Smile Resort
5-9, Cheongbong-ro 5-gil, Sokcho, Gangwon-do 24904 South Korea
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US$37
Fully refundable before 03/06/23
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#9 of 176 Specialty lodging in Sokcho
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HOTEL CLASS
HOTEL STYLE
Budget
Languages Spoken
English, Japanese, Korean
Property amenities
Free parking
Free High Speed Internet (WiFi)
Restaurant
Table tennis
BBQ facilities
Baggage storage
Laundry service
Self-serve laundry
Parking
Special diet menus
Non-smoking hotel
Shared kitchen
Shared lounge / TV area
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Room features
Flatscreen TV
Room types
Family rooms
Location
5-9, Cheongbong-ro 5-gil, Sokcho, Gangwon-do 24904 South Korea
Name/address in local language
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This family run guesthouse is decent place to stay during visit to Soraksan mountain range. Its located 10 km from Sokcho city and about 4 Km from Soraksan entrance. You need a car or a taxi ride to arrive here. In the night there is nothing open around it. Since there is nothing much to do here, it is better to arrive as late as possible just ready for a sleep. If you need dinner, you better take some food and drinks with you. Rooms are clean and the lady who runs the place is extremely friendly and flexible.
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Date of stay: May 2018Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
We were here in the off season and Smile Guesthouse was one of the only places that was opened. The owner gave us the weekday price even though it was a weekend. His English is good and he gave us a lot of helpful information on the trekking we were going to do the next day. Also, he offered us some Korean food when we sat in the lobby area in the evening!!! Rooms have a fridge, are clean and cosy and there is a shared kitchen area if you don't want to buy food outside. (There are no well-equiped supermarkets around so if you want to cook, bring something from Sokcho with you.) Was a pleasure to stay here!
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Date of stay: September 2017Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
The hostel is just 5 min by car/bus to Seoraksan National park (about 4km away) and about 45 min from Sokcho city by bus 7 or 7-1. You can't see the hostel from the bus stop and will have to walk 2 min further in before you can see & reach it. The location is a great place if you want to have an early start to the park as it gets crowded by 8.30am. Take a taxi to the park if you want an early start (around KRW5,000) since the first bus from Sokcho starts only from 6.30am. There are various restaurants and convenient shops nearby and it is also possible to walk along a river trail just behind the hostel. You can do simple cooking (just get the electric stove out from the cupboard) and kettle/cutlery are also provided. Water dispenser is available on each floor. The room size is very comfortable for 3 of us. Laundry facility is available for KRW2,000 but no dryer (clothes dry quickly in any case). Simple breakfast was provided (but starts only from 8am). Downside is that the hostel is a little dated and will require some refurbishment.…
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Date of stay: May 2017Trip type: Travelled with friends
Cleanliness
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Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
+1
We stayed in one of the budget rooms. What we expect of a budget room is a more spartan room with less amenities but it must be clean. What we got at the Goodstay Smile resort was a cramped room with a ramshackle and dirty bathroom. And that for a price which bought us excellent spacious and clean rooms around Korea. The room itself was tiny and yet they managed to get a double bed, a single bed, a TV closet, a fridge and a little table with mirror in. Furniture was all from before grandma's time but without the charm. An old TV was present. The bed was not the most comfortable, we felt the springs through the mattress. The sheets were clean and the floors were reasonably clean (some hairs from previous guests though). Only tiny hand towels were available for the guests. The bathroom was unacceptable. Not only were the tiles falling off the wall but it was not clean. Spraying the shower across the room does not make it clean! We found hair of other guests, the walls and about every visible crack had mildew. We would have asked for another room if the place hadn't been fully booked. The staff was ok, not particularly helpful or knowledgeable. Just the basics. Breakfast was another failure. While the staff (the family?) were eating delicious looking food, the guests had to make do with toast with jam or egg (one per person max!) or weirdly thick soup on a grubby plate in a dingy moist smelling basement. Because there is only one toaster for the whole place, there was a cue the whole time. Breakfast is only served between 8 and 9AM, ridiculously late if you want to go hike in the park. What 'saved' this place from a terrible is the location. The bus to the park is only one minute away. Restaurants are close by. We are really not sure how this place got such excellent reviews here. We would never book here again.…
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Date of stay: September 2016Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Value
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
+1
Smile resort is actually a guesthouse. not so easy to find though since the location is quite hidden from other motel/hotels from the main road. it can be reached via local bus 7 or 7-1 from Sokcho Express Bus Terminal. After seeing the Seorak Youth Hostel in your left, ring the bell. The bus stop is Seorak-dong C-Chigu. You can check the guesthouse location at Tourist Map Guesthouse location at the nearby bus stop opposite of the road or ask local people at the mart nearby. I booked standard room with breakfast. Stayed there 4 days 3 nights for daily hiking. Check-in was good. The owner's son spoke very good English. The owner (lady) was nice too even though cannot speak English well. Got free wifi in my room. The room was clean. No air-conditioner. The window in my room cannot be opened for fresh air. Can be quite hot if during summer. Breakfast was simple toast bread with jam & coffee + hard boiled egg (self-service) Since I was a Muslim, the breakfast was good enough. Got microwave, toaster & hot water if you want to prepare your own food. I loved the shampoo they provided! From the guesthouse, you can walk towards the national park (~3km) or ride the local bus. I prefer walking since it's such a beautiful place especially with cherry blossomed... Overall is still excellent. Will definitely come back maybe in autumn.…
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Date of stay: April 2016Trip type: Travelled solo
Value
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
1 Helpful vote
Helpful
The resort was decent and the rooms were great for the price. Ted, the owner of the hotel along with his girlfriend and family however were amazingly nice. They recommended us what to eat and which trails to take, how long it took, etc. Basically all the information we wanted to know we simply asked them it was great. I would definitively recommend this place to anyone wanting to hike Seoraksan.
