Stay Report: InterContinental Tokyo Bay (Tokyo, September 2015)

Stay Report: InterContinental Tokyo Bay
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When I was looking for hotels in Tokyo, IHG was providing discounts for their hotels in Aasia so I found a good deal at the InterContinental Hotel Tokyo Bay.  Overall, the hotel is decent with nice rooms and good customer service.  The rooms are a bit small and the additional hotel services are there but not great.  The hotel is on the outskirts of the city so it was not my first choice, but the hotel is near a transit station and has amenities near it.    

As I said, the hotel is located somewhat on the outskirts of the city, right on Tokyo Bay so it provides great views from the room.  The hotel is about a 5-10 minute walk from the train station, depending on your walking speed, and they do have shuttles available.  The entrance to the hotel is very nice and from the outside the hotel looks grand.  Upon entering into the hotel, straight ahead is the check-in counter, to the left is the restaurant and sitting area, and to the right are the elevators to the rooms.  

As I entered, I went to the desk to check-in but since I had booked a Club Room, I was sent to the Club Lounge on the 20th floor where check-in took place.  The service in the Club Lounge was very good and check-in was quick and efficient; I sat and enjoyed a nice snack while the check-in processing was taking place.  Once everything was done, I received the key and proceeded to the 23^rd floor to my room.    

The rooms themselves are small - and I know Tokyo rooms are generally smaller - but these small rooms had large furniture in them making them feel small and cramped.  Upon entrance, on the left hand side was the bathroom while on the right hand side was the closet with an ironing board and safe (along with slippers and a robe).  The bathroom itself felt a bit more spacious and had a sink, a European-style shower, a tub, and a Japanese-style toilet.  There were also plenty of bathroom toiletries available on the sink and in the tub. 

Proceeding further into the room, on the left hand side, were the beds.  I had requested a room with 2 beds and these two beds were placed right next to each other (literally no room in between the beds).  While the beds were comfortable, the spacing of the beds meant that there was no room or separation between you and your sleeping partner.  On either side of the bed were nightstands and reading lights. 

Across from the beds, next to the closet, was a place to put your suitcase.  Next to that was a chest with drawers on the bottom and a TV mounted on the wall followed by a desk.  There was a very large window which provided some nice views of the bay, and in front of the window were a large couch or two large chairs.  While the additional furniture was nice, the largeness of the furniture contrasted with the smallness of the room so I am not sure why these were needed.  Also, the chairs faced the room and not the window.  What made the room also feel smaller was the décor of the room.  The room was decorated very differently than to other InterContinental hotels I have stayed at; this décor was ostentatious and dark and made the room feel even smaller.

As InterContinental hotels are full service, there were a lot of hotel amenities.  The hotel offered a 'business center' and a fitness center.  The 'business center' is located in the hallway leading towards the lobby restrooms in which two computers are placed were the phone booths used to be (not very convenient) and a login is required (which can be received from the front desk).  The 'fitness center' is located on the 8th floor next to other rooms and is two rooms combined (828 and 829) with treadmills and basic equipment.  It is not large fitness center and the room decorations are kept the same as all the other rooms, but basic fitness equipment is available.  The hotel also has a spa, but I did not have time to access it. 

Other amenities include the Club Lounge and Club Floors.  The Club Lounge is very good and

provides really nice breakfast, cocktails, and light dinner.  The service in the lounge is also very good.  The hotel also has a concierge service which was also decent.  They were able to provide good information and answered all the questions, but did not expand beyond the questions with any suggestions.  The hotel does provide wifi, complimentary to guests and with decent speeds.  The only amenity the hotel does not have on site is an ATM machine

Overall, it was a decent stay at the InterContinental.  While the rooms were smaller and, in my opinion, poorly decorated, they were comfortable and provided a good night’s sleep.  The service in the Club Lounge was very good but the Concierge service could have been better.  It’s a bit further away from the city, but the easy access to transportation plus nice views of the bay make it a nice stay.