Hi Guest House, Staying Solo in Seoul

“Hello, Korea!” That’s what I had posted in my Facebook after disembarking from our plane. My emotions were mixed with excitement, marvel and nervousness. It was my first time to visit a foreign country alone and I wondered how this trip will turn out without any companions. But I was in glee! I couldn’t believe that finally I had able to get into a solo trip abroad that I had wanted to do since then.

Since it was my first time to go on a solo trip out of the country, a place to stay is the most important factor for me. It doesn’t necessarily to be a hotel. Well, I couldn’t afford one, as I was just alone. The place that I’ll be staying should be affordable, safe, decent, comfortable and convenient. The friendliness and good ambiance are added factors. Luckily, I was able to find one bearing all these features. Say hi to Hi Guest House!

It was around 10:00 AM when I had arrived at Mangwon Station. Following the direction posted in the guesthouse website made me locate the property right away. The direction with pictures was very efficient.

“Are you John?” Said by the Korean man when I entered the building. “Yes!” I replied. “Welcome to Hi Guest House!” He responded. A simple greeting that made me immediately feel the pleasantness. He then introduced himself as Tae Hwan (teh-wan).

Hi Guest House has three floors with rooms available for guests to stay. The rooms come from single room, twin room, special twin room, family room, and 6 beds dorm room.

LAN and WiFi are also available. There’s also a common place. There are also computers, which guests can use for free. Not only that, bicycle, locker, outlet, laundry and dry machine are also available to use by guests for free.  A free breakfast is also provided which consists of bread, jams, butter and egg. However, do note that breakfast is self-service. You also have to wash the dishes and utensils after using them.

I looked on the paper bills hang on the wall and I’ve noticed most of it are from my home country. It seems like this guesthouse is a favourite by fellow Filipinos.

The guesthouse also has a roof garden that they call a sky park, which indeed has a nice view wherein you can chat and drink with other guests of the hostel. Just like any other lodging, there are house rules for guests to follow. These will be informed as you arrived in the guesthouse but no need to write them down, as there are notes around that serves as a reminder. If you ask about curfew, then be happy because there’s no curfew in Hi Guest House. However for safety and security, the door of each floor has digital door lock that can only be accessed by code given to its guests.

Check in time at the guesthouse is usually at 2:00 PM but I was so happy that my room was already available when I came in. Tae Hwan must have anticipated that I’ll be tired on my arrival day. Well, if it was his assumption then he was right; I was so weary that what I needed when I arrived in the city was to lie in bed. I haven’t had a sleep yet since I left Manila 8 hours ago.

I was given a family room to stay for 4 nights. The family room has two bunk beds that can fit 4 persons, a sizeable room all by myself.

Hi Guest House is really a great place to stay in the city. I had a pleasant one not only because of its amenities but as well as the friendliness and helpfulness of the staff. They are also fluent in speaking in English that make it easier for guests like me to communicate and ask anything relating to touring around the city.

The guesthouse is clean. It has a calm and cozy environment. And being situated in a suburb made it more likeable to me as it brought me the Korean vibe and surrounding that I’m really after to.