On my trip to catch the Asiana 747 from Seoul to Tokyo, I had a quick overnight layover at Seoul Incheon airport. Searching for a cheap place to stay near the airport, I found GL City Hotel Incheon Airport. Not having stayed there yet, I decided to book a room there – it was just under 60,000 KRW (45 USD or so) for the night.
Continue reading this review to see what the hotel and my stay were like.
Getting to the Hotel
Like some other Seoul Incheon airport hotels including Incheon Airport Hotel and Howard Johnson that I stayed at previously, GL City Hotel is located near Unseo station. The station can be reached from the airport using the all-stop AREX train.
The ride from terminal 1 took less than 10 minutes and cost less than a dollar.
From Unseo station, it took me about seven or eight minutes to reach the hotel.
All I had to do was get out of the station through exit 2 and walk straight through a park/pedestrian zone lined with quite a few stores, restaurants, etc.
Whether due to the ongoing development in the area or some other reason, Google Maps didn’t show me the direct way and instead thought I had to walk around the block which features the aforementioned park. Keep that in mind so that you do not end up walking more than necessary with your luggage.
The hotel’s entrance was to the right of an emart24 convenience store.
While there appeared to be a free shuttle bus to the airport too, it only run three times a day.
As such, chances are you will be best off just taking the train (or taxi) between the airport and the hotel.
Check-in and Lobby
The hotel’s reception was on the right side of a hallway that the building’s entrance led to.
When I arrived just after 11PM, there was one frontdesk staff who checked me in within a minute or two. The next morning, I left around 6AM – at that time, the reception area was closed and I instead simply dropped my room key in an express checkout box located just outside the elevators.
The ground floor elevator hall also had a self-service check-in machine.
With the hotel lobby being very small, there was not much else other than the reception desk.
That said, across from the reception desk, there were four sofa chairs. To its side were also a water dispenser and a counter with three chairs and a microwave oven.
Deluxe Double Room
I booked the cheapest available room which was a Deluxe Double Room. Upon check-in, I was assigned room 820 on the eight floor. With two elevators available and no other guests using them, getting to the room was a breeze.
The hallways were simple but clean; they were a bit dark.
The apartment-style room was fairly large and offered considerably more space than I expected. As one could expect with a low-cost hotel, there was nothing extraordinary in terms of the room’s design or furnishing. The one thing that stood out to me was that there was floor heating.
On the left side of the hallway leading from the entrance to the room itself was the bathroom. Along the wall on the right side were some storage, a washing machine, a large refrigerator, and a kitchen counter.
Under the window at the far end of the room was a decent double bed. Next to it were two power outlets and a nightstand with TV and air conditioner remote controls, as well as instructions on how to use some of the equipment in the room including the shower.
Given that sometimes things as simple as getting the hot water to run in a shower can be confusing in foreign countries, I found that instructions sheet to be a nice touch.
Next to the bed was a large empty space that could comfortably fit a large suitcase. On the wall above that space was a TV.
The bathroom was equipped with a sink, a washlet-style toilet, and a shower with both handheld and overhead shower heads.
Considering the hotel’s prices, what surprised me was the good set of amenities that was provided. In addition to the obligatory towels, there were even bathrobes.
There were two sets of basic amenities (shower gel, shampoo, and conditioner) – one above the sink and one in the shower. Additionally, on the kitchen counter were a shower cap, a cleansing kit, and a pair of dental kits. There was a kettle and two instant coffees too.
One last thing worth noting is that it took me a while to realize that the hot water heater had to be turned on using one of the panels next to the bathroom’s entrance. Initially, I thought that something was broken and there was no hot water – it would be nice if the hotel added that to the instructions sheet.
Breakfast and Dining
There were no restaurants at the hotel and thus, breakfast wasn’t offered either.
That said, there were plenty of restaurants nearby – some in the same building and some along the way to the station. Additionally, on the ground floor there was a convenenience store where food and drinks could easily be bought.
GL City Hotel Incheon Airport Summary
If you have a quick overnight layover at or are departing early from Seoul Incheon and are looking for a cheap place to stay near the airport, I can only recommend the GL City Hotel.
While the hotel was about as no-frills as it gets, it was clean and the room was large and well-equipped. Getting to and from the hotel was easy too, with the hotel being just a few minutes away from Unseo station which is just one or two stops away from the airport.
