InterContinental Hotels ZHUHAI — Hotel in Zhuhai

Zhuhai, Guangdong Province. For many of the well-travelled population of China, Zhuhai is commonly regarded as a port city that connects Mainland China and the Special Administrative Region of Macau. Unless you travel to check out the small Chimelong Resort in Zhuhai, Zhuhai is not known to be a hot travel spot for tourism. However, recent expansions of the city made the Greater Bay Coastal City more attractive with new malls along its beaches, impressive architecture buildings that straddles the coast, and many more for those residing or traveling to this city. ||One of the most popular hotels in Zhuhai is the InterContinental Zhuhai Hotel, established by the Renhe Real Estate Development Company. A group of 4 nearly identical skyscrapers that huddles around the tip of the city next to the Macau border, the tallest of which holds the 2018 grand-opened InterContinental Hotel. ||For months, I’ve been wanting to try this hotel and review it. It is the second-last InterContinental in Guangdong Province that I am to tick off before covering all of the Guangdong InterContinental Hotel branches. It also marks my 40th InterContinental Hotel & Resorts property I have visited. ||With that said, here is a breakdown of my July 8th to 9th visit to the InterContinental Zhuhai:||Pre-Arrival: I booked my stay for 25,000 IHG One Points the night before my arrival at Zhuhai. Therefore, amidst the fact that I booked the hotel at a late time, no one called me for stay preferences as normally would be conducted the day before arrival. ||Arrival: After getting off the ferry from Shenzhen towards noon on the day of my arrival, I hopped on a taxi to the hotel. As opposed to many hotels where the lobby is usually located on the ground floor, the taxi went up an elevating ramp to the 2nd floor where the main lobby is located. Getting off the car and entering the grand lobby, I headed for the private check-in area assigned to InterContinental Ambassadors, Platinum-Elite and Diamond-Elite Members. At the desk was the Zhuhai-native Guest Relations Agent Rena Li, who kindly welcomed me to the hotel and was keen on finding me a clean room amidst an early arrival with the lack of rooms vacant. Eventually, she got me upgraded from the 1 King Classic Room to the 1 King Premium Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai Bridge (HMZB) View Room. ||Room: The 1 King Premium HKMZH Bridge View Room is a 65 SQM space that faces the bridge with spectacular views of the Greater Bay, Hong Kong’s Lantau Island, Macau, and of course most eye-popping of all the HZMB port building for the Mainland-side. The room I was on is considered to be on the Executive Floors as I was on the 45th floor - the 46th is considered the highest level possible for hotel rooms & suites. In the room is configured with a bedroom, bathroom, and closet room. The bedroom has a King-sized bed (with memory foam pillows and regular pillows), a desk area, sofa chair, complimentary minibar for club lounge guests, and a pullout Samsung Flat Screen TV. A JBL Horizon Speaker sits next to your bed, along with a lighting & curtain control panel. The bathroom on the other hand features a double vanity-sink, soaking bathtub, shower, and Kohler Toilet cubicle with its own marble sink for handwashing. ||The room has proven to show its age, with some of the features worn out or simply not clean. The wooden double doors leading to the bathroom for example took a lot of challenge to open and close, as the hinges were a bit stuck when moving the doors. Laundry bags and the hair blower bag for example had