InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown by IHG — Hotel in Los Angeles

I visited the hotel for a two-night stay over Christmas and to celebrate our 10th Wedding Anniversary. I had two separate reservations, but I was informed via email that they would be handled as one booking, with both reservations being upgraded to a high-floor, corner room.

At check-in, however, I was assigned a low-floor, corner room. There was no mention of the earlier email, nor did they ask about my Diamond-tier welcome benefit (whether I preferred points or a welcome drink). Later, I discovered they had selected points for me without asking, so I had to call to request the drink instead. The first room had a wet carpet, and my socks became completely soaked when I entered. I had to request a room change. The second room was on a high floor, but upon entering, I realized it was not a corner room, as promised. This was not mentioned when the room was assigned to me. We stayed there because we were too tired to address it further, but I was disappointed that they didn’t mention the downgrade.

That night, we noticed a loud noise and vibration every minute. After some investigation, we realized it was coming from the high-speed elevator close to the room. The noise sounded as though we were in a metro station with trains arriving and departing every minute. Even earplugs didn’t block the noise. My IHG preferences were set to “away from elevator,” but I’m not sure if the hotel took this into consideration. Of course, I understand that room assignments depend on availability, but it would have been helpful for them to mention the noise issue, especially since I had already been moved to a second room. Had I known, I might have chosen between dealing with the noise or the wet carpet.

I called guest services, and they said they would check for another room and call me back, but they never did. The next morning, I called again, and it seemed like no one had any record of the previous conversation.

The worst part came the next day. When we went out, we turned on the privacy light to ensure no one entered the room while we were gone, as I didn’t want to spend time locking away my valuables. I double-checked the light before leaving, and it was on (red light outside). However, when we returned, the light was off, and the room had been cleaned. I suspect this was due to the mishandling of our two separate reservations.

This situation was very upsetting. That night, I was finally able to speak with one of the guest experience managers, who listened to my concerns and apologized. He also offered compensation in the form of points or a fee waiver. He assured me that they would review the communication issues and mismanagement of my reservations and that these problems would not occur during the remainder of our stay.

However, the next morning, when I tried to get my folio, I had to call twice before I received the first one (the first agent didn’t send it after our call). The first folio had errors, so I called again and was told I needed to go to the front desk for a second folio. At the front desk, I was given the second folio, and was told it was the final version.

An hour after checkout, I received another folio by email (a third version), which had additional charges for minibar items I didn’t use. I had to call again and spend 30 minutes sorting it out. I also requested to speak with the manager I had originally talked to on the second night, and was told they would have him call me once he returned after 4 PM. But, once again, this did not happen.

At this point, I am frustrated by the repeated mistakes and miscommunications, especially considering it was only a two-night stay. It seemed like every person I spoke to was new, with no information about my situation (including my IHG account email address).

After the visit, I am exhausted and can’t even count how many calls I had to make, nor how much time during Christmas and our anniversary was wasted.

I cannot recommend this hotel for any family trip. For other guests, be aware that the rooms are noisy:

Low-floor rooms: Noise from highways in almost every direction.

High-floor rooms: Still some highway noise, and additional noise from elevators. The center of the building is full of elevators.

I imagine it would be very difficult to avoid these noises...

