Where to stay in Busan, South Korea | 20+ Best Hotels in Busan

Busan is a beautiful city in the Southernmost part of South Korea. There are a lot of things to do in Busan especially Gamcheon culture Village, from tourist attractions, delicious street food, rich cultural history and so much more. The city is quite large and is the second biggest city in comparison to Seoul. It’s visited by so many people and honestly, it’s an overall great place to visit. Since it is a large city, it can be hard to navigate where to stay in Busan, but don’t worry I got you covered for the best hotels in Busan, South Korea. 

Traveling to Seoul? Check out my post on where to stay in Seoul.

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Where to stay in Busan, South Korea | Best Hotels in Busan

So depending on what your plans are for your trip, there are a few places you can stay in Busan that will make your life a lot easier. Busan is a very hilly city, so you may run into an issue of finding a place on the top of a hill, which wouldn’t be ideal for the typical traveler at the end of a busy day. 

Best Neighborhoods to stay in Busan – Where should I stay in Busan?

There are 5 main areas that are recommended to stay in for Busan. The best neighborhoods for tourists would be Haeundae, Seomyeon, Yonggunsa Temple, Yeongdo Island, and Nampo. If you are interested, you can also do a temple stay in Busan as well. These are popular to do all over South Korea and a great way to get in some meditation. 

A quick guide on where to stay based on location – The best area to stay in Busan

If you are looking for where to stay in Busan for a certain group of people, I’ve listed some of the best neighborhoods for some specific circumstances. 

If you are looking for an AirBNB in Busan, I actually avoid most of these to be honest. In some areas, they can be considered illegal and you may get in trouble which is why I don’t really do them often in Korea. Some places are okay, but I don’t recommend any of them. So if you are looking to stay at an AirBNB in Busan, tread lightly. 

Where should I stay in Busan?

Where to stay in Busan for a short time

If you are just planning to be in Busan for a short amount of time, I highly recommend staying at Seomyeon or Haeundae. This truly depends on what your plans are in Busan. Seomyeon is centrally located and has a lot of great areas for shopping, food, and an easy couple of stops away from Busan station. If you want more time on the beach, then staying at Haeundae beach is probably the best for a relaxing or partying experience. 

Where to stay in Busan with family

When it comes to where to stay in Busan for families, I suggest Seomyeon, Haeundae, or Gwangalli. If you plan on staying near the beach, I suggest staying in Haeundae or Gwangalli and if you plan on using public transportation and seeing more of the tourist sites, I suggest staying in Seomyeon. These will be the best locations for you to stay in.

Where to stay in Busan for first-timers

When it comes to where to stay in Busan for first-timers, Seomyeon is always a great location to stay in. Some of the best hotels in Busan are in Seomyeon. Nampo-dong is also a great location to stay in Busan as well. Nampo-dong is a popular area for people who love to go shopping and it’s a beautiful place to stay in. 

Where to stay in Busan for nightlife

When it comes to where to stay in Busan for nightlife, both Haeundae and Seomyeon are great locations. I would say there are a lot more bars located on the beachside in Haeundae, but there are a lot of bars and restaurants in Seomyeon as well. I find the bars near the beach to be a tad more relaxed and Seomyeon more about eating, but they do have clubs and other things as well. 

Best neighborhoods to stay in Busan

There are 6 main neighborhoods to on where to stay in Busan, but as you can see from my comments above that Haeundae, Gwangalli, Seomyeon, and Nampo-dong to be the most popular neighborhoods and best to stay in if you want to be centrally located for the sites, public transportation, shopping, and views. So plan your trip based on what you plan on doing. 

Where to stay in Busan – Haeundae-gu

If you are looking for where to stay in Haeundae, these are some of the best locations there. I find that Haeundae is one of my favorite places to stay in. I love it because I’m from California and I just absolutely love being by the beach. I love the vibe and the types of atmosphere it brings to be close to the ocean. 

Haeundae has a great selection of restaurants and bars just along the beach. Additionally, there are a lot of convenience stores, and drinking on the beach is allowed as long as you pick up your trash. So enjoy a nice beer and relax on the sandy beaches if you want. 

Check out the hotels below on where to stay in Busan for Haeundae.

Paradise Hotel Haeundae

Paradise Hotel is more along the lines of a luxury hotel. They are considered to be a 5-star hotel in Busan which is why it’s so highly recommended to people visiting from all over the world. They are a chain hotel as well, they have a popular hotel in Incheon called Paradise City and are located right next to the famous Cimer Spa. If you want to get a luxurious experience in Busan, I highly suggest booking your stay at Paradise Hotel Haeundae. 

