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Shilla Stay Seodaemun opens in May

Posted April. 23, 2015 07:23,   

한국어

Hotel Shilla`s business hotel brand Shilla Stay will open in northwestern Seoul. It will be built on where Hwayang Theater, once the hub for films in Seoul, had been located. Hotel Shilla said Wednesday, "We will open Shilla Stay Seodaemun (photo) in Seodaemun District on May 1. This marks out full-fledged advancement into business hotel business in northern Seoul."

The fourth Shilla Stay chain following those in Dongtan in Gyeonggi Province, Yeoksam in Seoul and Jeju Island, Shilla Stay Seodaemun has 319 guest rooms including the Grand Room. A building 27 stories above ground and four below, Shilla Stay is a two-star hotel with a buffet restaurant, fitness center and meeting rooms, etc. Hotel rate is half that of Hotel Shilla at around 100,000 won (92.7 U.S. dollars).

The site is where Hwayang Theater had been located, opened in 1964. A single-screen theater, Hwayang Theater was a popular venue for young people in the 1980s, who lined up to see then popular Hong Kong movies such as "A Better Tomorrow" and "A Chinese Ghost Story." People came here to see Hong Kong stars Leslie Cheung and Chow Yun-fat who came for fan signing events. The theater later changed its name to Dream Cinema and then to Seodaemun Art Hall, but was closed in 2012 due to fierce competition from multiplex theaters.

Hotel Shilla expects Shilla Stay Seodaemun to gain popularity among both business and casual travelers both at home and abroad. Seodaemun is adjacent to business center City Hall and Deoksu Palace, Gyeonghui Palace and Myeondong where many travelers flock into. Hotel Shilla says foreigners` hotel demand is high in this area. Hotel Shilla plans to open Shilla Stay in two more places in northern Seoul of Mapo and Gwanghwamun early next year.



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