View from the Room: Ocean 2 Heaven, Busan

The Ocean 2 Heaven is well named. We woke up to sea views every morning, right in the heart of Busan, and yet despite being surrounded by restaurants, shops, bus stops and train stations, there was no hustle and bustle noise to speak of.

The reception is a bit like what you'd expect when you get your car repaired; someone is always there, talks with you through a hatch and they try to cram in as much as they can in that small space. This sets the scene for our room.

The room was on the small side, which we expected - we were only in Busan for four days and hadn't planned to spend much time in it. The smaller the room, though, the better the storage needs to be, and there was very little. No wardrobe, just an open unit with five good wooden hangers, a deep drawer, and no hooks anywhere — not even in the hallway, which was closed off with its own door. At least we could keep our shoes out there. For some reason, an armchair occupied a good chunk of the floor space. The photos above show the room without our two suitcases, two backpacks and a cabin case.

The heating was another matter. It was freezing outside in late January, but that doesn't mean we want to roast inside. We had no control over it, asked for it to be turned down on the second day, and yet the thermometer still read 25°C. We resorted to leaving the windows open during the day and closing them at night when the occasional traffic noise drifted up. The fan in the room should have told us what to expect.

Bathroom

The small tub had full-sized shower gel, shampoo and conditioner on a high shelf, a detachable showerhead, and always a highlight, a bidet toilet. The sink had some space around it, though not ideal as everything risks getting wet. One towel rail, nowhere to properly dry towels, and no bathroom shelf.

Food and Drink

Kettle, tea, and coffee, though disappointingly only paper cups. We used our own. We opted to have breakfast out each day - I don’t know whether the hotel offered it.

Amenities

A safe, two robes, two pairs of slippers and, oddly, one pair of spa slippers.

Speaking of which: the spa was a small additional draw when booking, and my well-stepped body was very much looking forward to it. After some detective work, we established that no treatment was included, the spa was next door, had nothing to do with the hotel beyond sharing a building, and required cash payment. Any hope of a relaxing treatment was ruled out early in the stay.

Laundry

The laundry is on the 11th floor — the lift only goes to the 10th — and it's outside. You book a five-hour slot (10,000 won), which proved challenging, though when is hotel laundry not? It turned out to be no more than a washer and dryer in a locked cupboard, accessed by a code for your slot, with one sachet of detergent provided. A photo (not shared) of the beloved doing laundry in the open air, in his pyjamas and winter hat with the city lights behind him, sums it up perfectly.

We are unlikely to stay again, but this provided us a brilliant base to explore a sprawling city. Restaurants, shops, bus stops and train stations on the doorstep, sea views from the room, and none of the noise you'd expect.

January 2026