Classically-styled hotels
By Choe Chong-dae
When one travels abroad there is an endless array of accommodation options. According to my experience, however, a classically-styled hotel is more romantic and attractive than many contemporary hotels.
Hotels have played a significant role for travelers over the course of many centuries. It is believed that medieval inns in Europe have transformed over time into our modern hotels. In the middle of the 18th century, the number of hotels rapidly increased throughout North America and Western Europe and some other countries.
Since Korea opened its doors to the outside world in 1876, many foreign commercial vessels with passengers entered our country, resulting in the need for accommodation facilities. Consequently, modern Western-style hotels were first built in the western port city of Incheon.
Daebul Hotel was Korea's first Western-style hotel, built in 1888. It was constructed in Incheon rather than Seoul, because transportation between Incheon and Seoul was very inconvenient at that time.
Due to financial problems, the hotel was sold in 1918 to a Chinese person who operated it as a Chinese restaurant until 1978. The old Daebul Hotel was located near the present-day Chinatown in Incheon from 1888 to 1978. It was later renovated into an Exhibition Hall and has replicas of the old hotel rooms.
Fourteen years after establishment of Daebul Hotel in Incheon, the second Western-style hotel, the Songtag Hotel, was built in Jeongdong, Seoul, in 1902. It was sold in 1917 and ultimately demolished in 1922.
Currently, the Westin Josun Hotel in Seoul is Korea's oldest existing Western-style hotel, built in 1914. Over the past century, it helped foster cross-cultural understanding and promote international relations between Koreans and Westerners by introducing people here to Western culture, such as elevators, ice cream, Western-style buffets, weddings and parties.
Nestled in the heart of Seoul, the red brick building of the Westin Josun Hotel is considered to be a symbol of ultra-modern Western architecture and one of Korea's first standout buildings when it was built.
After Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial occupation in 1945, the hotel suffered from political turmoil and the widespread destruction of infrastructure. However, it did not suffer severe damage during the 1950-53 Korean War.
In the wake of Korea's industrialization during the 1960s and 1970s, the Westin Josun underwent a wide range of renovations that transformed it into a modern facility. The original building was replaced and the hotel became more modern, while retaining much of the legacy of its history.
On Nov. 16, 1984, I had the pleasure of attending a gala reception commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Westin Josun Hotel held in its Grand Ballroom. As a permanent record of the occasion, a book titled, “On the Center Stage for Seventy Years,” was published, authored by Dr. Jon Carter Covell, a renowned Asian art historian.
The book portrays the past glory of the hotel and will assist present-day patrons and guests in realizing how memorable the site of the Josun Hotel has been for many decades. I provided the author some materials on this history.
If it were to survive as a classically-styled hotel, reviving the original form via renovation, it would have been an example of even more precious and unique architectural heritage although it was built during Japan's colonial rule of Korea (1910-45).
Choe Chong-dae (choecd@naver.com) is a guest columnist of The Korea Times. He is president of Dae-kwang International Co., and director of the Korean-Swedish Association.