leftover hair from someone else. There was even a strand of hair on the floor of the bathroom. ||I got to meet the Front Office Manager Tobby Hu concerning this, and Tobby made sure the room was adjusted and in better service-form. Tobby arranged the room to be reclean and the hair dryer upgraded to a Dyson Hair Dryer. In addition, Tobby arranged a Bryedo Blanche gift and a Bottle of Prosecco as an extra smooth touch to what was a slightly rough start. ||Because Tobby knew I came to Zhuhai to check this hotel out, he arranged Rena to take me on a tour of the hotel. I was given a tour of a few suites, a couple of standard rooms, the hotel’s Planet Trekkers Play Area, all of the restaurant and bar facilities, the fitness center, and finally the Club InterContinental Lounge on the 35th floor. ||The hotel features 3 restaurants and a lobby bar:||Commune: InterContinental’s Signature All-Day Dining Restaurant Chain, which is seen in many newer InterContinental properties in Mainland China. This Commune on the 2nd floor provides a brightly-lit atmosphere with impressive modern interior wall decor, marble island tables, open-kitchen stations, and home-inspired dining seating. Every night a dinner buffet is featured along with a daily breakfast buffet. The restaurant also provides a view of the Greater Bay, along with the HZMB. ||CaiFengLou: IHG’s Signature Chinese Restaurant Chain that takes local ingredients and specialties to a prestigious level found in many InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, and Hualuxe Properties. This CaiFengLou specializes in Cantonese Cuisine with a modern twist fit to the hotel’s portfolio of food including a traditional dim-sum service. ||CHAR Restaurant: The hotel’s signature American-inspired steakhouse. It is an open-kitchen restaurant concept serving gourmet dishes such as the USDA Prime Ribeye Steak. This small, but modern space examines intimate minimalistic interior decorations that make the signature dishes the highlights, such as the emphasis on the cows statues scattered around the tables and the beef inspired murals on the walls. The tradition at this restaurant is that you eat a steak with a knife of your choosing, different types of mustard, and salt. CHAR is also found in IHG’s Shanghai Indigo Hotel along the Huangpu River, where the renowned YouTuber “Max the Meat Guy” discovered his ambitions of cooking which led to his fame. CHAR has also won Michelin guides in other branches of its network. ||Bridge Lounge: The hotel’s lobby lounge that features a bar that faces the HZMB. It serves small snacks and drinks, along with a redemption area for IHG One Drink Vouchers. ||Something To Note: The seating in all public areas seems to be height-wise lower than the average chair height. Therefore, the feeling of sitting in a seat in any dining facility if you’re more than 1.8 meters tall can prove to be a challenge. ||Fitness Center & Outdoor Pool: Whilst the fitness center provides all the modern workout facilities needed to complete your fitness routine, the outdoor swimming pool was the ultimate highlight of the stay. Tobby recommended me to swim at 5PM, which is when the sun starts to set and the outdoor temperatures start to become more tolerable. The outdoor pool features an infinity lap pool that views the HZMB, along with a spa pool and kids’ pool. It is in my opinion the best outdoor swimming pool I have experienced so far in my hotel stays. What makes the experience extra special is the fact that there is a spinning dryer for your wet swimming suit. The biggest challenge for the hotel is the lack of an indoor pool, which