InterContinental Dubai Marina @ An Elevated Business Living Hotel

With clusters of sky-high towers lining the water edge in Dubai Marina where each building is trying to outshine others from its design, InterContinental Dubai Marina is one of the many that stands out within this miniature metropolis with an elevated business living. mylifestylenews writes.

The “Rise of a Nation” charts the extraordinary changes in Dubai and Dubai Marina was brought to life since 2003 by Canadian architectural and design firm HOK adding more vibrancy to this waterfront neighborhood. The development not only gives a special immediacy where Dubai has been transformed to one of the futuristic cities in UAE and perhaps the world.

Located amidst Dubai Marina and a few minutes walking distance to the Dubai Marina Mall, tram station and Jumeirah Beach Walk where restaurants, cafes, cinema as well as shopping avenue with lifestyle entertainment caters for local and visitors alike, this urban precinct of “New Dubai” adds new waves not only to its far-flung residential but also a burgeoning business field where international class hotels prevailed and the InterContinental Dubai Marina is with no exception.

Hotel's foyer

Contemporary sculptures are scattered almost everywhere in the hotel lobby, where you may not find much of the InterContinental’s touch at the first sight upon entering the premises, but rather like other modern boutique design hotels. 

Like it or not, it enlightens the ambience in a not so Inter-Continental way. When we approached the front desk for check-in, the greeting was rather lacking in warmth and without much eye contact, with the stressful staff pre-occupied with some other unfinished business.

A touch or modern and contemporary furniture at the lobby lounge.

Our booking wasn’t found even with a confirmation email that was sent weeks before our arrival. We were puzzled and minutes later without much explanation, we were escorted by another front desk staff to complete our check-in on the 39th floor Club InterContinental Lounge.

After two different elevator rides connecting on the 10^th floor in order to get access to the Club InterContinental Lounge, a drink was offered while the paperwork was done and an upgraded deluxe room from the premium room facing the Marina was offered after nearly 20 minutes wait.

You won't miss the floor to ceiling high sculptures at the entrance of the Accents restaurant.

Different color design chairs are found on every floor's corner

Once the room keys were assigned, we headed down to our room on the 10^th floor at once to unwind. The minimalist room design is subtle, incorporating vibrant modern art, yet somehow a sensible touch is lacking. The walled-television is rather too small across the spacious king-size bed. The full length chic glass-walled bathroom could also be another hazard to walk through by banging your head into the mirror if one is not too alert. Despite the indulgent rain showers and bath tub adding a luxury feel to the room, the bath tub is placed too close to the storage shelve and creates difficulty to reach to the end where your toiletries are placed. With the scale placed below the cabinet storage, it only creates more difficulty to reach the narrow gap. The separated basin for His & Her is a good idea but leaving a gap in between to place a dustbin is absolutely unnecessary. It only creates more work for housekeeping to clean especially where the floor to ceiling mirror collects water splash spots and marks.

We took a breather walking out to the balcony where the sliding doors control the in room air-conditioning unit when they open and shut. The view facing the Marina Bay and looking down at the hotel’s swimming pool is rather spectacular, and it is even more mesmerizing after the night fall. Business and residential towers create a distinctly urban feel along the waterfront promenade, super yachts and supper haunts create a lively scene passing though the bustling canal reshaping the urban space with modern architecture of the city for all things extraordinary.

Our room with a view by night overlooking the bustling Dubai Marina Bay.

We headed back up the Club InterContinental Lounge for some afternoon tea at 3:30pm. Most seats were filled by mostly sweet-tooth local guests to get indulged for one of their favorite meals of the day.

Alluring ambience is best defines the mood of the club lounge, with natural light filling artfully designed interiors from the high floor to ceiling glass wall. The club lounge is an inspiring concept combining luxury and style, treating you with highest standards of hospitality.

When the weather is good, you best request for an outdoor seating to enjoy both the Marina Bay view as well as the Jumeirah Beach from the opposite end. Don’t miss out on the freshly made scones and jams served on the traditional 3-tiers silver tray with other savories, local desserts and light refreshments.

We tried to catch up with a little bit of sun before the sun goes down by taking a refreshing dip at the pool and thought we would follow this by checking out the steam room and sauna for further relaxation, only to find to our disappointment that the facilities are not part of the deal for hotel guests where we were asked to book ahead with additional cost incurred. We couldn’t bother but went back to our room, got changed and headed back to the Club Lounge for the evening happy hour.

No doubt, it is also a perfect timing to watch the sunset while enjoying a glass of wine. The Club Lounge serves some good spread from the mini-buffet with some well chosen cheese selection, hor d'oeuvres and cooked to order savories, with daily selection by the chef. Service is prompt, attentive and paying much attention to guests’ requests, even the kitchen staff lend a better smile and greetings above all odds.

For morning breakfast, we were offered either dining at Accents – the hotel’s all day dining or the Club Lounge. We were defeated by the hostess at Accents by not making us feel welcome from her cold and long face greetings and followed the instructed order to sit us down.

With further observation, other wait staff also didn’t really show much passion towards the service and seemed disinterested. Don’t think it was the first thing we needed to have and by having a quick one round of serve, we decided to head back to the club lounge to continue our breakfast with a more personalized service.

Our room was not made even until 12:15pm even the service light was switched on at 8:15am before we headed for breakfast. Nevertheless, the turn down service was neatly done in a flash of light and the cleanliness of the room deserves a round of applause.

Tried & Tested:

Location: 4.5/5

Design & Decor: 4/5

Room: 3.5/5

Food & Beverages: 3.5/5

Housekeeping: 4.5/5

Service: 3/5

Value For Money: 4/5

Experience: 4/5

Highlights:

 Club InterContinental Lounge

The View

InterContinental Dubai Marina

Bay Central

Jumeirah Beach Road

Dubai United Arab Emirates

Tel: +971 04 446 6777

Reviews are based on actual day of visit and experience. mylifestylenews reserves the right of final decision in case of any disputes. All images are photographed by mylifestylenews team without any photoshop enhancement and are the property owned by mylifestylenews unless otherwise stated.