Intercontinental Magnificent

they were all great staff however the michaeljordan resteraunt was not good the decor was terrible the steak my husband ordered was not good it had blue meat on it from the cow. the asparagus not good, i was really bothered by tthe prices but not quality. i would recommend this hotel it was fun and the bar was excellent i loved the wine i drank . more covers were needed. it was a nice room with a table for eating and working at. for two people that is rare. seemed very clean. the area was quite enjoyable wtth several restaraunts within walking distance. it was very quiet.

I hate writing this review because my husband and I met at the InterContinental Chicago 25 years ago, and it's right next to my work. after this stay, I will not return. it deserves it 3.4 rating on yelp #97 out of 211 hotels on tripadvisor despite great location. The hotel markets itself as a luxury property. it's not a luxury experience. The rooms are small, tired and dingy; it smells as other reviews have noted, the hotel is perpetually overwhelmed by conferences; and the overall atmosphere feels more like an aging convention hotel than a high-end property. There is a difference between historic and dated, and this hotel is dated. Chicago has far better options, Fairmont, Trump, Thompson, Sofitel, often at surprisingly similar prices. What finally prompted this review was the service. first the hotel has an 11 am checkout--this is in the fine print but earlier than other hotels and they are inflexible about it all the time, even with elite members. I understand that late checkout is subject to availability. What I did not expect was for the employee who had checked me in to loudly/rudely interrupt across the desk (with wrong information), while I was speaking with the manager (begging for some exception), “Didn’t you get an early check-in?” actually i didnt: I'd arrived early, she told me no room was available, i left my bags, went to work, and returned to check in at the normal time after work. The manager himself was not rude, but instead of correcting the interruption, he went along with her mistaken claim that I had already received some sort of benefit. i remember she was working when i checked in at the normal time, because i heard her offer another elite guest both points and a voucher, while she had offered me the standard choice of one. I do not know why his treatment differed, but customers treated differently might hear/wonder why some get policy exceptions. another eg of misleadingly grand branding- my room was in the “Executive Tower.” I asked a hotel employee where the Executive Lounge was, and he directed me to the 32nd floor apparently believing one existed. It does not. “Executive Tower” is simply the name of the building. If even the staff misunderstand the terminology, customers certainly would. Any one problem could be forgiven. but all of it, the shabby rooms, crowds, confusing branding, limited flexibility, and unnecessarily rude service, falls far below the standard the InterContinental name and “luxury” positioning. I was already planning not to return because of the room. The front-desk interaction sealed it. If a hotel can lose a repeat Platinum guest who has a preferred rate and met her husband there 25 years ago, it has worked remarkably hard to do so.

Excellent setting, service, great room