Gwanghwamun

Four Seasons Hotel Seoul

★★★★★

For a first visit focused on the royal city, no luxury hotel is better placed than the Four Seasons. It opened in 2015 on Saemunan-ro in Gwanghwamun, the historic and governmental heart of Seoul, and from the front door it is a short walk to Gwanghwamun Square and the main gate of Gyeongbokgung, with Deoksugung, City Hall, the Cheonggyecheon stream and the Seochon lanes all within easy reach. The hotel has 317 rooms, 285 guest rooms and 32 suites, designed with a calm, contemporary Korean sensibility — muted tones, natural woods, artwork and craft pieces — and the higher floors look over the palace roofs toward the granite peaks of Bugaksan and Inwangsan, or across downtown toward Namsan. Dining is one of the hotel's great strengths and draws as many locals as guests. The Market Kitchen is a polished international buffet; Boccalino serves Italian cooking; Yu Yuan is an elegant Cantonese dining room; and Akira Back offers Japanese cuisine with Korean influences. The Maru lobby lounge and the Confections bakery cover afternoon tea and cakes, and H.Bar serves easier drinks. But the most famous venue is Charles H., a speakeasy-style cocktail bar hidden on the lower level and modeled on the travels of the bon vivant Charles H. Baker; it has appeared repeatedly on lists of the best bars in Asia, and it is a destination in its own right. Wellness facilities include an indoor swimming pool with a children's plunge pool, a spa with seven treatment rooms, a gym with an indoor golf zone, and authentic Korean saunas.

What sets the Four Seasons apart is the way it combines international polish with a strong sense of place. Staff are attentive and multilingual, the concierge team is well connected for restaurant bookings, palace tours and Secret Garden tickets, and the hotel has a residential, almost private-club feel despite its size. Rooms are generously proportioned for Seoul, with deep bathtubs, heated floors in the bathrooms and thoughtful touches for long-haul travelers dealing with jet lag. Families are well looked after, with the plunge pool and children's amenities, and the location lets you walk to most of the old-city sights.

The location does have trade-offs. Gwanghwamun is a business and government district, so it is quieter at night than Myeongdong, Hongdae or Itaewon, and the area around the hotel can be busy with demonstrations and events on Gwanghwamun Square at weekends. Gangnam and Jamsil are a subway ride of half an hour or more away. But Gwanghwamun Station on Line 5 and Gyeongbokgung Station on Line 3 are close, taxis are plentiful and inexpensive, and for most first-time itineraries — palaces, Bukchon, Insadong, Myeongdong and Namsan — few addresses are more convenient.

Rates are among the highest in the city, but they are competitive with the other top luxury hotels, and the hotel regularly runs packages including breakfast or credits. Request a palace or mountain view when booking, and reserve Charles H. or the restaurants in advance for weekend evenings even if you are staying in the hotel. In cherry-blossom and autumn-foliage seasons, book early; the palace district is at its most beautiful then, and so is the view from the upper floors.