor playing their video games ( I know only dumb americans run the air and the heat at the same time). Location of the house is probably the best of any in the entire city encluding all of the major hotels, between the 2 very nice palaces (great pictures) and the excellant shoping in the Insadong area all within a 10 minute walk. The food was great during our stay but be warned that the restuarant food and water if you are not used to it will loosen you right up. Must have gained at least 10 pounds in 2 weeks. People are respectful and very accomidating, however get used to being bumped into all, I mean ALL the time. Having an extended family (Korean) over the years I have come to understand the term KOREAN CUSTOM which is used every time something arises that is not common to American people Again thanks for a wonderful stay, I would reccomend this house to my freinds and family. The review will not let put locations but there is great rib place in Insadong Jim

  Recommended for: Adventure seekers, tourists without a car, families with young children, families with teenagers, girls getaway, romantic getaway, age 55+.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 8/9

• Wonderful place to call home with my family

  Wonderful place to call home with my family

  • Guest Shileen
  • Date of stay 07/09/11
  • Review Submitted 08/10/11
  We stayed for two weeks at Arirang House. The information provided in the listing was quite accurate and the pictures actually do not do the place justice. Our interactions with the owner and the property manager were prompt and helpful. I would highly recommend Arirang House for a visit and plan to rent it again when I return to Seoul. The area is terrific because it is within walking distance of so many restaurants, coffee houses and shops. It is in an up and coming area of Seoul near Bukchon Hanok Village, Insadong and Anguk subway station. The two main palaces of Seoul and the center of town are all within 10 minutes walk. The house if furnished very well all throughout, the kitchen, the bedrooms, the laundry. Everything you need is here. In addition, there are many small grocery stores in the very near vicinity. My family of four was very comfortable and we even entertained a small group of friends during our stay. Arirang House was the best thing about our stay in Seoul, because we felt at home!

  Recommended for: Adventure seekers, tourists without a car, families with young children, families with teenagers, girls getaway, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 6/7

• Highly recommended

  Highly recommended

  • Guest Jen
  • Date of stay 11/07/10
  • Review Submitted 11/23/10
  Arirang House is an excellent place to stay in Seoul, particularly if you are travelling in a big group. The house is very well maintained as illustrated in the pictures and the location is very convenient. In contrast to a faceless hotel, the Arirang House offers us a unique Hanok experience with modernised facilities and equipments.

  Recommended for: Tourists without a car, families with young children, families with teenagers, sightseeing.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 9/9

• Excellent Accomodation Excellent Location

  Excellent Accomodation Excellent Location

  • Guest Mike
  • Date of stay 11/27/09
  • Review Submitted 09/22/10
  My wife and I along with another couple stayed here for a week back in November 2009. We highly recommend staying here if you want an authentic Korea experience. The pictures and description on this site are accurate. The house is beautifully appointed and is located in and surrounded by interesting neighborhoods and places of historical interest. All four of us highly recommend staying here!

  Recommended for: Tourists without a car, families with young children, families with teenagers, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

  Did you find this review helpful? Yes | No Helpful votes: 14/14

Additional information about rental rates

50% required to confirm booking

Remaining 50% due 30 days prior to arrival.

Cancellation Policy:

More than 60 days prior to arrival date: 25% is non-refundable

Between 60 to 30 days prior to arrival date: 50% is non-refundable

Less than 30 days to arrival: 100% non-refundable

Additional Fees and Taxes:

$80 cleaning Fee