Our stay at a hanok in Jeonju Hanok Village

14 and 15 November 2025

Jeonju has the largest hanok village in Korea and we chose to stay 2 nights in Star Rest Hanok. It is a charming, traditional Korean guesthouse located on the southern edge of the famous Jeonju Hanok Village.

Cobbled stone alleyway outside Star Rest Hanok.

Entrance to Star Rest Hanok.

The hanok came with modern comforts like ondol (heated floors) and private bathrooms.

Typical entrance to our room in a hanok. A place to sit to remove our footwear before entering.

The family that owns the business does not stay at the guesthouse. I had contacted them via KakaoTalk (with Google Translate) the day before to inform them of our expected arrival time so the host would meet us at the guesthouse when we arrive. Due to our boo-boo when travelling to Jeonju from the airport, we arrived 2 hours later than expected. I had to inform them of our unplanned delay. Thankfully, he received our message and even replied with a “please not to rush and travel safe”.

The hanok is located on the edge of the hanok village so it was easy to access. The hanok owner was waiting for us inside the hanok. He was an elderly man who speaks a bit of English that is well enough for us to understand him.

During check-in, he gave us some tourist information on recommended sights within the hanok village and also within Jeonju city. He also suggested some famous Jeonju cuisine and places to eat.

It is traditional to sit on the heated floor inside a hanok instead of chairs and table. 

Chatting with the friendly hanok owner in the courtyard outside our room where he showed us some of his wooden carvings and calligraphy skills.

Entrance to our room. The wooden doors are secured using a simple padlock.

Calligraphy brushes.

He proudly told us he did the calligraphy displayed outside our room and demonstrated his calligraphy skills by writing his name in Chinese text 郑 with a large brush on a slab of stone on the ground. That was when we found out that his family name is the same as my wife's.

Carving by the owner with his name at the left lower edge.

Our room is fairly large and has an attached bathroom with WC and shower.

One downside of staying in a hanok is that there are no sofas and we had to sit and sleep on futons laid on the heated floor (ondol).

The owner showed us where the futons are kept and also explained how to set them up for our sleep at night.

Compared to thick mattresses found at home or in a standard hotel room, the futons were a bit hard to sleep on. For me, I was able to have a good night sleep on them.

Sitting and sleeping on the heated floor is part and parcel of the Korean floor-based living culture. Winter in Korea is very cold. In the old days, a small, wood-burning furnace (or stove) was typically located in an adjoining room, often the kitchen, and built at a lower level than the heated room. The hot air and smoke are channeled through horizontal flues beneath a thick masonry floor, which then radiated heat through the floor to the room. This ingeniously simple design provided efficient and long-lasting warmth to the floor of the house.

Today, the floor is heated using electricity with the temperature control mounted on the wall. The heated floor was quite effective in keeping the room warm. In fact, my wife found the floor a little too warm and we had to turn the heating down in the middle of the night.

The next morning, I made some hot drinks for breakfast using the self-service pantry in the common area. The pantry is well stock and has everything we need to make hot drinks for breakfast.

It is usual for the locals to sit on the verandah of a hanok for meals. Although the morning was a little chilly, it was a nice experience.

Hot coffee and PNB choco-pies for a light breakfast snack.

Enjoying the ambience of the hanok.

Main gate of the hanok right outside our room.              

Just when we were about to head out to explore the village, the owner showed up. I had a chat with him and enquired about the ease of getting a taxi from the hanok village in the morning. I told him that I planned to check out at 7 AM the next day, get a taxi to the Jeonju Express Bus terminal to catch the 8.10 AM bus to Gwangju.

He was keen to help us arrange for a taxi but told us he would not be able to come so early in the morning. Being the helpful person, he requested help from a gentleman sweeping the floor of the alleyway outside our hanok to help book taxi for us the next day.

This person is actually the owner of hanok next door. He told us he would meet us outside our hanok at 7.30 AM the next morning to help us call for a taxi. The ride to the bus terminal would take about 15 minutes and we should be in time to catch our bus.

With that arrangement done, we thanked the two men and went out to enjoy our day in the hanok village.

When we returned in the evening, we found a basket full of goodies in our room.

This was left in our room when we returned to our room at the end of Day 2. Perfect drinks and snacks for our breakfast before checking out early the next morning.

The next morning, we were ready to go by 7 AM. Our hanok is located near to the Jeonju stream. Since we were early, we went to the river side to snap some photos. 

Sunrise at Jeonju.

At 7.20 AM, the neighbour showed up. He helped call for a taxi using a mobile app on his phone. 10 minutes later, the taxi arrived. The kind gentleman even helped load our luggage into the taxi before bidding us goodbye. 

We made it to the express bus terminal as planned. Tickets for the buses can be booked in advance online but it would be challenging for tourists who do not have access to the local payment systems. Hence we had to book our tickets at the bus terminal on the day of travel.

We managed to book the last 2 tickets for the bus to Gwangju! We knew it was the last 2 tickets because we were seated in the last row of the bus. Lucky us.

Last 2 tickets on the 8.10 AM express bus from Jeonju to Gwangju.

We left Jeonju with warm feeling in our hearts. We had good experiences in our hanok stay. We had wonderful interactions with friendly people who provided local tips, warm hospitality and go out of their way to make our stay comfortable.