can proven to be frustrating when a storm comes in. ||Club InterContinental: The Club Lounge is one of the most exciting aspects of the hotel. Although smaller than the average Club InterContinental, the stunning views from the 35th floor of the hotel dilutes the sense of limited space in the lounge. The lounge features a front desk, dining area, sofa area, buffet area, meeting room, and bathroom. It is run by the Club InterContinental Manager Dorris Deng, to which I had the honor of meeting her, the Club Supervisor Mia, and Club Agent Sian. As a lounge that opens from 6:30AM to 11PM, the lounge serves a semi-buffet breakfast, afternoon tea, and happy hour. One unique feature is an all-day champagne service which was offered at the entrance. I made suggestions such as providing knives during afternoon tea service for the scones, an implementation of loose-leaf tea service, and a more diverse soft drink selection. ||Dining Experiences:||As a personal tradition, I challenged the Food & Beverage Manager Ricky Wang to select my dinner and lunch at the hotel. Both of which took place at the CaiFengLou restaurant. ||For dinner, Ricky got CaiFengLou’s Executive Chef Jason Huang to curate a one-person meal under the specific budgets of the advertised average cost per person on the Chinese App DaZhongDianPing. It ended being around ¥240 RMB, which was an exceptional price for what you’re experiencing. Chef Jason curated a meal of the following dishes:||Triple Amuse Bouche consisting of marinated cucumbers, fois gras, and marinated beef.||Chicken & Abalone Soup||Stir Fried Beef with Chinese Sauerkraut ||Shrimp Stock Infused Steamed Egg with Fish Slices||Seasonal Greens in Soup||Roasted Char Siu||Lemon-Infused Conpoy Egg White Fried Rice with Dried Scallops ||Pear Soup infused with Dried Mandarin Peel||For my ¥195 RMB Lunch, I tried the Dim Sum service which consisted of the following:||Roasted Goose||Steamed Shrimp Dumplings ||Red Crispy Shrimp Chang Fen ||Squash Porridge with Preserved Mustard Greens||Walnut Pudding||Breakfast took place at the Commune All-Day Dining Restaurant. Some of the standouts at this Commune Restaurant that makes this branch different than other InterContinentals is the selections of unique dishes such as fresh seafood congee, handmade wontons, freshly fried dough sticks, and many more exciting Cantonese selections. Western-style dishes were a bit underwhelming but could improved easily. For example, I think the scrambled eggs could be pre-mixed than scrambled in the pan so that it could be more consistent. However, I had pancakes at the Club Lounge which was delicious. ||Conclusion:||Overall, a pretty positive experience at the InterContinental Zhuhai Hotel! Although the stay started on a minor rough note, the hotel made a comeback and improved my stay for the better. I was honored to be given a tour of this grand hotel, which was a great experience to have for this written review. The hotel I believe needs to focus on getting the small details of cleaning right in the hotel rooms. That is what I believe will make the stay for all guests better and better. In the long run, the hotel should also look into improving furniture for the public areas like restaurants and bars, so that it will be more comfortable for the newer 50th percentile of people based on height. ||So here is how I rank the 40th InterContinental I have visited so far personally:||InterContinental Buffet Breakfast in China:|#10 out of 27 All-Day Dining Restaurants||Club InterContinental Lounge Rankings:|#12 out of 34 Club Lounges||InterContinental Hotel Rankings:|#16 out of 40 InterContinental...

