Seoraksan National Park is one of the most famous national parks in South Korea. South Korean government listed it with UNESCO as a tentative World Heritage site.

I mentioned that it was rainy throughout my whole Korea trip in my previous post (Somewhere to stay in Seoul, with 50% Hanbok rental), including the day I visited Seoraksan which I planned to hike here.

It was raining on the day of my arrival. Wait, how to get to Seoraksan? How to get to Hotel Stars Kensington? Here you go.

First, take the subway go to Gabyeong station , go to the bus terminal Dong Seoul (the building right opposite exit station)

Go to the ticket counter and purchase bus ticket to SOKCHO. It costs 17,300 won.

Get down at Sokcho and take bus no.7-1 (Towards Seoraksan) at the bus stop in front of a mini market. It costs 1,200 won. Please prepare the exact amount of money or use the T-money card.

Get down 1 stop before Seoraksan, which is Kensington Hotel station. you’re there!

The hotel is huge, clean and nicely furnished in the Classic British theme. Rooms at Stars Seorak Kensington feature both air conditioning and heating. Each is tastefully furnished with a cable TV and a fridge. Most rooms overlook the scenic Seorak Mountains.

I wanted to experience the Ondol room (Traditional Korean room), therefore I picked the room as the below. There’s scenic view from the window, and room was well equipped. But something was different! There wasn’t a tea table and nobody does the bed for me.

Breakfast from the hotel is great and there is a variety of choices!  

Overall, I love the view from the room! The hotel was quite nice to stay as it is right beside the national park. Location wise I would definitely recommend this hotel!

Now, how close it is to the Seoraksan?

The hotel has an observatory on the top floor to view the panoramic Seoraksan.

As it is so close to the mountain, even though I was wearing a skirt, I decided to take a walk in the national park. The entrance costs 3500 won, which makes me feel like I have to hike a bit to make it worth!

I did not hike the full trail (which said to be 13 hours) but only took the trail to the Biryeong Falls and Towangseong Falls. And it was fun, the view was amazing although it rains when I arrived at the top.

 

Next time I will visit Seoraksan during a sunny day! To complete the 13 hours hike.

For the Hotel, check it out on Agoda or booking.com for the reservation

♦ Agoda Stars Kensington ♦ Booking.com Stars Kensington

Let me know how you enjoyed the stay and hike if you happened to read this before your adventure! Thanks in advance!