InterContinental Park Lane Hotel London - Good standard in one of London's best locations

General Information and Location

With Hyde Park on one side, Green Park on the other, Piccadilly Circus a few minutes walk in one direction, and South Kensington and Harrods a few steps the opposite way, location is perhaps the greatest asset of InterContinental London Park Lane Hotel. It is close to parks and recreation areas, handy for those coming to London to unwind, but at the same, shopping, attractions, entertainment and transport are all within a convenient distance. The hotel is located next to Hyde Park Corner in the west of central London. There is a tube station of the same name nearby which is served by the Piccadilly Line, with direct trains to Heathrow Airport. However, it can be somewhat tricky to find the way to the hotel from the tube station due to so many different tunnels and turns, but once you are reasonably close the hotel is hard to miss as it is located at a major intersection. Several buses also go past the hotel.

Charming corridors with decorative lamps Interestingly, where the hotel now stands was once location of 145 Piccadilly, the house where the Queen, Elizabeth II, spent the first year of her life. The house, however, was heavily damaged during World War II and was demolished after the war. In the late 60s a hotel was built, this later became the InterContinental Park Lane.

The Rooms

The hotel has 447 rooms including 60 suites. Four suites have received a special interior and are the hotel's signature suites. Among these is "The Royal Suite & By Appointment Collection" with inspiration taken from 145 Piccadilly and Queen Elizabeth's childhood home. The regular rooms are: Classic, Superior and Deluxe, while Executive gives you access to the Club Lounge "Club InterContinental". We stayed in a Classic room on the eighth floor. The hotel is built in a square with a kind of courtyard in the middle. The rooms either look outwards, overlooking one of the parks, or inwards over the courtyard. To get a view of the surroundings, at least a Deluxe room must be booked, therefore, we had to settle for the little less exciting prospect of a courtyard view.

Classic room with king-size bed The room was just over 18 square metres, meaning not much excess space but it was certainly not cramped. The interior was in perfect condition. The old-fashioned British decor felt really cozy with a mixture of dark wood and bright, more harmonious colours. The room contained a large and very comfortable king-size bed, a work area with chair, armchair with table, and a bookshelf-like piece of furniture which housed a TV. At the entrance to the room there was a wardrobe and a surprisingly well-stocked minibar. The bathroom was nothing special but everything was very neat and in perfect condition. There was no shower, just a bath, with a warning sign on the tap regarding how quickly the tub filled up.

Bathroom

Food and drink

The hotel has several restaurants and bars with an exclusive focus. Among the restaurants at the InterContinental are; Theo Randall at the InterContinental, with mainly Italian food, and Cookbook Cafe. Three bars are available to choose from - The Arch Bar, specialising in gin with 40 different cocktails, Theo Randall at the InterContinental Bar, which is attached to the restaurant of the same name and offers simple food, and Wellington Lounge, a lobby bar where you can grab a cup of coffee during the day or have an informal meeting. Wellington Lounge also offers afternoon tea in the afternoons.

Lobby and Wellington Lounge Unfortunately, there was not enough time for a visit to any of the bars, but I did get a chance to test breakfast in the morning, served in the Cookbook Cafe. The breakfast was in a buffet style and offered good quality food and most of the standard dishes you would expect, without anything extraordinary. A waiter served coffee, tea and juice, as well as fresh toast of any kind to the table. There was also a menu to order from if you wanted something different (for a fee).

Other Facilities

The hotel has a spa and gym. "Spa InterContinental" offers various treatments which must be booked in advance. There was time to visit the gym in the morning after breakfast. It is situated on the first floor and had the usual standard equipment and weights. The gym was quite dark and somewhat uninspiring with frosted or veiled windows.

Internet connection

The internet connection was free, however, a password from reception was needed. Neither the password or log-in instructions were in the room. Whether this was a permanent or temporary procedure I do not know.

Service and status benefits

Two reception desks were open in the lobby when I arrived, both were busy. A nice arrangement was a third staff member who had the task of welcoming newly arriving guests, this evening it was a very likeable woman. It took less than five minutes before one of the reception desks became vacant. During check-in, the receptionist took the time make conversation by asking few questions about the reason for my visit before she noted down the appropriate bus numbers and routes I needed for the next day. This was much appreciated.

Reception In general, The staff were were all very polite and courteous. I had only hand luggage and needed no porterage, but the man who took care of my check-in still followed me the short distance to the lifts to make sure I knew where I was going. The treatment at breakfast was also very good and I was always spoken to by name. A nice touch was the note that was pushed under the door each evening with the next day's weather and temperature printed on it.

Conclusion

Overall, surprisingly good. London can be a daunting place when it comes to hotels, with so many hotels charging high prices but delivering a very mediocre experience. InterContinental Park Lane, however, was excellent. The service throughout the hotel was very polite and the room was to a good standard, although the view was not anything to get excited about. And as I said, its location is among the best in London.