I finished a week-long stay at the Seoul Courtyard. See my first impressions in post #10, above. My final impressions are:
* Beautiful new building with bright, open architecture and excellent quality materials.
* Standard rooms have luxury appointments and high-end baths. Room size is a bit small.
* Exec lounge has rooftop patio with great views. Lounge is closed on weekends, but free drinks and snacks are offered in the main restaurant.
* Breakfast buffet offers mixture of Korean and Western items.
* Western dinner items at the main restaurant were very good. Some menu items were much too expensive, though. Ex: approx 9000 Won for a bottle of Hite beer?!
* Staff are friendly and trained in their functions, though at 3 times I saw them start to fall apart when there were too many customers to help at the same time.
* Location is great for those with business in Yeouido, okay for downtown (closer than JW and Ren), fine for anything reachable by rail from Yeongdeungpo Station. Area is new right now, so be prepared to explain it to taxi drivers. Served by Limousine Bus #6008 to/from the airport.
* Currently a great deal for the price. I paid about $120/night all-in during a week when the Ren was around $200 and the JW was $250. I liked it better than the Ren and about as much as the JW -- though that's a bit like comparing apples and oranges.