Golden Tulip Haeundae Hotel & Suite

Probably one of my favorite hotel chains in South Korea. It’s a great hotel chain if you are looking for a reliable place on where to stay in Busan. They have excellent and clean rooms and are usually located in some great areas. Side note – if you need to rent a room in Incheon by the airport, they have a Golden Tulip there that I highly recommend. I would say this is a midrange-priced hotel. 

Canvas Hostel

If you are a solo traveler or a budget traveler, I suggest staying at a hostel. This is the perfect place to meet new people and find a place inexpensively. If you don’t want to cohabitate with others, there are options at this hotel for private rooms as well. This is a stunning hostel worth staying.

Where to stay in Busan – Gwangalli

When people look for where to stay in Busan, Gwangalli Beach is one of the top places. Gwangalli Beach is a great place to stay if you have to go out to eat, have some fancy drinks, and be close to the beach. Honestly, I loved staying in this area because beaches are my thing. However, this place is kind of far from the main attractions like shopping, site seeing, and more. If you are wanting more of a relaxing beach vibe or a place to easily grab food and drinks at the end of the day, this is probably the best place for you. 

It’s also a great place to stay if you have kids especially kids who love to play in the water. There’s a lot of great western restaurants over in the area as well making it easy for those picky eaters. 

Check out the hotels below on where to stay in Busan for Gwangalli Beach.

H Avenue Gwanganri Beach

I absolutely loved staying at this hotel. I was visiting a friend in Miryang and we decided to have a nice night out with dinner and drinks and stay at a fancy hotel. Seriously, this hotel was amazing. It has a great view, great atmosphere, and the tub was a huge plus. The beds were super comfy and the area was pretty quiet. I would definitely stay here again. We were able to walk to the beach and all the bars in that area as well. 

Gray 193 Hotel

Now I haven’t stayed at this location, however, it has always been highly recommended. The hotel is beautiful and along the beach and you can easily get some gorgeous views staying here. You can also get a free continental breakfast depending on which rooms you book which is always a plus and a way to save extra money when traveling. The rooms also state that they are soundproof which is a great addition. Some rooms in Korea unfortunately have thin walls, making it difficult to sleep on a busy weekend. 

Ocean The Point Hotel 

Another beach front hotel that’s worth checking out. This hotel is clean and modern and another popular location to stay. There is free parking available at the hotel and a breakfast buffet included. Unfortunately, their dates are very limited. 

Where to stay in Busan – Seomyeon – Best area to stay in Busan

Seomyeon as I mentioned is a great place to stay in if you want to see all the popular sites, be close to food, shopping at department stores, coffee, every type of convenience you can think of, and access to public transportation. It’s honestly the best place to stay in for first timers in my opinion. Just because it’s easier to get around, it’s centrally located, and you can get there easily by subway after arriving train into Busan. It’s great for families as well, you can probably find a lot of kids cafes in the area as well. 

Check out the hotels below on where to stay in Busan for Seomyeon.

Seomyeon Brown Dot Hotel Gold

Now this is a popular hotel chain in South Korea as well. It’s known for being affordable and comfortable. There are 2 maybe more located in Busan, but this specific location I found to be the best one. The hotel beds were amazing, they had plenty of space for 3 people when I visited with my friends. The staff here were so friendly, kind, and I would hands down stay here again. 

Avani Central Busan

This hotel has some gorgeous city views making it a great location to stay in. They have fairly easy access to the subway line, on the green line. Depending on what you want, you can have included continental breakfast or paid breakfast available as well. The hotel also offers currency exchange as well if necessary. 

Solaria Nishitetsu Hotel Busan

This hotel is probably popular for business workers, a lot of people stay in the Seomyeon area for business. So this hotel features a fitness center, spa, and you can pay for included continental breakfast as well. The location is pretty decent, but not as close to the subway stations as the other destinations are, but it’s only about a 10 minute walk away from the hotel. 

Where to stay near Yonggungsa Temple

This is probably my least recommended location to stay in unless you don’t mind being in the middle of no where. This area can be difficult to get to unless you have a vehicle. A lot of the public transportation out in this area is few and far between, which makes it difficult to get access to anything. 

The area is great if you just want to see the temple, but honestly I just recommend people getting to the temple for the day and then staying in a more centralized location. 

Check out the hotels below on where to stay in Busan for Yonggungsa Temple.

