Best Stylish Boutique Design Hotels in Seoul for a Weekend

RYSE, Autograph Collection puts 272 design-forward rooms three minutes from Hongik University Station, while Long Weekend Haus DDP runs 12 apartment-style suites across seven layouts near Dongdaemun Design Plaza, and rates across the five properties below run from about $145 to $307 a night depending on date. The deciding factor for a Seoul weekend is what kind of design experience the group wants: architecture-district immersion with private bedrooms, art-school nightlife energy, Belle Epoque drama, bold modernist color, or budget-conscious style near shopping. Each of the following five, RYSE, Long Weekend Haus DDP, L'Escape Hotel, Mondrian Seoul Itaewon and L7 Myeongdong by Lotte, answers a different version of that question.

RYSE, Autograph Collection

RYSE, Autograph Collection sits at 130 Yanghwa-ro in Mapo-gu, about three minutes' walk from Exit 9 of Hongik University Station, and its 272 rooms across Creator, Editor, Director, Producer, Artist, Curator and Executive Producer categories start from $181 a night for two guests (Trip.com, checked 2026-09-16).

The hotel is part of Marriott's Autograph Collection, bookable through Bonvoy for members who want mobile key and in-room Wi-Fi included. Interiors lean industrial, with raw concrete, a metal sculpture suspended over the lobby, and rotating art. Instead of a gift shop, the property houses Savor, a skateboarding shop, and Worksout, a multi-level streetwear retail space, plus Monoplex, a small private cinema, and Print Culture Lounge, an open reading room of books, magazines and records. Side Note Club, the rooftop bar, looks over the city at night.

Breakfast buffet runs KRW45,000 per adult and KRW22,500 for children 11 and under, served 06:30 to 10:30. Valet parking is KRW15,000 a night (no self-parking), and a pet fee of KRW65,000 a day applies for dogs and cats. Room sizes range from 29 square meters for a Creator King up to 217 square meters for the Executive Producer Suite. Reservations run through rysehotel.com or Marriott.com; there is no kitchen in any category, so meals happen through the restaurant, room service or Hongdae's surrounding food scene.

Long Weekend Haus DDP

Long Weekend Haus operates DDP, its Dongdaemun property at 15-3 Ssangnim-dong, Jung-gu, with 12 apartment-style suites across seven layouts, from a 36-square-meter Garden Suite to a 69-square-meter Penthouse, priced from ₩306,000 a night on the non-refundable plan or ₩341,000 on the free-cancellation plan (official site, checked 2026-09-19).

Every unit is a suite rather than a single hotel room: the Dining Suites and Maru Suites hold two bedrooms each, and the top-floor Penthouse (unit 702) has three bedrooms and two bathrooms across 69 square meters. Check-in runs through a self-service kiosk instead of a staffed front desk, which means a flight landing at midnight or a train arriving late does not have to work around anyone's shift. The rate plan cancels free up to 14 days before arrival, stays of three nights or more get a 10% discount, and extra guests beyond a room's base occupancy add ₩10,000 per person per night. All units are non-smoking, Wi-Fi is free throughout, and pets are not permitted. Booking runs through stay.longweekendhaus.com as well as Trip.com.

For two couples who want to sleep in separate bedrooms instead of sharing one room, the Maru Suite (two bedrooms, sleeps up to six) is the fit; for a single group of four to eight wanting one shared address, the 702 Penthouse is the only unit rated for eight. If the weekend theme is architecture and design-district walking near DDP, the location puts that within walking distance, without requiring a taxi.

L'Escape Hotel

L'Escape Hotel, a Luxury Collection property at 67 Toegye-ro in Jung-gu, about two minutes from Hoehyeon Station on Line 4, prices its 204 rooms from $213 a night for two guests (Trip.com, checked 2026-09-16).

Interior design throughout is by Jacques Garcia, built on a Belle Epoque theme: a flower tree installation by Tony Marklew rises from the checkered lobby floor to the ceiling. The Amour Rooms use French-patterned partitions to separate the bathtub area, Secret Rooms add floral canopy headboards, and suites range from the Atelier Junior Suite with embroidered wallpaper (53 square meters) to the Corner Junior Suite with floor-to-ceiling windows (52 square meters). The property is operated by Josunhotel & Resorts LESCAPE under business registration number 530-85-01133 and became a Marriott Luxury Collection hotel on 2025-12-29.

