ImmanuelThere’s a new hotel in town! Completely overhauled and redesigned after it’s glory days as a 1970’s office block and then former Rydges hotel, the new InterContinental Perth just opened its doors on October 15th. No crazy parties to celebrate the launch but rather a quiet opening on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
As an InterContinental Ambassador, I booked an Executive Studio Club room with the knowledge that we would be upgraded to a Club Suite thanks to the guaranteed upgrade benefit you receive after signing up for the Ambassador program.
Pro tip: before booking, make sure you compare the price on this site. It’s the easiest way to make sure you’re getting a good deal.
Official check-in time for the InterContinental Perth is 3 PM, but they do accommodate guests earlier if the room is available, unfortunately, this wasn’t the case on opening day when I arrived at 2 PM. Instead, I opted to spend some time in the club lounge on the 16th floor which offers fantastic views over the Perth CBD on every side.
The Hotel Exterior
Just like most buildings in Perth, the InterContinental isn’t a masterpiece of modern architecture but rather a revamp of what use to be an old office building turned into a hotel. The 1970’s touch of rounded windows is a distinctive look, but it’s been modernised with a beautiful gold ribbon stretching around the bottom of the building.
InterContinental Perth Interior
The gold touches are continued inside and throughout the whole hotel, complemented by the mix of traditional art and street/modern, bold, colourful artworks decorating the hallways. Upon entering you will find a concierge desk on your left and the check-in area towards the back of the lobby.
The artwork hanging from the ceiling at the entrance is striking and compliments the whole interior style which is nothing but on point.
Check in was efficient, and even though my room wasn’t ready yet, one of the staff took me up to the club lounge to wait over a coffee. Afternoon tea was being served at the time which I declined.
The Club Lounge
This is one of those club lounges where it’s worth it to pay extra for access. It’s beautiful, large open-plan space with great views over the city.
The club takes over most of the 16th floor and has plenty of seating options. Two staff members were on hand to provide table service which was friendly and efficient. After 30 mins or so my room key was delivered to the club lounge and I decided to go and check out my suite.
InterContinetal Perth Club Suite
Before getting to the room itself, there was a small hallway with separate toilet, massive wardrobe and a spacious bathroom with a separate shower and bath.
The shower was equipped with both a rain-shower and a regular shower head for those that prefer it. Bath products were from Agraria San Francisco
and all came in massive bottles by any hotel standards.
Walking into the bedroom, you immediately notice the number of windows! My room had no less than five massive floor to ceiling (almost) windows overlooking Perth and Northbridge. The daylight is filtered out by semi-transparent automated blinds. Next to the bedside tables there were plenty of controls for lighting and blinds operation, including a master switch… however this only turned off a few lights which is annoying.
On the left side of the room was a desk with two chairs and a cabinet which was awkwardly positioned, I think the cabinet could have gone against the back wall instead of covering the bathroom window. On the other side of the room was a couch and coffee table.
The interior design at IC Perth is stunning, and every design detail seemed very well thought out. A common theme throughout the room was the marble, gold and black mixed in with interesting textures and local artworks. The mini fridge was fully stocked with everything from champagne to beer with a Nespresso machine ready to go. The cabinet that stored the mini fridge had everything built in and opened up like a pantry with snacks and a somewhat extension of glassware.
As expected the bed was very comfortable, InterContinental lets you select types of pillows when making your reservation and my selection of down feather pillows did not disappoint.
Unfortunately, the linen wasn’t of the highest quality, and I suspect it’s provided by some local laundry company. For a 5 star hotel, I do expect 5-star linen. The room was equipped with a massive flat screen TV by Samsung fully customised to incorporate the IC design. The bedside tables were made of stone with gold details and had a mini Marshall amp to play some music from your phone with easy Bluetooth pairing.
After looking through the room, we decided to have something to eat on level 1 which has an outdoor roof terrace with bar/cafe area for hotel guest. Staff were friendly, and the food was good although expensive for what it was ($25 for a burger…)
The Gym
InterContinental Perth has a reasonably well-equipped gym with both equipment and free weights; unfortunately, it’s tucked away on the side of the building, I think it would have worked better on a higher level with a better view. The gym also lacked exercise mats and most importantly water! However, this is an easy fix, and most likely those things weren’t available on opening day. (sorry forgot to take pictures!)
Evening Drinks In the Club Lounge
If you opt for a club room, you get complimentary access to afternoon tea, evening drinks with canapes and breakfast. There was a good selection of cold meats, and cheeses available and staff also brought out some hot tapas from the Spanish restaurant downstairs at which we had dinner later – highly recommended.
The staff were happy to make some cocktails for
us after which we switched to sparkling wine (not champagne; get it right people!).
InterContinental Breakfast
As a club guest, you have access to breakfast at either buffet in the club lounge on the 16th floor or downstairs in the restaurant. We opted to go downstairs since the food selection was way more extensive and chefs were on hand to cook eggs any way you like them. The only problem with this was that restaurant staff charged us $50 each for breakfast even though the welcome letter stated we were welcome to enjoy breakfast downstairs. The receptionist waived the charges after it was pointed out.The breakfast, however, was delicious and extensive amount of fresh pastries, meat and eggs were available. However, it would be nice to see some high-quality
granola or other cereal alternatives on the buffet.
In Conclusion
There have been some great hotels opening in Perth lately. As of now I would class the InterContinental at the top of the table when it comes to affordable luxury hotels in the city (compared to Crown Towers and The Como who charge $600 a night), but this won’t be for long with Westin opening its doors in April, Ritz Carlton and Hilton not too far behind.
All in all, it’s excellent news for WA tourism with such an extensive range of new luxury hotels on offer. I think InterContinental has a unique advantage with it’s paid Ambassador program which comes with some fantastic guaranteed benefits such as 4 PM checkout and room upgrade. On top of that, when you join the ambassador program you also receive a free night certificate. If you’re interested in signing up, you can do so here.