Ananti Hilton Busan

If you really want to splurge and be a bit off the grid, I would highly suggest staying here. It’s a 5 star hotel in Busan, a Hilton with a lot of accommodations. They have an infinity pool that reminds me of Marina Bay in Singapore, some beautiful rooms, a fitness center, you can get a room with a balcony, they have gorgeous views of the ocean, and a terrace. You can get a delicious breakfast included and they have some really comfortable beds. This is one of the best hotels in Busan.

Brown Dot Hotel Songjung

Another Brown Dot hotel recommendation where you an get a 180 degree view from your room. Some rooms have mountain views and others have city views. It’s highly rated and close to the ocean as well. The subway station however, is about a 15 minute walk which is why I highly recommend staying in a more centeralized area. This area would be good if you have a car and want to be away from people. 

Where to stay in Busan – Yeongdo Island

This is another centrally located area within Busan. It’s perfect for photographers especially to get some beautiful city views at night. I don’t necessarily recommend first timers to stay here because it’s hard to get to, it’s not easily accessible via public transportation, however, the views are stunning. It’s also very hilly, so it can be difficult to walk if you have mobility issues. 

They also have a lot of beautiful cafes in the area worth checking out. 

Check out the hotels below on where to stay in Busan for Yeongdo Island.

Bay Hound Hotel

This is a gorgeous hotel perfect for a 1 night stay. It’s actually not too far from the subway station which is why I chose this specific hotel. You can get an American continental breakfast here as well, it includes a lot of popular commodities. It’s also quite affordable. 

Lavalse Hotel

This is a beautiful modern style hotel with some gorgeous views. I would highly suggest booking a room with a view, there’s one room that had a corner with a gorgeous view of the bridge. It’s absolutely stunning. You can get stunning beach and city views all in one place. The ambience of this hotel is just beautiful. They have a fitness center and a bar. I would suggest to be a great place to stay for couples. 

Instay Yeongdo Hotel

A clean modern hotel with other great views as well. Some rooms also have an upstairs loft area which are typical of some Korean loft apartments. Great location to stay for a night or a few. It’s fairly close to the subway station as well which is great to get around. You can pay for a buffet breakfast as well. 

Where to stay in Busan – Nampo-dong

Nampo-dong is another central and popular shopping area in Busan. I recommend this for younger people because theres a lot to do and I suppose I remember visiting this area with my cousins when we were young and it was fun. There are a few hotels in that area that are quite affordable as well. So if shopping is your think and you want to see some old parts of Busan, this is a great place to be. 

In this area, you have access to a lot of the markets, if you are interested in Korean street food and bargains. 

Check out the hotels below on where to stay in Busan for Nampo.

Hotel Foret Premier Nampo

Conveniently located near Busan BIFF shopping street and the hotel offers an on-site restaurant and private parking location. It’s in walking distance to Jagalchi Market and Gukhe market. It’s a great place to stay if you are looking for easy access to the Korean street food scene. This location is conveniently located near the Busan KTX station as well. You can get breakfast included as well with a small fee. There is also a nice open outdoor terrace to see some of the city views. 

Hotel Stanford Inn Busan 

Close to Jagalchi Subway station and Jalgachi market. These rooms are clean and highly reviewed. Just read the review here. The bathrooms are large and some have bathtubs which I love to have during my travels. This location is perfect for families and conveniently located. It’s a 10 minute drive from Gimhae International Airport.

Hotel Busan Lounge 26 Hotel 

An affordable Busan hotel with smaller rooms, gree private parking, and close to the Ferry terminal. It’s also near Jagalchi Fish Market and Gukje Market. This hotel has a bar vibe kind of feel. There is a Bar Louge below where you can get some drinks and perfect for singles or couples. 

Where to stay in Busan – Temple Stays in Busan

Best for Vegetarians, Vegans, and Spiritual People

There are a lot of options for templestays in South Korea, you can easily book your templestay through the website here. There are only 2 main temples where you can stay at in Busan which I’ve listed below. A temple stay is perfect because if you want to focus on purifying your mind and meditation, it’s absolutely great. Temple stays also include vegan dishes as well. Some do have tea available as well. 

Check out below on where to stay in Busan for temple stays:

• Beomeosa Temple – This one is located in Busan and one of the best temples to stay at.  
• Haeinsa Temple – This one is in the provice of where Busan is and is a bit far from most things in Busan. 

Where to stay in Busan – Bonus Location

Shilla Stay Seobusan

Shilla is another popular chain and brand that is famous in South Korea. Shilla is known to be a 5 star hotel and provides an aray of accommodations from free private parking, a fitness center, bar, family rooms, sun terrace, pool, and more. It’s a popular staycation destination for a lot of Korean’s in Korea. Korean’s love to rent out fancy hotels to relax and enjoy in for the weekend. 

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