InterContinental Berlin, An Ihg Hotel

“Corporate elegance”

Designed by architects William Pereira and Charles Luckman and opened in 1958 as the Hilton Berlin, 1978 saw InterContinental take the reins of this property in the heart of the city’s embassy district. Famous guests over the years have included Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Jackson and Tom Hanks, a... more

Designed by architects William Pereira and Charles Luckman and opened in 1958 as the Hilton Berlin, 1978 saw InterContinental take the reins of this property in the heart of the city’s embassy district. Famous guests over the years have included Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Jackson and Tom Hanks, alongside Presidents Clinton, Bush and Biden. Refurbished most recently between 2019 and 2023, my visit in March last year coincided with the final works taking place to the hotel’s pyramid-like entrance. The hotel’s lobby is unfussy but elegant and has a number of interesting angular architectural details if you look closely enough. Check-in was efficient, with the Ambassador 16:00 check-out proactively offered, room upgrade noted, Diamond complimentary breakfast talked through and routes to both the breakfast restaurant (LA Café) and the spa explained. Our Premium room on the 11th floor of the original West Wing was a one category upgrade from our booked Classic room, and just one floor down from the top room floor, overlooking the adjacent zoo. Premium rooms are a fair bit larger than Classic rooms, sizing up at an average 40 square metres compared to 26 square metres – and with the added benefit of a walk-in shower separate to the bath. Rooms have been smartly refurbished, although the central minibar console and awkwardly positioned TV console are slightly updated relics of an earlier 2010s refurbishment (as is the bathroom). The room’s main entrance door together with that serving the connecting room gave strong late 1990s/early 2000s vibes. The lift interiors also followed this style. The room was well equipped with a sofa bed, make-up stool, desk and ample walk-in wardrobe and suitcase storage within the spacious bathroom, with an additional open wardrobe for coats in the hall. The safe took some time to be located but was eventually found impractically positioned in the drawer of one of the bedside tables. The minibar was stocked, and included a single bottle of complimentary water, Bosch coffee machine and Ronnefeldt teabags, although there was no built-in socket for the kettle which had to be moved to the desk to be used. Power sockets and master light switches were located both sides of the bed, although there was only a single USB-A socket located by the desk. The bathroom, once accessed via awkward sliding door, had plenty of space for two sinks but only had one, but the rest of the space had been well used by large shower and toilet cubicles, and a full-size bath. The usual InterContinental Byredo amenities were present in large bottles. Being early spring, the external temperature was presumably too cold for the room’s individual air conditioning to be activated, which meant we had to open the windows to cool the room. Centrally controlling room temperatures is not very five star. There was no turndown service, although daily housekeeping service was thorough – almost too thorough, with soap being disposed of after one use on one morning of our stay. The hotel offers three dining venues – LA Café on the ground floor for breakfast, Marlene off the ground floor lobby for drinks and all-day dining, and Michelin-starred Hugos on the 14th floor. We had breakfast each morning in LA Café, a somewhat oddly located buffet restaurant opposite the conference area of the hotel meaning lots of dry networking chatter permeated the restaurant. The restaurant is another relic of the late 1990s/early 2000s, and whilst well cared for, has certainly seen better days from an interior design perspective. Some new carpet and dining furniture really wouldn’t go amiss. That being said, there were numerous seating areas to choose from, and the buffet itself was sufficiently extensive to distract from any interior design related concerns. Numerous self-serve buffet stations are complemented by a made-to-order eggs, waffles and pancake station. Everything was of a good quality, well presented and replenished. The spa (creatively named SPA) is located on the ground floor of the East Wing, with the entrance just to the right of reception. I didn’t use it on this occasion, but I had noted on the hotel’s website that use of the swimming pool is charged at EUR10 per person, rising to EUR20 if you want to include the sauna area. Whilst Club guests are exempted from this charge, it turns out Ambassador members are also exempted (without this being advertised anywhere). Whilst this is appreciated, charging guests for use of the pool is an unwelcome but growing trend amongst some European properties. It’s not something I would expect from an InterContinental. The property makes extensive use of green roofs which can be glimpsed from some windows. When it came time to check-out, an accurate bill with the Ambassador minibar / dining credit of EUR15 automatically applied was by now expected from this efficient and professional property. Whilst the location is slightly out of the way for the main tourist sights and the vibe is decidedly corporate, the service, amenities and spacious rooms make this a hotel I’d easily return to.

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