We stayed to celebrate an anniversary using our free Ambassador weekend night with the InterContinental Ambassador program. We are additionally Diamond in the IHG One Rewards program for context. This is our third or fourth time staying at this property. I can say without hesitation that service has improved over time. ||The hotel reached out about our stay prior to arrival which is always appreciated, and we ended up meeting Kelly who had sent out the email. She, along with all of the Club Lounge staff were so friendly and welcoming. We were upgraded to a one bedroom suite with city view, which is the nicest room we have had in this property yet. Loved our room! ||The Club Lounge itself has to be one of the best views for an InterContinental Club Lounge being on the 70th floor overlooking Los Angeles. In the evenings, they have a great selection of drinks and nibbles. The crab claws were fantastic! In the mornings the selection is a little more basic. For the first time as our Diamond Welcome Amenity we chose breakfast and there was our first hiccup. ||I had read online in the past that this hotel did not follow IHG policy and we just ate in the Club Lounge rather than deal with it on prior stays. Upon check in, the explanation of how it worked was EXACTLY IHG policy, so we gave it a shot. The next morning in the restaurant when we presented our voucher, the waiter still wanted us to sign a check for the full amount telling us it would be adjusted at check out. I have stayed enough to know that is not how it works and he would have just been creating a headache for the front office at check out with his laziness. He then went to "check with someone" and came back to say it is a flat $45 credit per person and we are responsible for the rest, which is not IHG policy and not how it was explained to us. I told him what we were told and how it should work, and he went away again and came back with it corrected to us only paying for one coke (which technically should have also been included per IHG policy but at that point I just paid for it to be done). The next day we didn't go to the restaurant because we didn't want the hassle. It is a pity this hotel cannot get the IHG policy for breakfast down. We would likely stay more often if they could, but there are Kimpton's in town that get it right. ||We had reservations for the first night of our stay at Spire 73, and as always it did not disappoint. It is the highest outdoor bar in the western hemisphere, and so great for sunset and then looking at the city lights. Many fire pits give it warmth and a great vibe. The menu had been trimmed down some since our last visit and we missed a few dishes (tuna poke in particular), but it was still enjoyable. ||For the second night of our stay, our actual anniversary, we had reservations at La Boucherie. They were fully aware of our anniversary in the booking, so there was hiccup number 2. Of all the tables in the dining room, they tried to seat us at counter seating in the bar, side by side, facing outward. Perhaps they thought they were doing us a favor by providing the view, but it was right at then end of the bar where they go in and out behind the bar and it felt like cheap diner seating other than the view, and not even facing to each other for conversation during an anniversary dinner? They have lots of two top proper tables along with windows, so I'm not sure why we couldn't have been in one of those. Once we were at a proper table, the food, service and wine were great. We ended up by a family celebrating a kid's birthday because it was all that was available. Live and learn, won't be back there for an occasion. ||Over our scattered stays here, the overall service level and friendliness have improved dramatically, so definitely want to point that out and underscore it. Both of the hiccups were small service lapses in the larger scheme, but it a 5 star hotel they do leave an impression. The dinner item was just a poor judgement choice by a staff member and I'm sure they can do better for the next guest. But I do hope the hotel gets everyone in the restaurant on board with IHG Diamond breakfast policy. It is frustrating as a guest to have to "train" the...

InterContinental is truly a remarkable and breathtaking property with amazing views and beautiful rooms. However, my experience left a sour taste in my mouth. I will start with the good and say that our room had an excellent view. I would also like to recognize the few team members who were excellent. Theresa at the front desk was very kind and friendly. A bellman whose name escapes me (he wore glasses with red tinted lenses and had a tattoos) went above and beyond to help us with issues with our luggage (more on this later).

On to the bad. It took our luggage more than an hour to arrive in our room from checking in at the front desk. Not only that, only 2 of 5 pieces of luggage made it. The bellman who delivered our luggage was earnest enough to go back down and find our bags, and luckily, he did just that. All in all the ordeal took about 1 hour and 45 minutes.

While the luggage fiasco was taking place, we got settled in. I could tell whoever made the room either didn't care or rushed through it. There were spots both on the bathroom sink and floor. The toilet was not too clean. I ended up wiping it down myself. I called for more towels, and for robes and slippers as our room had none. Housekeeping came promptly with towels but no robes or slippers. I thought maybe they would come back, but they never did. So I ended up calling again an hour later and finally got our robes and slippers.

Next came dinner reservations at Spire73. All in all, the dining experience was good. The views were amazing. The dynamite shrimp and salmon entree were excellent. Drinks were good. Burger was decent. Brunch at Dekkadance was a similar experience. Spectacular views. Good food. However, it was a little annoying that both host and server kept reiterating that they were going to close at 2. I got it the first time. On top of that, the kitchen didn't start pulling the food until almost 2:30.

The evening before our departure date I wanted to ask for late checkout and if someone could bring some water to our room. I pressed the button on the phone that indicated guest request, or something to that effect. I didn't realize it until after, but whoever answered the phone was very likely outsourced and not in the hotel, nor likely the United States either. I had two simple requests: late checkout and water, that could be answered by a simple yes or no. For some reason, this customer service agent kept talking in circles and repeating back my requests using different words without actually answering my question! It was not until after a torturous back and forth that they said I could checkout at 12 and no water could be brought up. We were on the phone for almost 10 minutes. I would have gladly waited on hold rather than talking back and forth for that time. After the conversation, I ended up walking down to the front desk, and the gentleman there gave me 2pm checkout, a couple of waters, and the entire ordeal took less than 2 minutes.

It gets worse. Enter departure day. Despite having 2pm checkout, housekeeping knocks at the door, and before even getting a chance to respond, they attempt to enter. Luckily the door latch was on. I understand that sometimes there is a disconnect between front desk and housekeeping, so I politely explained that I had late checkout and would be leaving at 2pm. I was met with attitude, and no apologies for the intrusion. It gets even worse. At 1:15, housekeeping again knocks, same person, and I reiterate I would leaving at 2. I'm met with the same attitude. I could understand the first time, but for this to happen a second time is completely unacceptable.

At checkout, I'm thinking what a bad experience I had. But of course, another inconvenience, albeit a minor one, comes up. The front desk person asks how I would like to receive a copy of my receipt and I answer both. Luckily I answered both because the emailed copy never came.

I'm willing to give this property another shot in the future, but this experience really did leave a bad taste...