The Shilla Seoul Hotel Review 2026: Urban Island Pools & Amenities
Dive into luxury at The Shilla Seoul Hotel! Our 2026 review explores the fantastic Urban Island outdoor pool, indoor facilities, jacuzzi, and gym for a perfect stay.
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Dive into luxury at The Shilla Seoul Hotel! Our 2026 review explores the fantastic Urban Island outdoor pool, indoor facilities, jacuzzi, and gym for a perfect stay.
The Shilla Hotel boasts fantastic facilities like Urban Island and jacuzzis, offering so many exciting things to enjoy.
Beyond just the outdoor Urban Island pool,
I'm sharing my review of how we made the most of the indoor pool, jacuzzis, and fitness center too!
First things first, we need to check the operating hours for the facilities, right?
We checked in, relaxed a bit in our room,
then decided to hit the Urban Island & Indoor Pool before dinner, and check out the fitness center at night!
Urban Island, the indoor pool, and the fitness center are all conveniently located on the 3rd floor.
Urban Island is
an outdoor pool exclusively for Shilla Hotel guests.
It's a paid outdoor swimming pool,
and its operating hours and prices vary by season.
Until June, it was the Early Summer Season,
The admission fee included two sunbeds, allowing us to choose our spot upon entry.
After scanning our room key to enter, they gave us these waterproof wristbands.
When we visited, a Wine Market was underway, so we got to try some wine tastings and participate in a lucky draw event!
What made the lucky draw event even more exciting was,
hearing that one of the prizes was Urban Island's famous Abalone Hanwoo Brisket Jjamppong! I had my hopes up, just a little bit, haha 🤣
We won a small and adorable watermelon sherbet ice cream! Lollll
But hey, it still made us happy to receive it! Hehe.
The vibrant colors looked great in photos, and it tasted wonderfully refreshing.
Urban Island is largely divided into an adult pool at the front and a kids' pool at the back.
Since it's not super large, it's perfect for casual splashing around rather than serious swimming.
The weather was so lovely that day, it was perfect just lying on a sunbed!
If you go up the stairs near the entrance, you can reach the rooftop,
When you go up to the rooftop, you can see this magnificent panoramic view of Urban Island.
But there was nobody at all in the indoor pool.
In fact, I thought the indoor pool would be even better for swimming and playing!
Urban Island has a 10-minute break every 50 minutes, so you have to exit the pool.
I recommend exploring around like this during the breaks!
You could also enjoy a busking performance like this.
That inner area on the second floor is the incredibly expensive Cabana Zone!
When we went, it was a Sunday, and even the cheapest spots were over ~$345, so there were hardly any users, perhaps because of that🤣
Of course, the advantage is that you can spend your time much more privately than on a regular sunbed, and there's also a separate private pool haha.
We also went to the indoor pool to get some proper swimming in haha.
Wearing a swimming cap is mandatory in the indoor pool.
You can ask a staff member inside the indoor pool to rent a swimming cap for free, and swimsuits are also available for rent! (Rental fee: ~$7)
The indoor pool locker rooms are located separately right next to the Urban Island entrance.
It's not huge, but the facilities are perfectly clean and decent!
You can enter the indoor pool by going up these stairs.
Indoor pool sunbeds are available for use freely in any spot you like.
Compared to Urban Island, there were far fewer people, so we could swim comfortably!
The leftmost lane is exclusively for fitness club members,
so there were two lanes available for hotel guests.
The **depth is 1.2m**, perfect for playing!
But the indoor pool... I wonder if those floor-to-ceiling windows act like a greenhouse, because it was super humid and hot! Haha!
While the cool water was perfect for swimming, it was so warm that you definitely didn't need a towel on the sunbeds! Haha.
There are also **window-side sunbeds** here, where you can look down at Urban Island,
The ambiance is nice, but when we went in the afternoon, the **sunlight was just too direct**, so no one was sitting there! Haha.
