Intercontinental Abu Dhabi

Was so looking forward to staying here after a tough couple of years and it certainly didn't disappoint. From the moment we arrived at the beautiful reception, where there was always a smell of gorgeous essential oils and the most welcoming and helpful staff, to the moment we left, we had an amazing time. Although people complain of outdated rooms, I was more than happy and it had everything I needed; TV, WiFi, aircon, fridge, tea /coffee making facilities, iron/ironing board, bath, separate walk-in shower and washing line. Public areas all very modern. Went premium all inclusive which was so worth it. Definitely the best all inclusive I've ever had. Can dine in all the restaurants around the marina unlimited and although each has a set menu included for AI, the choice was fine for me, even though I'm very fussy. Belgian Café and Circo Italian were my favourites. Selections buffet was very good although struggled to cope at breakfast on several occasions. Choice of included alcohol excellent and includes Prosecco cocktails etc. Frozen margarita by the pool was amazing 🍹. All of the staff were excellent and so helpful. The main let down, despite being October, was the overwhelming heat outside. I love the heat and can lay in the sun all day, but 30 minutes in the shade one day on the beach beat me. The humidity was awful. Even in the evening for the first 10 days, you couldn't sit outside. Spent our days on 3rd floor pool, as unusually there was more breeze there, making the heat bearable. The one thing that the hotel could improve on, are more parasols on 3rd floor pool as 1 parasol for 4 beds is not sufficient in the heat and also need parasols in the outside seating/bar areas. The beach club was beautiful but far too hot in October. Excellent location and near to Marina Mall, Etihad Towers, Emirates and Presidential Palaces. Taxis very cheap and would recommend going to Abu Dhabi Mall, which we preferred. Overall an amazing time and hope to go back in January in 2 years time for my 50th birthday; as long as the price is right. Thank you to each and everyone of the staff at IHC Abu Dhabi. Read less

I never intended to write War & Peace when I sat down to post a review of this hotel, but I think that you need to know just how perfect a 7 night stay we just had here and how it was entirely down to the hotel, staff and location. We had done our research before booking and as we have stayed at numerous InterContinental's around the world, we knew what we could expect. There were one or two reviews saying that the hotel was looking tired as it was an older hotel for Abu Dhabi and the ones giving poor feedback in general, well if you read between the lines, they tend to be the ones that want everything for free. We had booked the All Inclusive but decided to upgrade to the Premium version of this as we wanted to be able to make good use of all seven restaurants. This was worth every penny. At no point were we made to feel any different just because we were All Inclusive. The standard of the food and service was exceptional. Special mentions for: The Byblos Sur Mer, where we were attended to constantly by the maître d' and his team, had the Lebanese cuisine explained perfectly along with a good range for us to sample the delights of and the Shisha Pipe was one of my favourite pastimes. Circo, where I had an excellent Diablo Pizza Cho Gao, with excellent décor and wonderful Asian cuisine (the passion fruit Martini was worth a few sips as well!!) Breakfast at selections offered a varied menu with again, excellent service and on the few occasions when we went there for lunch, there was a good, tasty range. All of the staff we encountered were great ambassadors for the hotel, I’m terrible that I didn’t get all of their names to show my appreciation but Raouf, the Guest Service Manager was a pleasure to talk with, the front desk always helped when required, Mahesh and the concierges at the entrance gave great information, the team in Selections were quick and friendly, the girls that served us our Lattes in the Piano Lounge constantly made the best ones I’ve had and there was a man in the Belgian Café that always seemed to be there when we went for out night cap and finally Jaki was always happy with nothing too much trouble at the beach bar. We have previously stayed a few times in the Ritz Carlton on the Grand Canal and also a new Marriott there. Both of these are a little way out though and although the food at the Marriott was truly outstanding, you didn’t have the change of using different restaurants like here. Also, the Emirates Palace is in easy walking distance along with the Corniche. Staying at the beginning of December means we got to watch the Xmas Dec's going up and the General Manager Neil, introducing a group of young school children singing carols for the tree lighting ceremony along with mulled wine, hot chocolate, sweets and Yule Logs. The room was large, always made up perfectly and timely, with the turn-down service and pillow choice, one of those nice touches you expect in a 5 star hotel. Finally, the daytime was taken up with walks around the Marina, time spent down at the perfectly manicured private beach and bar, and the sauna’s both at the Beach and the hotel If I can just make one suggestion to improve what was an lovely break for us, it would be to extend the range of alcoholic drinks available just for variety In summary, a fantastic time was had by us, a huge recommendation from me and my wife and we will be back without doubt, the same time next year Read less

My mum and I have stayed at the Al Raha and Beach Rotana but the Intercontinental is far superior than those two hotels! You’ve got to understand that this hotel is one of the original hotels of Abu Dhabi so it is slightly dated and there is no balcony in the room. We stayed here for the Formula 1. It was around 78 AED to get to the Yas Circuit and took about 40 minutes to get there. The hotel is walking distance from the Founder’s Memorial (which I recommend seeing), Emirates Palace and Etihad Towers. We had the standard all inclusive which was fine for us, as we weren’t there all day to enjoy the other facilities that come with Premium all inclusive. There was more than enough choice for us. You were still entitled to the branded alcohol and various cocktails around the pool and bars. There was enough choice in the buffet restaurant and there was always an underlying theme in the evening, such as Thanksgiving or Asian. As we were staying during the F1, the hotel had a F1 theme throughout the hotel, which was tasteful done. This then changed to a National Day theme, once the F1 was over. The pool area was lovely and clean and you could help yourself to has many towels as you liked. The only downfall was that it didn’t open until 8am. The room was lovely and spacious. The only fault being that the shower was small. We had the Deluxe City view, but on arrival we were upgraded to the Marina view, which was beautiful. Our housekeeper, Zunair, was very thorough. We were always given enough towels and toiletries. Our room was always cleaned before 1pm. We always had turn down in the evening and if we had had a shower between Zunair cleaning our room and the turn down service, he would clean the bathroom again and give us another set of clean towels. I think it would be nice if the hotel could arrange for some seating to be placed outside the front of the hotel, to compensate for there being no balcony in the room. It was nice to stand out the front and watch the various luxury cars pull up, however there was nowhere to sit. The staff are what really make this hotel. Special mention to the Duty Manager, Haddad,for making us feel very welcome. Also special mention to the following staff members: Dio, Akila, Sandra, Muhammad, Prabath, Rehab, Shwe, Elangio, Ali, Zunair and Dipak. Read less

Stayed here for 3 nights with family. Used 4 rooms. All the rooms were excellent, comfortable beds and a selection of pillows. furniture overall leaves nothing to be desired. all facilities were provided and are very well updated and maintained. the selection of food and beverage outlets simply spoiled us. Staff are very polite, professional and helpful. they anticipate what guests may need or want. I especially want to mention Qusai at the reception and Siva at concierge for their exceptional service. Read less