Holiday Inn offers comfortable stay in Songdo

Holiday Inn Incheon Songdo opened on Sept. 5. / Courtesy of Holiday Inn Incheon Songdo

By Kim Se-jeong

Less than five years ago, many visitors to Korea complained about a lack of hotels. Now, the situation is changing, according to Michael Wilson, general manager of Holiday Inn Incheon Songdo.

He says he can feel the mounting competition in Korea firsthand. “The competition is more fierce than we hoped it would be,” Wilson said during an interview with The Korea Times on Tuesday.

Holiday Inn opened in the Songdo International Business District on Sept. 5. The district was created by the Incheon Metropolitan Government and has roughly 80,000 residents, and is growing. By the end of 2020, the district will have more than 250,000 residents, according to the Incheon government.

Its proximity to Incheon International Airport is the most attractive selling point about the district.

Rooftop bar Touchsky

Holiday Inn is part of the InterContinental Hotels Group. Started as a motel chain in the U.S., it is now one of the biggest hotel chains in the world. The property in Songdo is rated as four-star.

It has eight competitors on the island ― excluding the Grand Hyatt Incheon which is closer to the airport. According to the city government, more hotels are scheduled to open in the next couple of years.

That is not discouraging to Wilson, however. He says he is optimistic that within three years, business will grow because of the quality of service the Holiday Inn brand offers.

Wilson believes its language services are what make the Holiday Inn stand out among its competitors. “Guests like to choose a hotel where they can communicate,” the general manager said, acknowledging the reality that not all employees in Korean hotels are trained to communicate freely with guests.

Junior Suite Room

Wilson wants his hotel employees to communicate with guests. Housekeepers are one section of his employees that he wants to communicate, “So that they can at least understand a couple of important words.”

Holiday Inn has 202 rooms. The least expensive room costs a little over $150. Hotel facilities include a buffet restaurant, Surache Dining, and Touchysky, a rooftop bar. A third restaurant is under renovation, scheduled to open next year. It doesn’t have a swimming pool, but a spacious gym furnished with up-to-date equipment is a decent alternative.

The general manager sees Holiday Inn’s success as depending on a growing number of international conferences, which is why he reinstated facilities to attract people looking for conference venues.

Its ballroom has capacity for 240 guests, with another business room to accommodate the needs for conference organizers. Wedding facilities can also attract locals who want to have a luxurious wedding ceremony. The hotel won’t be receiving wedding guests until the end of this year, but is taking reservations.

The general manager also sees potentials in flight attendants. He believes the hotel’s location, quality of service and affordability can appeal to airline companies that need places for their employees to sleep for one or two nights before flying out.

Holiday Inn in Songdo is the fifth Holiday Inn property in Korea. There are two at the Alpensia Resort in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, one in Gwangju and the other in Sungbuk-dong, Seoul.

Wilson has spent more than 30 years with InterContinental Hotels Group. Right before coming to Songdo, he was the general manager at the Gwangju property for three years.

Reservations can be made at

https://www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/gb/en/reservation

and other online booking sites.m@koreatimes.co.kr