If you head from the entrance towards the far end, you'll find an **indoor jacuzzi on the left**, and a **dry sauna and outdoor jacuzzi on the right**.
The outdoor jacuzzi was absolutely wonderful!
Luckily, I managed to snap a pic when no one was around, but do keep in mind that it's usually pretty busy! Haha.
There were also **small outdoor sofas**, which were perfect for stepping out and relaxing in between dips.
The **temperature was around 40 degrees Celsius**, perfectly warm for a soothing soak!
By chance, I even got to watch the **sunset from here**, and it was absolutely breathtaking!
If you head towards the railing, you can also look down at Urban Island from there!
The evening atmosphere is incredible, isn't it?
Back to the indoor pool, on the way up to our room.
And still, the indoor pool was just as peaceful! Haha.
After dinner, we came down again, this time to check out the **fitness center** and burn off some calories.
At the reception, **workout clothes and socks are available for rent free of charge**, and **athletic shoes can be rented for ~$3**.
There was also an **Exercise Prescription Room** with specialized equipment and a **Pilates Studio**.
It seemed like these were exclusively for fitness club members!
Perhaps due to privacy,
photo-taking was not allowed inside the gym, so I couldn't take any pictures beyond the entrance area.
But it was quite spacious, and all the equipment was from Technogym, which was absolutely fantastic!
While I was on the treadmill, I noticed something — the wall in front was a floor-to-ceiling glass window, and there were people strolling outside?
Oh, how do I get out there? After a bit of searching, I found a door leading outside to the left of the gym entrance!
Wow, what is this incredibly open space? I discovered it by chance, and it was absolutely wonderful!
There was a lovely wooden walkway that circled all the way around the perimeter.
It felt like I was exercising in the cool night breeze, which was so much better than the treadmill, haha!
Above the gym, I could also catch a glimpse of the indoor golf practice range.
So, after finishing my workout and stroll,
I thought, 'Shall I check out the night view one last time?' and headed straight to the 23rd floor! lol
The 23rd floor is the top floor of The Shilla Seoul, home to both the Executive Lounge and the Korean restaurant, La Yeon.
And with those stunning night views from the top floor of The Shilla Seoul etched in my memory, I was able to return to my room :)
For this 'hotel-cation,' I didn't feel the need to add lounge access,
because the amenities within The Shilla Seoul alone were enough to fill the day with rich experiences!
Urban Island can be a bit pricey, which might make you hesitate, but the outdoor jacuzzi is fantastic and free for all guests, so I highly recommend visiting the indoor pool area for sure.
For a review of our 'hotel-cation' at The Shilla Seoul with three people, check out the post below!
📍 The Shilla Seoul Urban Island
3F The Shilla Seoul, 249 Dongho-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul
Urban Island, indoor pool, jacuzzi, and gym – a truly fulfilling experience!
Pre-trip (Expectation): ★★★★
Mid-trip (Experience): ★★★★★
Post-trip (Memory): ★★★★★
No, Urban Island is a paid outdoor swimming pool accessible only to Shilla Hotel guests. Operating hours and prices vary by season. During the Early Summer season, which runs until June, the admission fee includes two sunbeds.
Yes, wearing a swimming cap is mandatory in the indoor pool. Swimming caps can be borrowed for free by asking a staff member inside the indoor pool area. Swimsuits are also available for rent for ~$7.
The outdoor jacuzzi is approximately 40 degrees Celsius, perfect for a warm soak. If you're lucky and there are no crowds, you can enjoy the beautiful sunset view and even overlook Urban Island.
Workout clothes and socks can be borrowed for free at the fitness center reception, and athletic shoes can be rented for ~$3. The Exercise Prescription Room and Pilates Studio are operated exclusively for fitness members.
Yes, Urban Island has a 10-minute break every 50 minutes, during which you must exit the pool. During these breaks, we recommend enjoying the busking performances or going up to the rooftop to take in the panoramic view of Urban Island.
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