Room rates on Booking.com range from $342 to $676 a night depending on category and date, excluding 10% VAT, and standard rate plans allow free cancellation up until the day of arrival with no prepayment required. Booking runs through les.josunhotel.com, Marriott.com and Booking.com. There is no kitchen in any category; meals run through the hotel restaurant or Myeongdong's surrounding shopping district, a short walk away.

Mondrian Seoul Itaewon

Mondrian Seoul Itaewon, at 23 Jangmun-ro in Yongsan-gu's Itaewon district, lists 295 rooms and suites starting from $209 a night across aggregator listings (HotelsCombined, checked 2026-09-20).

The building was remodeled from the former Capital Hotel by Gansam Architects & Associates, while interiors were designed by Singapore studio Asylum, credited alongside HLD on the project's 2020 completion. This was the first Mondrian in Asia, and the coloring inside references the hotel's namesake, Dutch painter Piet Mondrian, against an otherwise plain modernist exterior. Room categories include Standard, Superior, Premier King, Corner Suite, Studio Suite, Cabana Suite and Mondrian Suite; the Mondrian Suite has a bathtub positioned in front of a floor-to-ceiling window facing the skyline.

Facilities include a 25-meter indoor swimming pool, a glass-walled outdoor pool with skyline views, a sauna, a Pilates room and an indoor golf range, plus artwork by Jang Su-ji and Kwon Shin-hong displayed across guest rooms. Check-in is 15:00 and check-out 11:00; cancellation is free until 18:00 local time two days before arrival, after which one night's rate is charged. Booking runs through Booking.com. No kitchen or kitchenette appears in any listed room category.

L7 Myeongdong by Lotte

L7 Myeongdong by Lotte, at 137 Toegye-ro in Jung-gu about 100 meters from Exit 9 of Myeongdong Station, prices its roughly 250 rooms from $145 a night for a Standard room (momondo, HotelsCombined, checked 2026-09-14).

The property is run by Lotte Hotels & Resorts under its L7 lifestyle brand, aimed at guests who want design branding without the rate of a full luxury property. Room categories include Run of House, Standard Family Twin, and Superior Double or Twin with Namsan View; none list a kitchen. Facilities include a rooftop bar on the 21st floor, a foot spa, and a lounge and bar on the third floor for groups. The property sits within about 10 minutes' walk of Namdaemun Market, Cheonggyecheon and Namsangol Hanok Village.

Minimum check-in age is 19, cribs are not available, and extra-bed policy depends on room type. Rates on Trip.com's Korea site start from KRW346,859 a night for two guests, with other aggregators showing $145 to $270 depending on room type and supplier. Booking runs through Trip.com as well as the hotel's own site and Booking.com, Expedia and Agoda.

Evidence and criteria

Room counts, rates and design credits above come from each property's own listing pages and from booking platforms checked between 2026-09-14 and 2026-09-20; where sources disagreed, the discrepancy is noted instead of resolved into a single number.

• RYSE, Autograph Collection: Marriott Autograph Collection brand affiliation, Marriott Bonvoy member benefits (mobile key, in-room Wi-Fi), checked via Marriott.com and Trip.com, 2026-09-16.
• Long Weekend Haus DDP: LodgingBusiness structured data and room table on longweekendhaus.com/explore/seoul-dongdaemun, reconfirmed 2026-09-19; operating company listed in the site footer.
• L'Escape Hotel: interior design credited to Jacques Garcia; lobby installation credited to Tony Marklew; Marriott Luxury Collection conversion dated 2025-12-29; business registration number 530-85-01133 per Marriott.com's official listing.
• Mondrian Seoul Itaewon: building remodel credited to Gansam Architects & Associates, interior design credited to Asylum (Singapore) with HLD, per ArchDaily's project credit for the 2020 completion.
• L7 Myeongdong by Lotte: room count varies by source, 254 on Lotte's own Korean-language page, 250 on Expedia, 251 on Trip.com, all checked 2026-09-14 and 2026-09-16.
• Ratings referenced by reviewers comparing this set against other reviewed Seoul luxury properties, including Josun Palace and Signiel Seoul, sit outside the scope of the room and rate data checked here.