InterContinental Dubai Marina Review: Is This 5-Star Hotel in Dubai Marina Worth It?
The InterContinental Dubai Marina is a luxurious 5-star hotel located in the heart of Dubai’s bustling Marina district, owned by the IHG group and offering stunning views of the marina and city skyline. It also provides the prime location, rooftop pool, gym, spa, and multiple dining options serving international cuisine for both business and leisure travellers. But is it worth it? This review will give you all details about it.
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During my time working at Expo 2020 Dubai, I was fortunate to call InterContinental Dubai Marina my home for three months before moving to the Expo Village. In this review, I’ll share my thoughts on the InterContinental Dubai Marina as well as the “one bedroom residence with balcony/and Marina view” room type.
Overall, I would rate this room type at the Dubai Marina InterContinental hotel an 8.5 out of 10 and the hotel itself an 8 out of 10.
Keep reading for a detailed breakdown of my rating, including my thoughts on View From The Room, Room Facilities & Equipment, Breakfast, Rooftop Pool, Bar, Location and Convenience as well as Cleanliness & Service.
Rating: 7.5/10
My waterfront room on the 20th floor was partially facing Dubai Marina, partially facing the road, and partially facing JBR Beach. From the room, I got to see the Dubai Marina skyline, a bit of the ocean, as well as the tall buildings on the street. It was a pleasant experience waking up to the water view and the sunrise.
However, personally, I always prefer a room with a full ocean view or a view of iconic buildings. Therefore, I gave the room a score of 7 for the view.
Room Facilities & Equipment
Rating: 9.5/10
Room Type: one bedroom residence with balcony/ and Marina view (No. 2006)
Living in a residence-type room has its perks because it offers a fully-equipped studio that made me feel at home after a long day at work. The room had everything I needed for my daily working life, including a dining area, living room, balcony, mini kitchen, and a separate bedroom with an ensuite bathroom. Once I closed the door, it was completely quiet and comfortable to rest.
The table and the adjustable chair in the bedroom were both comfortable for work.
All bathroom and kitchen stuff, including the dishwasher, utensils and more were provided, and the staff cleaned the room three times a week. The only things that were not provided in this room were the bathtub, laundry detergent, and personal care products. It was really a hassle-free stay for a busy working life in Dubai.
As we visited a few other colleagues’ rooms too, one funny thing we discovered was that the paintings in our type of room were all the same and weren’t particularly special or interesting. But that doesn’t matter too much, just thought I’d mention it.
Breakfast
Rating: 8.5/10
The buffet-style breakfast provided at InterContinental Dubai Marina Hotel deserves an 8.5 for sure. They have diverse options ranging from South East Asian, Indian styles to American and English styles, including lots of options for salad, cold plates, yogurt, fruit, pastries, eggs benedict, omelette, toast, as well as acai bowls, noodles, dosa, and shumai.
What’s more, they have a variety of fresh juices, coffee, and tea. Carrot with orange juice was my favourite mix to start the day.
Even though I had breakfast there for three months, I didn’t get tired of the food there (except for the avocado toast).
The two downsides are that the Asian food at the hotel was a bit too salty and oily, and due to being in a Muslim country, for pork products, they have replaced them with turkey or chicken meat. So, the cold plate (salami, etc.) and some Asian food were not as great as what I had expected.
But overall, their breakfast is great, and it’s very clean (I didn’t have a single day facing food poisoning).
Rooftop Pool
Rating: 6/10
This is the main reason I didn’t rate higher on the InterContinental Hotel at Dubai Marina.
As many people enjoy their pool, I only went up to chill a few times and didn’t love it that much. It wasn’t because they are bad, it is simply because it is not designed as what I’d like, -not aesthetic. Also the view from the pool isn’t amazing. So I didn’t love the vibe, that’s all.
Good thing is that there is a mini bar, selling smoothies, alcohols, so even in extremely hot summers when the beach and ocean water is super hot, we got to chill in the hotel pool and have some drinks on the weekend.
Bar
Rating: 8.5/10
Other than the rooftop poolside bar at the InterContinental Dubai Marina Hotel, the gin bar on the ground floor – Ginter – is the best of the best bar to have gin cocktails in Dubai Marina.
As a gin lover, I was extremely happy to know that our hotel bar offers various gin and garnish options that we could customise. It was a paradise for gin lovers like me! The interior design is with a high-end vintage, classic bar vibe, and they also have an outdoor area with a view of the Dubai Marina skyline where people can smoke shisha.
They also have happy hour weekly, you can check their website for it.
Location & Convenience
Rating: 9/10
As Marina Mall, JBR Beach, and Marina Walk are very close to InterContinental Dubai Marina (you can go by car or even go there by walking), grocery shopping, going to the beach, and finding amazing local and international restaurants were not a problem at all. When I needed to go further, for example, to Burj Khalifa and other nice beaches in Dubai, I only needed to ask the reception for help in ordering a taxi or order directly from the Careem App.
But if you prefer taking the metro (DMCC station) to explore the city, it is actually a bit far – a 20-minute walk, or you can walk for 2 minutes and take the tram to the DMCC Metro station. Still doable in winter.
Cleanliness & Service
Rating: 9/10
As InterContinental Dubai Marina Hotel is part of the high quality IHG group, the staff here is well trained and professional. They were always so cheerful, friendly and with a big smile. Every morning when we went for breakfast, their energy was like a booster for my brain. And ever since the first 2 weeks, they already remembered our names and what we loved to drink.
As for room service, they always made sure they cleaned it and maintained the room well. I didn’t have any problems regarding cleanliness.
Overall, staying at the InterContinental Dubai Marina Hotel was a lifesaver for my busy life in Dubai with little to no personal time. Everything was so convenient that I got to save time and energy dealing with basic necessities and focus on work instead.
Whether you are traveling to Dubai for a business trip or for leisure, and want to find a hassle-free, quality hotel to stay in, I would say the InterContinental Dubai Marina Hotel could be a good option for you.
You can check the price and book it here
Important Things to Know About Dubai
Can unmarried couple stay in the same hotel room together in Dubai and the UAE?
Check this article for full list of things to aware when traveling in Dubai UAE.
Is Dubai Marina a great place to stay or to live?
Dubai Marina is a nice canal city where you can find many restaurants along the canal and with stunning skyline view. It is close to the popular JBR beach, Bluewaters Island, Ain Dubai (biggest ferris wheel in the world), as well as Dubai Mall, Pier 7 (where you get to find 7 decent restaurants that provide alcohol). So yes, it is certainly an energetic, convenient place to live or stay when you travel to Dubai.
When is the best time to travel to Dubai UAE?
Due to the weather conditions, the best time to travel to Dubai is definitely from October to the end of March, with temperatures ranging from 26-35 degrees Celsius most of the time. This is when outdoor activity-related businesses start operating again and you can truly enjoy outdoor activities such as desert safari trips, visiting the best beach bars in Dubai, kite surfing, exploring themed parks, and more. It is also the time when locals and expats finally feel willing to step out of their air-conditioned rooms for a while.
Why don’t people go out much during the summer in Dubai and the UAE? Because temperatures can rise up to 50 degrees Celsius. It is way too hot and uncomfortable to be outdoors without AC for more than 10 minutes, the air is so thick that sometimes I couldn’t even breathe outside while walking.
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