Home to 2.5m people, Zhuhai, on the west bank of China’s Pearl River Delta, is located just 39 miles from Hong Kong via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge. The bridge opened in October 2018, with InterContinental Zhuhai, on the city’s waterfront Qinglv Road, opening just two months later. ||The building that is home to the InterContinental is part of the Yanlord Marina Centre and was designed by CL3 Architects. It is an impressive sail shape, with a sweeping awning covering the driveway and main entrance on the second floor. The hotel is primarily located on floors 26 to 46, although public areas are located on the lower levels, meaning there is no need for a split lobby. ||Reception is located to the right of the modestly sized second floor lobby, with a dedicated Ambassador check-in area straight ahead and to the left, near the lift lobby. I didn’t spot this immediately, and so checked in at the main reception, which was welcoming and efficient, even though the staff are not particularly accustomed to non-Chinese speaking guests. We were offered two drinks vouchers for use in the lobby level Bridge Lounge, and two further vouchers for use in the fifth floor Char Bar and Grill (the latter went unused unfortunately). These vouchers were in addition to my Diamond Elite complimentary breakfast for two, although it should be noted that Ambassador members receive complimentary breakfast for one person in Mainland Chinese InterContinentals even if they don’t have Diamond Elite status. ||We were initially allocated a Classic room with a Bridge view on the 29th floor (a one category upgrade from our booked Classic / standard room), but upon stepping into the room it was clear that it was a smoking room, so we asked to be moved and were then switched to a Premium room with Bridge view on the 39th floor. ||At a spacious 60 square metres, this was a well-appointed and designed space, even if it was slightly battered around the edges if you looked hard enough. In addition to a king-size bed with ottoman at its base, the bedroom featured a built-in desk (sadly facing away from the window, although the drawer did contain branded stationery), a chaise longue positioned parallel to the floor-to-ceiling window, and a neat minibar console. ||A walk-in wardrobe near the entrance door contained plenty of luggage storage space, as well as robes and slippers. ||Lighting and curtains could be controlled from handy bedside panels, and power provision was good. I particularly liked that the curtains closed automatically when the room was vacated (presumably to prevent the room from overheating) but the system remembered the previous setting when the entrance door was opened once again. Very smart. ||A fruit bowl had been placed in our original room as a welcome gift; I had asked for this to be moved to our new room but once settled there we received a call asking if we’d like a fruit bowl delivered. The minibar was complimentary and included a L’OR coffee machine and tea by Twinings, which is a bit like having English Cheddar being the sole offering on a cheese plate in France. ||The bathroom was the highlight of the room; at almost the same size as the bedroom, it featured a freestanding bath positioned directly next to another floor-to-ceiling window, dual basins, a large walk-in rain shower, and a separate toilet room. There was even a relaxation bench which looked like a horrendously uncomfortable mini massage table. Byredo amenities were offered in large reusable bottles, although there was only one set of hand wash and lotion for the two basins, which given they were set so far apart was quite annoying.||The Club InterContinental lounge on the 35th floor is ordinarily accessible to Premium room guests, although there appeared to be an error with our room move in that I don’t think the reception team should’ve enabled our room keys for lounge access given the move was a complimentary upgrade. As it was, our keys opened the doors, and it wasn’t until we were sitting down for a light evening meal that we were approached and asked (very politely and apologetically) whether I had an IHG One Rewards Milestone Reward voucher to use for access to the lounge. I didn’t, and so after a bit of an awkward exchange, it was decided that we could continue to use the lounge – it was the reception team’s fault for not disabling the lounge access, after all.||The lounge is as equally well appointed as the rest of the hotel. A small seating nook is located opposite reception, and then the lounge opens out in a fairly thin rectangle. To the left are washrooms and dining seating overlooking an internal zen garden. The main section of the lounge to the right features a self-service buffet, the main dining seating area and two self-service drinks stations either side of the entrance. The dining seating throughout the lounge is a mixture of traditional chairs and tables and slightly more comfortable armchairs and sofas, although the emphasis is clearly on dining and not relaxation as there are few, if any, comfortable seating areas. A mezzanine is home to a bookable meeting room seating 8 people. ||The food presentation during the evening was really quite extensive, nicely presented and of good quality. The cold and ambient buffet included a variety of fresh mixed salads, sandwiches, cut fruit, whole fruit, nuts, cakes, biscuits and individually plated desserts. The hot buffet offered at least four hot main course options with hot accompaniments. Drinks were served at the table.||We felt slightly guilty for using the lounge when not technically eligible, so opted to take breakfast the next morning in the hotel’s main restaurant on the second floor, aptly named Commune. This large buffet-led space was absolutely packed and not remotely relaxing or refined, but the buffet was extensive with both Asian and Western options. ||Other dining venues at the property include steakhouse Char Bar and Grill on the fifth floor, and Caifenglou on the fourth floor for Chinese fine dining.||Bridge Lounge on the second floor, between reception and Commune, is an attractive bar and lounge space with an understated nautical theme. The carpets could’ve done with a vacuum (as could’ve those in the lifts), but service was keen, and the atmosphere was decent for an afternoon drink.||An outdoor infinity pool (including children’s pool and whirlpool) is available during the summer months, a fitness centre is open all year round, along with saunas within gender segregated (and very smart) changing rooms. The pool attracts a charge of CNY200, although as I stayed during the winter when the pool was closed, I’m not sure whether this charge is waived for status members as is often the case at other InterContinentals that charge for pool access.||InterContinental Zhuhai is a smart property befitting of the InterContinental brand, and a delight to find in one of China’s second...

