When my family and I decided to experience white christmas in South Korea for 10 days, we thought that it would be more convenient to rent at an Airbnb.

What is an Airbnb?
It is a website to list, find and rent lodging. A vacation rental from local hosts in more than 190 countries which can either be a home, condominium, apartment or hostel. Perfect for travelers who want cheaper accommodation compared to hotels and it also has amenities that standard hotels cannot provide (you'll find out later on as you read this blog)

The good thing about Airbnb is that there are handful of options to choose from. Options not only include the type of accommodation, location, space and the number of guests to stay but also the specific amenities that you are looking for. 
White Bamboo in Dongdaemun by Kwangpil | P3,254 ++ per night
As I've been browsing for an ideal place to stay in Seoul, a minimalist loft caught my attention.  It's in Dongdeamun area, a few walks to two subways lines (line 1 and 2 - Sinseoldong Subway) and good for up to 5 guests (we were four) plus cooking and laundry are available so when my family approved of this listing, I booked it immediately.

Kwangpil the host
Airbnb hosts have different styles of communication and as per Kwangpil we never got to see him although a week before our actual stay he emailed me information about his unit, directions of his place, loft guidelines and restaurant recommendations.  

Going to White Bamboo Dongdaemun Vertville from Incheon International Airport
The most convenient and fastest way is via Airport Bus 6002 that stops at exit 5 and 12 of the airport which cost 10,000 won (P400) per person and the duration is 1 hour to 1 hour 30 mins depending on the traffic. Alight Sinseoldong bus stop and walk for 5 minutes going to the building. The building has three main elevators, take the 1 and 3 as 2 doesn't stop on the floor where the loft is located.

three single beds

Kitchen
The kitchen has the basic cooking needs we needed:
Spacious refrigerator
Cups
Plates
Dining utensils
Kitchen paper
Pots and Pans
Electric Kettle
Dish washing liquid
Gas stove
Washing Machine with detergent and fabric softener
*No rice cooker, they only have a pot where you can cook your rice manually
*No ingredients provided

The shower has no door

What you can do at an Airbnb that you will not/can't in a standard hotel?

Cook
Cooking can save you a lot of money. One of the main reasons why we opted to rent at an Airbnb was because we wanted to cook so that we could save. During our stay my Mama cooked breakfast/brunch so we didn't have to eat outside for breakfast or lunch. Basic ingredients can be bought at the convenience store, first floor of the same building.

Mama preparing breakfast

Breakfast for four-  Korean rice, sunny side up, bacon, stir fried veggies and left over from yesterday's lunch

Laundry
We were also saving for baggage allowance so we didn't bring many clothes especially inner wear. Another reason why we chose to stay at an Airbnb was because it has a laundry option (without additional fees). However, there were no instructions as to how to use it. Thank you for Korean friends (hello Krimmy couple) and social media we were able to use this. Btw dryer is not provided but there is a spinner, we hung it at the wet clothes rack provided fortunately drying them up was not a problem.

Washing machine, detergent and fabric softner

Clean
One of the guidelines in Kwangpil's loft was to maintain its cleanliness, it was my mom's initiative to clean the flooring whenever she felt it was dusty.

Mama

Throw the trash
In Korea they have a strict and complicated garbage system as compared to the Philippines where we have no discipline at all. So by maintaining the cleanliness of the place, one of Kwangpil's guidelines was to throw the trash in its proper place, there are certain garbage bags for particular garbage, however he failed to provide us the standard garbage bag. When I informed him about it he just instructed us that we can store all the garbages at the storage room near the door. 

Nearby Establishments
The building itself has many establishments

Convenience Store
We bought most of our ingredients here like cooking oil, salt pepper, coffee, eggs, rice, meat, veggies, chocolate drink & noodles. They also have ready-to-eat bento boxes that are really cheap! They're open 24 hours so it was very 'convenient'. 

24 hour Convenience Store

Our first grocery

Traditional Korean Restaurant

Our Christmas Eve dinner - Korean Fried Chicken, Seafood Udon Soup and Sausage

Cooking is always FUN

Pork and Kimchi Stew (5,500 won), Home-made beef sirloin cutlet (6,000 won) Pan-fried seafood udon (6,500 won), Pork cutlet with sweet potato and mozzarella cheese (7,000)

The encircled station is Sinseoldong Station

Subway Line 2 Exit 7 is right beside the building

Sinseoldong Subway