Home › K-dramas › Hotel del Luna
Hotel del Luna (호텔 델루나): Plot, Characters and Cast
Hotel del Luna (호텔 델루나, Hotel Delluna) is a fantasy, romance and horror-comedy series that tvN aired in 2019. It has 16 episodes, written by Hong Jung-eun and Hong Mi-ran and directed by Oh Chung-hwan. It stars Lee Ji-eun, better known as IU. In 2022 it became a musical in South Korea, and in 2024 an American remake was announced. Here you have the plot, characters, cast and their Saju.
- Cast
- Lee Ji-eun (IU), Yeo Jin-goo, Shin Jung-geun, Bae Hae-sun, Pyo Ji-hoon
- tvN
- 2019 · 16 episodes
Official video
Official video by CJ ENM Global on YouTube. It only loads if you press play.
Plot (no spoilers)
Hotel del Luna isn't on any map: ordinary people can't see it. It only hosts spirits who still have unfinished business before moving on. Its owner is Jang Man-wol, a temperamental, luxury-loving woman who has been bound to the hotel for more than a thousand years as punishment for a terrible deed.
Years ago, a desperate man made a deal with her and promised her his son. That boy, Gu Chan-sung, grows up and trains at Harvard as a hotel professional. But the pact catches up with him: he ends up forced to become the human manager of the ghost hotel.
There he meets Man-wol's curious crew: Kim Seon-bi, a Joseon-era scholar who is the longest-serving bartender; Choi Seo-hee, a ghost housekeeper who was once a noblewoman and holds a very old grudge; and Ji Hyun-joong, a young front-desk clerk who died during the Korean War. Between guests who arrive with sad stories, scares and moments of humor, Chan-sung slowly begins to uncover the past Man-wol has been dragging along for centuries.
Characters and their Saju
Jang Man-wol 장만월
Lee Ji-eun (IU) · Yin Metal · The Jewel
Man-wol is the owner of Hotel del Luna, bound to it for 1,300 years. She is temperamental, capricious and adores luxury, as if she wanted to fill a very old emptiness with pretty things. Beneath her bad temper is a story the series reveals bit by bit.
If Man-wol had a Saju card, it would be Yin Metal · The Jewel: dazzling, demanding and covered in layers that time has hardened. A thousand-year-old jewel doesn't let itself be touched easily, but when someone cleans it with patience, it shines again.
Gu Chan-sung 구찬성
Yeo Jin-goo · Yang Wood · The Great Tree
Chan-sung is a Harvard-trained hotelier who ends up, against his will, as manager of a hotel for ghosts. The deal his father made years ago defines his destiny. Rational by training, he has to learn to work in a place where logic doesn't always rule.
If Chan-sung had a Saju card, it would be Yang Wood · The Great Tree: upright, with firm roots and branches that give shade even to ghosts. In Saju, wood feeds fire, and his calm ends up bringing warmth to an icy hotel.
Kim Seon-bi 김선비
Shin Jung-geun · Yin Earth · The Garden
Kim Seon-bi is the spirit of a Joseon-era scholar and the hotel's longest-serving bartender. He serves drinks to the guests with the calm of someone who has seen it all. He is, in a way, the living memory of Hotel del Luna.
If Kim Seon-bi had a Saju card, it would be Yin Earth · The Garden: calm, welcoming and with centuries of stories tucked among his roots. He pours a drink, listens and lets each soul bloom or say goodbye at its own pace.
Choi Seo-hee 최서희
Bae Hae-sun · Yang Earth · The Mountain
Choi Seo-hee is the hotel's ghost housekeeper. In life she was a noblewoman, and ever since she has carried a very old grudge she has no intention of letting go easily. That weight helps explain why she stays at the hotel instead of moving on.
If Seo-hee had a Saju card, it would be Yang Earth · The Mountain: patient, unmoving and with a memory of stone. Mountains keep everything, even what hurt. Her Saju lesson is that you can also let a stone roll downhill.
Ji Hyun-joong 지현중
Pyo Ji-hoon · Yin Wood · The Climbing Vine
Ji Hyun-joong is a ghost front-desk clerk who died very young, during the Korean War. Behind the Hotel del Luna counter, he welcomes guests arriving from the other side. His youth, frozen in time, gives his story a tender, melancholy touch.
If Hyun-joong had a Saju card, it would be Yin Wood · The Climbing Vine: young, tender and still growing, even though time stopped for him. A vine like that looks for light in any corner, even in a ghost hotel.
And what would your Saju be? Find out free with your birth date.
Why so many people fell for it
Hotel del Luna has a one-of-a-kind look: every episode brings guests with stories that move or scare you, and the chemistry between IU and Yeo Jin-goo carries the romance. It's elegant fantasy with a touch of horror and a lot of heart. It arrived on Netflix in Latin America on September 2, 2021. Its story kept growing off screen: in 2022 it became a musical in South Korea, and in 2024 an American version with Skydance was announced.
Facts
- Written by Hong Jung-eun and Hong Mi-ran; directed by Oh Chung-hwan, in 16 episodes.
- Its finale reached a nationwide rating of about 12%.
- In 2024 an American remake with Skydance was announced.
Ending (spoilers)
Show the ending
Spoiler: Man-wol settles her accounts with the past and, after a farewell with Chan-sung, passes on to the afterlife. An epilogue hints that the two meet again in a future life. A melancholy ending, but with a door left open to hope.
If you liked it, watch next
- Guardian: The Lonely and Great God (Goblin) 2016 · tvN
- Moon Embracing the Sun 2012 · MBC
- My Love from the Star 2013 · SBS
Frequently asked questions
What is Hotel del Luna about?
Jang Man-wol owns a hotel invisible to the living that hosts spirits with unfinished business. Because of a deal his father made, Gu Chan-sung is forced to become its human manager.
Who stars in Hotel del Luna?
Lee Ji-eun, known as IU, plays Jang Man-wol, and Yeo Jin-goo plays Gu Chan-sung. Shin Jung-geun, Bae Hae-sun and Pyo Ji-hoon play the hotel staff.
How many episodes does Hotel del Luna have?
Hotel del Luna has 16 episodes. tvN aired it in 2019, written by Hong Jung-eun and Hong Mi-ran and directed by Oh Chung-hwan.