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Review: Intercontinental Dublin – Get Happy Out with 5* Fish & Chips
It was nice to get “Happy Out” after a long delay in Edinburgh and visiting both the No 1 Lounge and the Aspire Lounge at Edinburgh airport. We were READY to get to the 5 star Intercontinental Dublin, have some fish & chips, whet our whistle, and enjoy our last night together. I was super stoked to check this hotel out, even if just for the night, as it used to be a Four Seasons and now it was an Intercontinental and had long been on my radar. As I’d mentioned in a prior post, I was only in town for the night and primarily there to make sure my parents were set up for their 7 night, 5 star tour through Ireland booked with Marriott Vacation Club Points. BYAW! The Intercontinental Dublin is a 5 star hotel, built in 2001, that you should definitely consider when visiting Dublin.
Location:
It’s just outside the city center of Dublin in an area called Ballsbridge: an area of Dublin that is the uberest of the ubers when it comes to being posh. It’s located near the Aviva Stadium, if you’re a sports nut like Miles, and it’s roughly 25 -30 minutes from the airport. If you’re in town for just the night…maybe not the most ideal, but if you’re there for a few it’s location is actually very good. You can easily access downtown via a free shuttle, but still be a bit removed and get the neighborhood feel that a lot of people desire.
Intercontinenal Dublin review is part of the NFL in London, Scotland, and Dublin Trip Report:
- British Airways Club World A380 LAX- LHR
- London Edition – A Ritz Carlton Hotel is SOHO SEXY
- Marriott Park Lane, London
- Intercontinental Park Lane, London
- Virgin Train First Class Lounge King’s Cross
- Virgin Train First Class King’s Cross London to Edinburgh
- Caledonian Edinburgh, A Waldorf Astoria Property
- Caledonian Afternoon Tea in Peacock Alley
- Balmoral Afternoon Tea in the Palm Court
- No. 1 Lounge at Edinburgh Airport
- Aspire Lounge at Edinburgh Airport
- Intercontinental Dublin
- Lufthansa First Class Ground Services Frankfurt
- Lufthansa First Class Lounge Frankfurt Terminal 1
- Lufthansa First Class 747-8 FRA-LAX
The Deets
- When: October 2016
- Where: Dublin
- Rewards Program: IHG
- Status: Spire Elite Ambassador but it was part of a tour
- How much: Part of a tour
- Category Room – Executive
I was there for practically 12 hours and it didn’t make sense to pay the roughly €250 for a night or use up 50k points so I spent the night on a cot that they promptly set up after Check in.
Arrival + Check-in
The hotel is classic, stately, and the drive through the front gates makes you feel like you’ve arrived. I didn’t know what to expect, but it was awesome. Porters are waiting to take your bags and the staff is ultra friendly. At Check-In, the staff greeted us and we were given our room keys. My dad put his IHG account on the room, and since we were considerably delayed, we b-lined to the room to get changed for dinner and then get some shut eye.
The Room is HUGE
We were in a roughly 600 sq ft room and it was extremely spacious even after they brought in the cot.
I would also highly recommend choosing a room in the “34” line. They are enormous, sun drenched rooms with bay windows, and are situated at the end of the hall. Great spots.
Miles pretty much booted my parents from the King bed, but we had a talk…after visiting the mini bar.
The Bathrooms are dipped in marble. It’s like MARBLE ON MARBLE ON…what’s that? Yeah….it’s MARBLE
I mean look at the frameless glass shower door.
After we were settled, we headed down to the lobby restaurant. IT WAS DELICIOUS! SAY HELLO TO FISH, CHIPS, MUSHY PEAS, AND YESSSSSSSS – GUINNESSSSSSSSSS 😉
The hotel reminds me sooooo much of the Ritz Carlton in St Louis. I went to Washington University in St Louis and that hotel was always a go to “treat.” This hotel brings me back to those days and I love it.
Adjacent to the main room was the lobby bar. The bar itself looked like it had a 401k and was probably well versed in ETFs and left tips for housekeeping – it was just that classy.
Fitness and a great looking pool
Once you’re dry or tired of jacuzzi-ing you can head to the fitness center
Overall
If you’re looking for a luxurious, well staffed, HUGE ROOMED hotel that is located in a quiet area of Dublin, look no further. This.Is.It. However, if you want to be in the action, head out the front door and walk to sights and sees – maybe look elsewhere. Alternatively, if you want a hotel with more history then this probably isn’t your spot either – it was built in 1991. My folks also went to the Shelbourne in central Dublin and really liked it. I didn’t go, so I can’t give you my assessment. What I can say is the Intercontinental Dublin isn’t going to disappoint you.
P.S.
At one point we had an additional room reserved with points as a backup in case I stayed for more than just a night. Within 48 hours of booking it had been upgraded to a Junior Suite. Now, that is an outstanding upgrade given ahead of arrival. Worth considering if you’re planning a trip.
If you’d like to read more about the hotel on the official website…go here
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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