There are many excellent hotel options for visitors to Gwangju! We've scouted out a few possibilities in various price ranges below, but feel free to use your favorite booking site to identify suitable accommodations! Make sure you search for "Gwangju Metropolitan City" (there's another, smaller city called Gwangju in a different province in Korea). The conference venue, Gwangju National University of Education, is in Buk-gu, and Dong-gu is close by, as well, but don't be afraid to try other areas that seem interesting to you; taxis and buses are abundant and reasonably priced in Gwangju.
October is a busy month in Korea; reserve your accommodations early!
Hotels in the City Center (Chungjang-ro)
The city center, often called "Chungjang-ro" and located in Dong-gu, is a great place to stay if you want to maximize your Gwangju experience. There are a plethora of shops, restaurants, historic sites, noraebangs (karaoke rooms), and museums/exhibitions (including the amazing Asian Culture Center complex) in this area, and it's a nice walk (~30-35 minutes) to the GNUE campus. Taxis between the city center and GNUE cost about 7,000 KRW; buses are 1,400 KRW if you pay cash.
Culture Hotel Laam
3-star hotel across from the ACC and a short walk to the trendy neighborhood of Dongmyeong-dong as well as the downtown area; very nice opern-air patio on the roof, perfect for post-conference socializing under the stars!
* Room with 2 twin beds: 137,000 KRW / night (if booked through KOTESOL by September 1)
* Room with 1 double bed: 137,000 KRW / night (if booked through KOTESOL by September 1)
** KOTESOL can facilitate this booking.
ACC Design Hotel
3-star hotel located in the heart of the downtown area, down a slightly less-busy street on the northern edge of Chungjang-ro.
* Standard Double (1 double bed): 100,000 KRW on Friday, 110,000 KRW on Saturday
* Standard Twin (2 beds: 1 double, 1 twin): 110,000 KRW on Friday, 120,000 KRW on Saturday
Hotels Closer to GNUE
Hotel River
Hotel River is a less-expensive option just outside the downtown, on a quieter block in the trendy Dongmyeong-dong neighborhood. The staff don't speak much English but are happy to use a translator app, and our planning team is happy to facilitate your reservation (through mid-September). Hotel River is a straight-shot to GNUE down a major street; you can easily reach it via a 20-minute bus ride or a 10-minute taxi ride (~5,500 KRW)--or try our preferred route: a ~25-minute walk along the "green way," a lovely bike/pedestrian path that connects GNUE and this hotel!
* Standard double (1 double bed): 45,000 KRW on weeknights; 55,000 KRW on Friday; 70,000 KRW on Saturday
* "Special" room (either 2 double beds or 1 twin + 1 double bed; only a few available): 65,000 KRW on weeknights; 75,000 KRW on Friday; 90,000 KRW on Saturday
** KOTESOL can facilitate this booking.
Like Hotel
(a.k.a. Gwangju Gyerim-dong Like Hotel)
This hotel is a ~10-minute walk from GNUE.
* Double (1 double bed): 70,000 KRW
Brown Dot Hotel Sinan
This hotel is right next to Gwangju Station, 2.7 km from GNUE (~35 minutes on foot, 25 minutes by bus, or a 14-minute taxi ride [~7,000 KRW]). We didn't check out this hotel, but it's part of a chain and seems to get good reviews. The walk to GNUE can be partly along the "green way" bike/pedestrian path.
(Note: Gwangju Station is not the train station you'll be arriving at if you take the KTX here from Seoul; KTX trains use Gwangju Songjeong Station, all the way across town.)
