The Seoul city government and the Seoul Tourism Foundation announced on the 7th that they will conduct the '2025 Excellent Seoul Stay' competition from the 7th to 5 p.m. on the 22nd to discover accommodations that can convey the charm of Seoul to foreign tourists.
Seoul Stay is a lodging brand aimed at accommodations located in Seoul that are registered as urban guesthouses and hanok experience facilities under the Tourism Promotion Act. The eligibility for application is limited to establishments that have completed registration for Seoul Stay by the deadline.
This year, a total of 20 accommodations will be selected, and the selected establishments will receive a support fund of up to 5 million won for accommodation operation and promotional marketing.
In the operational field, support will be provided for expenses related to foreigner-customized hospitality product planning, interior design, and hygiene and safety management, while, in the promotion area, expenses for reservation system and website improvements as well as online and offline marketing will be supported.
The city plans to announce the final selection results on June 5 on the Seoul Stay website after a first round document review and a second round field evaluation. The document review will be conducted based on the application form and scoring criteria, while the field evaluation will involve an expert evaluation committee visiting 30 establishments that passed the document review to comprehensively assess facility management, cleanliness, service, and contribution to the local environment.
This year, the city has strengthened the scoring on hygiene and safety management in the selection criteria and included the cooperative relationship with local residents as an evaluation item. Additionally, accommodations that have been selected three times or more will be limited from applying, and the ratio of accommodations selected for two consecutive years will be adjusted to 70 percent or lower.
Establishments wishing to participate in the competition can apply through the online application portal after pre-registering with Seoul Stay. New registrations will take about 10 days, so it is necessary to check the schedule.
Gu Jong-won, director of the Seoul city government's Tourism and Sports Bureau, said, "We plan to discover excellent alternative accommodation establishments so that tourists visiting Seoul can experience high-quality lodging, while providing multi-faceted support from operation support funds to marketing promotions." He also noted, "We hope for the enthusiastic interest and participation of accommodations that can showcase the unique charm of Seoul."