My family planned for a short trip visiting Macau and Zhuhai for exploring the newly built Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Sea Crossing Bridge. Knowing that InterContinental Zhuhai had the grand opening recently we decided to stay there. We had an enjoyable stay, no doubt this Hotel will be highly recognized as the best luxury hotel in Zhuhai soon.

This Hotel is part of a newly developed complex comprising luxurious apartments and first-rate business buildings. The Hotel tower is a stand alone building and is the highest in this complex. It is ideally located close to the Zhuhai-Macau border, the Kung Pak Crossing Point. It took my family less than 15 minutes to walk from the Hotel to Macau by passing through this Crossing Point. It is also in close proximity to the exit of the HZM Bridge, the Zhuhai High Speed Station, and the Zhuhai Ferry Terminal; all within 10 minutes taxi ride. The Hotel also provides shuttle bus connecting to the Zhuhai Ferry Station.

The Hotel is right in front of the iconic Lovers Promenade and the Zhuhai Harbour but located in a quiet zone of Kung Pak region so it is not so crowded and bustling as other hotels in town. However it is still within 10 minutes walking to the renowned Kung Pak underground shopping streets and the Kung Pak business district so guests staying at this Hotel can conveniently go shopping and dinning outside the Hotel.

The high rise hotel tower itself is truly awesome. The touches in all the public spaces are impressive and the layout is well appointed. There are many comfortable seating in the lobby so accompanied guests can take rest during the check in process. The lobby bar is not far away from the Front Desk and is on the passage to the elevators so guests may take a drink or short chat before going to their room.

We stayed at an Executive Suite with Club Lounge access. The room was absolutely enormous, functional, and thoughtfully designed. Our Suite was located in the high floor zone and was generously sized measuring 120 sqm as per information provided by the Hotel but its size looked much bigger. There was a separate master bedroom and bathroom, a large walk in clock room, an isolated reading room, and a spacious living room adjacent to a guest toilet. The décor, ambience and facilities in the Suite were all of first class perfectly blending high tech with quality and classic elegance but not overly ornamented. Every aspect of this Suite was well designed and carefully considered including good assortment of drinks and snacks at the mini bar, a full array of wine glasses for all our needs, printed symbol on all electric buttons to identity what they are for, electric powered curtains for all the windows, a set of Bose speaker. The world famous Salvatore Ferragamo bespoke amenities kit is certainly an collectable item for all the guests including myself staying in this Suite.

The living room was equipped with a spacious L shaped sofa which can accommodate 5-6 persons with a large table placed in the middle. There were two chairs on the other side of the room so just this living room alone can suit for a big party for drinks and entertainment. The separate reading room was a pearl of this Suite as it was furnished with a large writing desk and a 3-seaters sofa. As such a guest can still enjoy full privacy while the invited friends having activities in the living room. The spacious clock room was large enough for few people managing their luggage and clothing at the same time. The roomy bathroom was featured a large spa theme island bathtub commanding panorama view on the harbour, a separate glass shower room equipped with rain shower and an isolated toilet. The whole bathroom was gracefully and harmoniously decorated to the fine details equipped with artistic designed and technologically advanced KOHLER and GROHE components and fittings. The king-sized bed, the down filled pillows and duvet were all superb comfortable.

As the Hotel tower is located at the harbour front and the Suite is equipped with floor to ceiling windows on two sides so we had spectacular views of the bay, the Promenade, and the landscape of Zhuhai and Macao.

Excellent, attentive and caring services provided by all hotel staffs as what you can expect from an InterContinental property. I would like to give my special compliment to front desk executives Mark Feng and Cecilia Ye for organizing smooth check in for my family and providing comprehensive information on hotel facilities. Their customer oriented services really helped my family enjoyed our stay this time.

This Hotel is conveniently located in a transportation hub with easy access to Hong Kong Airport, Hong Kong downtown, Guangzhou, Zhongshan and Macau, it can be a great option for guests travelling in the region as one can enjoy a comfortable and luxury stay at InterContinental Zhuhai for much less room rate as compared to similar quality hotels in Hong Kong and Macau. This was what my family did this time travelling from Hong Kong to Zhuhai and staying at this Hotel for the first day and then heading to Macau the following day by passing through the Kung Pek Crossing Point.

I would highly recommend this Hotel if you are travelling in this region as you will not be disappointed both for your stay and your...