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Date of stay: November 2015Trip type: Travelled with friends
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Smile Resort is a cute, comfortable guesthouse. The owners are helpful, although I didn't see them much. I was upgraded from a 4-bed dorm to a single room which was clean and spacious, and affordable. The breakfast is very simple, but you can enjoy it on a terrace with view on the river. Smile Resort is located a 50-min. bus ride from Sokcho bus terminals and 10-min. bus to Seoraksan national park entrance. Seorakdong is no more than a portion of road lined with shabby restaurants and motels, all closed when I was there in July (off-peak season ?). Don't expect a lively or picturesque place and stay in Sokcho or in the temple in the park if you want more than a "sleep after hiking" place.
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Date of stay: July 2015Trip type: Travelled solo
Value
Cleanliness
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
My family enjoyed our stay here. The owner Ted was very nice (and helped ship some things to me that I left there). So was his mother, who served us a very good breakfast. The location is in a small, quiet town, a short bus ride from the mountain. We didn't find much good food in the area, unfortunately. But I think it was nicer to stay there, rather than in the larger Sokcho.
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Date of stay: May 2015Trip type: Travelled with family
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Pros: It's located very close to Seorak National Park. We were able to bike there, avoiding traffic and parking fees; The staff is very helpful; They rent out grills and charcoal for $10. Cons: -The bed wasn't comfortable. -There was noise all night, and it seemed to come from the pipes. -They only provided hand towels.
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Date of stay: May 2015Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
+1
Ted is a great host who takes his guests seriously. We were immediately made to feel welcome and received our room key within seconds. Throughout our 2-day stay he was always easy to find and very helpful. One of the first things we did was set fire to one of his wooden picnic tables. He didn't seem to mind but he did help us put out the blaze and moved us to a less charred table. What a nice guy. The room was spotlessly clean and spacious with TV, kettle, hair-dryer etc, nice blinds, lots of floor space and a neat little kitchenette. The only complaint I can think of is that the kitchen bin was rather small. Sitting on the doorstep of Seoraksan, the scenery and tranquility is wonderful and real respite for those trying to escape the madness of Seoul for a few days. Sitting out on the terrace with barbecue and board games in the warm evenings was relaxing and so much fun. The terrace and parking lot have good capacity for the guests. It seemed fully booked during the holiday weekend when we visited but we didn't struggle to get a table or parking space. This motel really helped make our weekend a memorable trip. Thanks and respect to Ted and staff. Sorry again about setting fire to your picnic table.…
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Date of stay: May 2015Trip type: Travelled with friends
Value
Location
Service
Room Tip: Our family room had a small double bed with four single mats and ample floor space.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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PRICE RANGE
US$41 - US$52 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
South KoreaGangwon-doSokcho
NUMBER OF ROOMS
30
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Frequently Asked Questions about Smile Resort
Which popular attractions are close to Smile Resort?
Nearby attractions include Ulsanbawi Rock (5.7 km), Seoraksan National Park (3.7 km), and Gwongeumseong Fortress (3.8 km).
What are some of the property amenities at Smile Resort?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include free wifi, an on-site restaurant, and free parking.
What food & drink options are available at Smile Resort?
Guests can enjoy an on-site restaurant and barbeque facilities during their stay.
What are some restaurants close to Smile Resort?
Conveniently located restaurants include Matsu, Cheongchosu Mulheo, and Mansuk Dak Gangjeong.
Are any cleaning services offered at Smile Resort?
Yes, laundry service and self serve laundry are offered to guests.
Which languages are spoken by the staff at Smile Resort?
The staff speaks multiple languages, including English, Japanese, and Korean.
Are there any historical sites close to Smile Resort?
Many travellers enjoy visiting Gwongeumseong Fortress (3.8 km) and Heundeul Bawi (4.0 km).