SEOUL Conrad Seoul – the first internationally branded hotel to arrive in the South Korean gateway’s emerging business district of Yeouido – aims to provide customer convenience and comfort, starting with its design.
Nowhere is this intention more obvious than in the three-level area dedicated to business events. The Grand Ballroom, accommodating up to 1,250 people for cocktails, occupies the third floor; the Junior Ballroom, taking in about 800 people, is on the fourth floor, together with one function room for up to 90 people; and 11 breakout rooms with natural light for up to 250 people, are found on the the sixth floor.
“This ensures that everyone has their own space,” said Conrad Seoul general manager Nils-Arne Schroeder, “and that even if different events are going on at the same time, they don’t disturb each other”.
For breather periods, a rooftop garden can be set up for coffee and tea or cocktails in the evening.
Hotel Exterior Lobby
The lobby, which usually experiences the most high-volume traffic, Schroeder observed, has been imbued with ceilings that reach to 14 metres (four storeys high) and provides a centre point for the Hilton Worldwide associated property.
The latest conference technology infrastructure is, of course, available with each of the 434 guestrooms enjoying “Direct Stream” TV service by Apple, a totally integrated digital multimedia platform that Schroeder assured “will be very user friendly”, allowing high-speed broadband access through the TV monitor as well as the ability to get onto Facebook, Twitter, iLife and more.
Yeouido, Conrad Seoul’s location, has been dubbed the “Korean Wall Street” for its growing concentration of local and global financial institutions. Also found there is the National Assembly and media corporations. The hotel is the fourth component of the mixed-use International Finance Centre that includes a Grade-A offices, a cineplex, luxury retail mall and a plethora of dining outlets.
It looks out to Yeouido Park, an extensive stretch of greenery with biking and jogging paths and verdant corners that offer a wealth of possibilities for teambuilding activities.
For more about Conrad Seoul and the chain, visit www.conradhotels.com
Margie T Logarta
