InterContinental Minneapolis - St. Paul Airport — Hotel in Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory

This is a lovely hotel. Our room was modern, clean and spacious. All sections had great lighting and we made good use of the streaming TV. There was ample storage and plenty of space for our things. We had a wheelchair accessible room that was well appointed and good for the most part (notes below). We enjoyed the view of the runway very much. The food from both restaurants blew us away and we recommend both. The restaurant staff and servers were extremely kind and efficient. They made the visit for us, if it were just the waitstaff and food this would be a five star review. We give only four stars overall because of the shortcomings of the accessible room and a rude shuttle driver. Firstly at the roll in shower there are NO bars approaching the bench, only on the back wall and wall opposite the bench in the shower. Leap of faith for those who cannot stand. The soap rack is on the opposite side of the shower from the bench. That is quite a reach for a non ambulatory person, actually they probably can't reach it's over 3 feet away. In our room the mini fridge was on the back left wall of the room facing the short side of a heavy sofa that sits parallel to the far left wall/window. The fridge sits a little over 1 foot from the edge of the sofa, in the corner, and the door swings open to the right. Most wheelchair users cannot access the inside of the mini fridge. As for the shuttle driver, we saw a tall bald man walk wordlessly through the lobby. A black man comes back in to hurriedly tell us the shuttle is about to leave. Then the shuttle driver just hops in the shuttle with his face all bunched up while riders hop in. He did not offer any assistance after having only loaded the first couples' bags and left everyone else standing there confused. He did not indicate if he had room for everyone or not. There was no courtesy in the shuttle at this point. The rude shuttle driver made for a sour send off. The other driver, who alerted everyone, politely ushered the people on the curb into another van and was very courteous on the ride to the airport. We appreciated his attempts to smooth things over.

NOTE: There are no stores or restaurants a reasonable walking distance from this hotel. There is no breakfast room service. There are no ice machines or concession machines; everything must be requested from the coffee stand in the lobby. Thankfully we didn't stay long but we spent a lot on food since we flew in and did not drive. (The restaurants are great though.)

NOTE: if you are NOT arriving on any of the airlines below you will need to take the shuttle to the hotel. It will take this shuttle just as long if not longer than any other hotel shuttles so this negates the convenience of walking to the hotel from the airport. If this convenience is a factor just go with a just as good and cheaper hotel nearby as YOU MUST take the shuttle back to the airport regardless of airline. Air Canada Air France Alaska Airlines American Airlines (worst airline ever) Delta Air Lines Denver Air KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Spirit Airlines ...

This is a fake Intercontinental.

And by fake, I do not just mean a franchised property (it is franchised). I also mean it is not anywhere close to the level of an InterContinental, let alone any 4-star or 5-star hotel. They are operating at the standard of a Holiday Inn.

1. No pre-arrival email.

2. No sign at the walkway from the terminal instructing you to take the elevator down one level.

3. No dedicated Ambassador check-in lane. Front desk allowed an airline pilot to cut the line.

4. Not greeted by name at check-in.

5. Not given a welcome letter.

6. No upgrade for an Ambassador despite this being a guaranteed benefit. When I asked about the upgrade, I was told I would get 10,000 points as compensation. I was not offered the choice of a $50 F&B credit as required per the IHG Ambassador terms and conditions. (For what it's worth, just about every category of rooms and suites was available.)

7. No offer of assistance with luggage or shown to elevator.

8. In the room, no robe, no slippers, no dental kit, no mouthwash, no bar of soap.

9. No mineral bottle as required under IHG's Ambassador benefits. Not even a bottle of purified water. Also, no welcome amenity of any kind.

10. Unstocked mini-bar. So the $20 Ambassador mini-bar credit is worthless and can't be used. No replacement offered.

11. No club lounge. So club lounge access is worthless and can't be used. No replacement offered.

12. No turndown service.

13. No newspapers in the lobby.

14. Was not told anything about hotel F&B outlets -- bar, the restaurants, room service.

All of the above things are the minimums of any 4-star or 5-star hotel.

Additionally:

1. There were traces of mildew in the walk-in shower.

2. The dispensers containing shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion, and hand wash were mostly empty.

3. The windows are NOT tinted. So, close the curtains. Otherwise, people outside the hotel on the street or inside the airport terminal can see you. They should have a discreet sign informing guests that closing curtains are recommended for privacy. When I checked out and went to the airport I could see naked guests in their room. They were oblivious to the windows not being tinted.

4. There is no TSA checkpoint at the hotel. The hotel website (they have their own website separate from IHG.com) suggests the checkpoint is still operational. From what I can tell, it's been closed since at least 2020 if not 2019. That's 4 or 5 years. And yet, the marketing materials for the hotel still suggest or infer there is access. You can access the hotel from the terminal upon arrival but you can't do so...

Great hotel rooms, but the front desk staff seem to be straight out of high school with no professional training, and seemed focused on providing the worst possible customer service that they could. I booked and spent extra money so that I would be able to see airplanes land, and takeoff. But due to construction that room wasn’t available when I got to the hotel. However, they still advertise that room type, regardless of the construction. Having realized I did not get the room I paid for I asked the front desk staff to move me to a different room. The only option was for them to downgrade me to a different room type, Which I accepted. When I asked for a simple credit for the difference, they brought out their big book of policies and told me I had to go through the third-party I booked with to get the credit. I did so, but the hotel stated that They are not responsible for the construction, so there will be no credits.

I know it’s not the penthouse versus parking lot view. It’s not about that. It’s about noticing that a customer paid for something that they did not get and aren’t happy with, and acknowledging that with a small gesture of something, whether it be a monetary credit or something else. But This front desk manager, who seemed to be straight out of high school was more focused on trying to be correct and save every last penny for the hotel, rather than making your paying guest a little happier.

In customer service, situations will occur that don’t have a clear cut solution. So that’s why it’s important to be able to have some flexibility and creativity, especially as a manager. Clearly, this girl did not have that, or did not want to have that. It’s not always about money. It’s about principles and expectations. And in this case, even the smallest little gesture from the front desk manager would have solved the issue. But there were no gestures. So in return, I will give her my gesture, in form of multiple one star reviews, aimed specifically at her and her staff at the front desk.

I’m not expecting an apology or a response on this review. This is one person’s actions. I think giving this front desk manager a 2 to 3 hour Customer service course would be a better idea, before she attracts more of these negative reviews.

Date of stay was...