Oakwood Premier Incheon

Rooms and decor

Ride the elevator up POSCO Tower-Songdo to the lobby of Oakwood Premier Incheon on the 9th floor and you understand at once why this carries the highest score in the Incheon group at 9.6 — the feel is not a regular hotel but a top-tier serviced residence that reads like a luxury apartment at the heart of a city of the future. There are 245 suites to choose from, ranging from the 50 sqm Studio Premier for one or two people to the 135 sqm 3-Bedroom Premier for a large family. What sets them apart is that every unit has a full kitchen with a gas stove, a big fridge, a microwave, and a dishwasher, an in-room laundry with a washer-dryer, and a living room separate from the bedroom. The look is contemporary in neutral tones, with quality furniture, soft beds, and floor-to-ceiling windows that, on high floors, frame a panorama of Songdo IBD, Central Park, or the Yellow Sea. At night the surrounding towers light up into a scene you will not see elsewhere in Korea. International reviewers agree it feels like having your own luxury apartment for a while rather than a hotel.

Food and amenities

What makes Oakwood Premier stand out, beyond the suites alone, is how complete the serviced residence is, pairing the ease of an apartment with luxury-hotel service. The complex holds a good-sized indoor pool, a well-equipped fitness center with cardio and weight machines, a spa with a sauna and massage rooms, meeting rooms and workspace for business travelers, and a concierge who arranges everything from restaurant bookings to transit. On the food side, it does not run a huge buffet like the airport chain hotels, but there is an in-building restaurant serving good international breakfasts — reviewers praise the fresh food and the attentive staff. The real draw is the in-room kitchen: buy fresh meat, vegetables, and fruit at the nearby E-Mart or Triple Street, then come back and cook in your own room. It is cheaper and more fun, and it is something a regular hotel cannot offer, so long-stay guests love it. International reviewers describe cooking Korean food in the room against a panoramic skyline as the best memory of the trip. The 5-star service, with fluent English-speaking staff who sweat the details, is why this earns the highest score in the Incheon group at 9.6.

Location and getting there

Oakwood Premier sits up POSCO Tower-Songdo, the icon tower at the heart of the Songdo International Business District (IBD), Korea's master-planned city of the future built on reclaimed land. Most of the surrounding towers are global tech offices, malls, and luxury residences. It is a 5-minute walk to Songdo Central Park, a waterfront city park with landmark sculptures, a Water Taxi, and high-rises mirrored in the water, and a 10-minute drive to Triple Street, a large mall, and Costco, so shopping and food are close at hand. Incheon National University station (Subway Line 1) is an 8-minute walk; from there the subway runs 1 hour 15 minutes into Seoul Station — anyone who wants it faster should take a taxi or Kakao Taxi (around 30,000 to 40,000 won, 45 to 60 minutes). Incheon Airport is about a 25-minute drive. In short, this location is best for travelers who plan to base themselves in Songdo IBD, do business in the district, or visit with family wanting the luxury-apartment feel; anyone who needs to be near the airport for transit or to visit Seoul every day may have better options.

Things to know before booking

To help you decide, here it is straight. First is the distance from Incheon Airport and Seoul, which makes Oakwood Premier a poor fit for a single transit night or for anyone planning to be in Seoul every day — if you are mainly there for Myeongdong and Hongdae, staying in Seoul directly saves far more time. This place suits people who plan to be in Songdo IBD, working or visiting with family for a longer stretch. Second, Songdo IBD is quiet and has no traditional Korean street food — the surrounding streets are mostly offices and luxury towers, with few local restaurants open late in the evening. Anyone expecting the buzz of old Korea — pojangmacha tents, markets, or alley BBQ — may find it too still, and would need to head 30 minutes to Incheon Chinatown or into Seoul for that. Third is price: for large suites and the polish of a serviced residence it runs fairly high, starting around $166 a night for a Studio and climbing to roughly $514 for the multi-bedroom suites — for a one-night stay it may not pay off the way a standard hotel would, unless you value the in-room kitchen and the space.

Our take

After reading through plenty of real reviews, our team reckons Oakwood Premier Incheon is the most complete expression of a top-tier Korean serviced residence — a luxury apartment run with 5-star hotel service. It sells completeness across the board: large suites, full kitchens, in-room laundry, a panoramic Songdo IBD view from up POSCO Tower, a full set of facilities, and detail-minded 5-star service — which is why it earns the highest score in the Incheon group at 9.6. If the trip in your head is staying in a luxury apartment at the heart of a city of the future, cooking your own breakfast in your own kitchen, strolling Songdo Central Park at dusk, working in a room with a wide living area, then sleeping with a skyline glowing all night, this is hard to match in its price band. It is best for long-stay families, business travelers, couples who want apartment-style privacy, and anyone who values an in-room kitchen and space. But if you are after a single transit night near the airport or plan to focus on Seoul, the location and price here may not be the answer. Overall we give it 9.6/10, the highest in the list, for a serviced residence that does everything superbly.