The-Aviator
Member
- Joined
- Dec 10, 2018
- Posts
- 193
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- Ruby
Hotel: InterContinental Auckland
When: April 2025
Status: Platinum Ambassador
Rate: NZD$320/night (Visa partner rate)
Booked: 1 King Classic
Received: 1 King Classic Harbour View (two-category upgrade)
A very pleasant stay over the Easter long weekend, the hotel I believe was pretty close to full and I initially saw a one-category upgrade to a King Classic City View a few days out before receiving another upgrade to King Classic Harbour View two days before arrival. Check-in experience was comprehensive with the duty manager running through the hotel facilities and confirming my Club access via annual lounge pass. He also re-allocated me to a room on a higher floor with a better view. Took two drinks as my welcome amenity.
The rooms are very nice and spacious, with all the modern features you would expect from a new-build hotel. Lots of electronic controls including blinds which would automatically close when you left the room and reopen on return, air-conditioning also worked very well. The TV was large with plenty of cable/international channels as well as Chromecast and the bed was super comfortable. Bathroom was well laid out and had a drawer full of amenities in addition to the usual Byredo toiletries. Whilst there was no complimentary bottled water in the room there is a filtered water tap on each floor and a carafe left in the room for guests to fill. Housekeeping was excellent and as part of the Club InterContinental benefits included evening turndown as well, this was missed on one night but not a big deal for me. In addition to the standard IHG welcome amenity the staff also delivered a hotel-specific amenity of honey-infused sparkling water and a chocolate ice cream. Later on during the stay they also dropped off a box of Easter chocolates.
The Club InterContinental is beautifully designed and seems to have more than enough space for the number of guests with access, it was typically pretty quiet except for the first night when they had a tour group event for the first hour of evening drinks which they made sure to communicate to all guests anyway. There are a variety of seating options including both lounges and regular tables for groups of all sizes. Although you needed a key card to enter they also ticked off names / room numbers from a list after entering.
Lounge breakfast includes a small buffet as well as à la carte items. Afternoon tea includes a tiered stand with two finger sandwiches, a macaron, a sweet item and a savoury scone with butter, they mixed up the offerings each day which was nice and offered variety. The evening service included a small buffet as well as a plate of hot canapés served to the table. The evening drink menu was extremely extensive and included coughtails, mocktails, spirits, beer and wine etc, you could order from the same drinks menu throughout the day for a charge. The staff in the lounge were all quite new, but very keen to help and quick to offer more food and drink top-ups.
The hotel has a small but well-equipped gym on the same floor as the Club InterContinental - unfortunately there are no windows in the gym so unfortunately I wouldn't bother using it unless the weather was terrible outside! The location of the hotel is fantastic both for business guests but even more so for tourists, it's directly across the road from the ferry terminal and there are easy transport connections all over Auckland from Britomart.
Staff regularly checked in on how my stay was going via WhatsApp which was very convenient. On one morning I had a day trip with an early departure and I asked if a breakfast box could be arranged in lieu of the club breakfast. They were able to arrange this and I picked it up at around 6am from reception, thought it was very nice of them to facilitate that.
I also had dinner at the hotel restaurant Advieh one night - I had been looking forward to this however unfortunately it was one of the more disappointing parts of the stay and certainly my least favourite meal of the trip. Service was slow, haphazard, the food was so-so and they had run out of a lot of items. It was however an opportunity to use my welcome drink vouchers and Ambassador F&B credit. If you are looking for a good meal in Auckland I would highly recommend Culprit, if you're looking for something higher end I would suggest Tala in Parnell. But there are plenty of good dining options in this city!
Overall a really enjoyable stay and my favourite of the IHG properties in Auckland by far. Will definitely be back!
When: April 2025
Status: Platinum Ambassador
Rate: NZD$320/night (Visa partner rate)
Booked: 1 King Classic
Received: 1 King Classic Harbour View (two-category upgrade)
A very pleasant stay over the Easter long weekend, the hotel I believe was pretty close to full and I initially saw a one-category upgrade to a King Classic City View a few days out before receiving another upgrade to King Classic Harbour View two days before arrival. Check-in experience was comprehensive with the duty manager running through the hotel facilities and confirming my Club access via annual lounge pass. He also re-allocated me to a room on a higher floor with a better view. Took two drinks as my welcome amenity.
The rooms are very nice and spacious, with all the modern features you would expect from a new-build hotel. Lots of electronic controls including blinds which would automatically close when you left the room and reopen on return, air-conditioning also worked very well. The TV was large with plenty of cable/international channels as well as Chromecast and the bed was super comfortable. Bathroom was well laid out and had a drawer full of amenities in addition to the usual Byredo toiletries. Whilst there was no complimentary bottled water in the room there is a filtered water tap on each floor and a carafe left in the room for guests to fill. Housekeeping was excellent and as part of the Club InterContinental benefits included evening turndown as well, this was missed on one night but not a big deal for me. In addition to the standard IHG welcome amenity the staff also delivered a hotel-specific amenity of honey-infused sparkling water and a chocolate ice cream. Later on during the stay they also dropped off a box of Easter chocolates.
The Club InterContinental is beautifully designed and seems to have more than enough space for the number of guests with access, it was typically pretty quiet except for the first night when they had a tour group event for the first hour of evening drinks which they made sure to communicate to all guests anyway. There are a variety of seating options including both lounges and regular tables for groups of all sizes. Although you needed a key card to enter they also ticked off names / room numbers from a list after entering.
Lounge breakfast includes a small buffet as well as à la carte items. Afternoon tea includes a tiered stand with two finger sandwiches, a macaron, a sweet item and a savoury scone with butter, they mixed up the offerings each day which was nice and offered variety. The evening service included a small buffet as well as a plate of hot canapés served to the table. The evening drink menu was extremely extensive and included coughtails, mocktails, spirits, beer and wine etc, you could order from the same drinks menu throughout the day for a charge. The staff in the lounge were all quite new, but very keen to help and quick to offer more food and drink top-ups.
The hotel has a small but well-equipped gym on the same floor as the Club InterContinental - unfortunately there are no windows in the gym so unfortunately I wouldn't bother using it unless the weather was terrible outside! The location of the hotel is fantastic both for business guests but even more so for tourists, it's directly across the road from the ferry terminal and there are easy transport connections all over Auckland from Britomart.
Staff regularly checked in on how my stay was going via WhatsApp which was very convenient. On one morning I had a day trip with an early departure and I asked if a breakfast box could be arranged in lieu of the club breakfast. They were able to arrange this and I picked it up at around 6am from reception, thought it was very nice of them to facilitate that.
I also had dinner at the hotel restaurant Advieh one night - I had been looking forward to this however unfortunately it was one of the more disappointing parts of the stay and certainly my least favourite meal of the trip. Service was slow, haphazard, the food was so-so and they had run out of a lot of items. It was however an opportunity to use my welcome drink vouchers and Ambassador F&B credit. If you are looking for a good meal in Auckland I would highly recommend Culprit, if you're looking for something higher end I would suggest Tala in Parnell. But there are plenty of good dining options in this city!
Overall a really enjoyable stay and my favourite of the IHG properties in Auckland by far. Will definitely be back!
The powder room had a hook for the hand towel. Ended up hanging it on the shower door.
