Seoul's luxury hotels are checking into a new level of opulence

Seoul’s hotel map is being redrawn — mainly, luxury hotels are becoming even more luxurious.

Lotte Hotel Seoul recently completed its first major overhaul in 47 years, turning hundreds of rooms into bigger, more lavish ones, and the Plaza is closing for a top-to-bottom makeover centered on luxury suites. The Paradise Group is building an all-suite hotel in Jangchung-dong in Seoul, and global luxury brands such as Aman and Rosewood will also soon arrive in the city. 

With these renovations and additions, the Korean capital is transforming into Asia’s newest battleground for high-end hospitality.

Fewer rooms, more history

Most hotels undergoing remodeling belong to Seoul’s first generation of luxury properties, built in the 1970s, when the country’s economy took off and began courting tourists. The Westin Josun’s current building opened in 1970, followed by The Plaza in 1976, the Grand Hyatt Seoul in 1978 and the Lotte Hotel Seoul and the Shilla Seoul in 1979.

Half a century later, these hotels are updating their aging facilities and shifting toward a new shared strategy: If they once competed in size, they now do so on the quality and value of each room. As a result, many have decided to cut the number of rooms, enlarge the ones that remain and add more suites.

On Aug. 18, Lotte unveiled the Grand Lotte Seoul, occupying the renovated 7th through 21st floors of its main building. The number of rooms across these floors was cut from 737 to 590, but each one got larger. Pierre-Yves Rochon, the French designer behind the Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris and the St. Regis Rome, designed the interior.

The Plaza plans to close at the end of the month for about three years, then re-emerge with top-tier suites rather than deluxe rooms.

History is also a priority. A museum on the Grand Lotte Seoul’s ground floor traces the story of the Bando Hotel, which once stood on the site, and of Korea’s early modern hotels. The Plaza plans to construct a rooftop garden that reflects the heritage of Sogong-dong, long considered one of Seoul’s most auspicious neighborhoods.

The competition is spreading well beyond downtown.

On the site of its former headquarters in Jangchung-dong in Jung District, central Seoul, the Paradise Group is building an 18-story hotel with about 200 rooms — all suites — scheduled to open in 2028. It sits diagonally across from the Shilla, setting up a rivalry.

The arrival of global brands

Aman, the Swiss-based ultraluxury chain favored by the wealthy and famous for its privacy and personalized service, announced on Sept. 2 that it would open Aman Seoul on the former site of the Prima Hotel in Cheongdam-dong in southern Seoul by 2030.

Vladislav Doronin, Aman’s chairman, described Seoul as a global city where culture, design, technology and wellness converge to shape how people live.

Rosewood Seoul is set to open next year on the former site of the United Nations Command in Yongsan District, central Seoul, and Mandarin Oriental plans to open a hotel near Seoul Station in 2030. 

Seoul’s luxury race began about a decade ago, when Mirae Asset opened the country’s first Four Seasons in Gwanghwamun in central Seoul in 2015. In 2017, Lotte’s top brand, Signiel Seoul, opened on the 76th through 101st floors of the Lotte World Tower in Jamsil in southern Seoul.

In 2021, the Josun Palace opened in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, and Accor’s Fairmont Ambassador Seoul did the same in Yeouido, western Seoul.

Record tourists, record rates

The boom also reflects Seoul’s rising appeal as a tourist destination. 

A record 18.94 million foreign visitors came to Korea last year, drawn by K-pop, food, fashion, beauty and medical tourism. As Seoul joins New York, London and Tokyo as a global shopping and leisure destination, demand for premium lodging has grown.

Seoul hotels averaged a 79.2 percent occupancy rate in 2025, surpassing levels from before the Covid-19 pandemic, according to data from Cushman & Wakefield. Revenue per available room reached 207,345 won ($150), up 67 percent from 2019.

Supply, however, has not kept up. New hotel openings in Seoul now add only about 1,000 rooms a year — a quarter of the prepandemic pace — since land, construction and financing costs have soared. That makes a luxury strategy more attractive, as hotels earn more per room.

Nationwide, five-star hotel rooms rose 12.1 percent and four-star rooms 28.8 percent from 2022 to 2024, while one-star rooms fell 45.9 percent, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Hotel Association.

Five-star hotels still make up only about 20 percent of Seoul’s supply, low compared to Tokyo’s or Singapore’s, which helps explain why luxury brands are eyeing the city.

The math of real estate

Tourism alone does not explain the rush. Most new and upcoming luxury hotels are anchored in large mixed-use projects combining residences, offices and retail.

Aman Seoul will include 49 residences and a members-only Aman Club, and Rosewood Seoul will be part of the Parkside Seoul complex. The Ritz-Carlton is developing a mixed-use space, including government offices, on the former site of the Millennium Hilton Seoul.

In these developments, the hotel brand works as a luxury label for the entire project. Branded residences that share hotel services command premium prices, and a famous hotel raises the profile of nearby shops and offices.

Developers can recover their investment through residential sales and commercial leases rather than room revenue alone.

The trend is global. Branded-residence projects have grown more than 160 percent over the past decade, and 790 more are expected across 100 countries by 2031, according to data from Savills.

“Compared to other major cities, Seoul’s luxury hotel market has actually developed late,” said Seo Won-seok, a professor of hotel management at Kyung Hee University. “Thanks to K-culture, Seoul has become a place people want to visit, and as tourists with diverse tastes arrive, the luxury travel market, from high-end lodging to fine dining, is growing.”

If the grand hotels of the 1970s symbolized a nation's economic rise, the new competition reflects how far the capital has come. Hotels are now central to experiencing Seoul’s culture, food and daily life and drive how the city itself is built.

BY LEE SO-JIN [[email protected]]