We stayed at the InterContinental Wellington for one night during a 2 week trip through New Zealand. My wife and I have stayed at many InterContinental hotels during our travels, and were staying using points during our stay in Wellington, so I can't speak to the value particularly well. The rooms were nice sized, no complaints there, but they were quite dingy and many of the fixtures had aged to the point that they couldn't be cleaned enough to truly look clean anymore. It wasn't that the room was dirty, but for the brand, you don't expect to have yellowed, damaged fixtures in your room. The hotel is in a convenient location in the business district, and is only a short walk to the waterfront and the beautiful sights of Wellington Harbor.

We recently stayed at the InterContinental Wellington for one night June 1- June 2 at a rate of NZD 269 which included full breakfast for 2. Despite apparently being Wellington's top-rated hotel, it was not a flawless experience. Here are the pros and cons:

PROS:
1. The InterContinental Wellington is located squarely in the center of town and you can easily walk to anywhere you want to go (Te Papa Museum, shops on Lambton Quay, the trendy area on Cuba St., etc...). There are also tons of shops and restaurants in the immediate vicinity.
2. It is cheap and easy to get from the hotel to the Wellington Airport via public transport. The day we left, we took the City’s airport bus to the airport which cost NZD 6.50 per person and took 25 mins. The airport bus stop is about 150 yds around the corner from the InterContinental and the bus-ride took about the same time as the cab we took into town upon arrival. (Note- weirdly the hotel staff seemed to know nothing about the airport bus despite the closeness of the bus-stop. They kept suggesting we take a cab).
3. The Concierge, Ingmar, was extremely knowledgeable and gave us a great recommendation to go have dinner at "Monsoon Poon". We loved their Asian fusion food and the happening atmosphere!
4 The workout facility was small but nicely equipped and had good ventilation. There was also an indoor heated pool as well as a sauna. All of this was complimentary for hotel guests.


CONS:
1. A full breakfast was included in our rate and we wanted to workout beforehand. I asked the Front Desk 3 separate times what time breakfast ended in the morning and each time, I was told 10:30 am. After working out, we showed up for breakfast at 10:10 am and were told by the restaurant host that the hot buffet had just ended but that we could help ourselves to the cold cereals! I did not pay an extra $30 to just have cold cereal and I felt I had been mis-advised so I went to the Front Desk where they arranged for us to be served our hot breakfast.
2. The InterContinental seemed to have no soul. The decor on the room levels was very generic and kind of 80's. A neighboring guest's dirty lunch tray was left in the hall all afternoon (at least from noon to 6 pm) despite hotel staff members being in the halls at that time.
3. Our card keys kept deactivating themselves. It was not clear why as the cards were never placed near other magnetic strips. In any event, it was annoying since we could only access the elevator to our room with a working card key, thus necessitating 2 trips to the Front Desk to get the keys reactivated.
4. We had just checked in around noon when a maid barged into the room without knocking. Although they have electronic room keys, I guess Housekeeping isn't informed when guests check in.

Thinking back, the InterContinental Wellington was a good but not great hotel, especially if it is supposedly the "best hotel in town". We also stayed one night at the Holiday Inn Wellington on which is 3 blocks away down Featherstone St. and it was only NZD 128 a night. It was also one of the most modern and well appointed Holiday Inns I have ever seen.

In hindsight, I don't think the InterContinental was worth the extra 150 NZD more per night. Next time, I'll save my money and stay at the Holiday Inn.

Hi

I stayed in March 2009 visiting relatives. I chose the club lounge but I was so busy I didn’t get a chance to take advantage of all the facilities such as complimentary breakfast, afternoon tea, evening drinks and appetisers, free parking. However I did make full use of the unlimited soft drinks and internet and the club floor has amazing views.



Good Stuff

• Excellent central location

• Brilliant concierge, consistently going out of their way to help you

• Comfiest bed. I never wanted to get up. I normally suffer from back pain in hotel beds but this was great.

• Chameleon Restaurant. Pricey by NZ standards but well worth it

• Discount at adjacent Arizona bar and grill

• Fast, decent room service


Bad Stuff

• It’s not the most glamorous 5 star hotel; it really needs a refurbishment, very outdated.

• Not enough drawer/storage space for a 2 week stay.

• Hideous bathroom and amenities, I had to go and buy my own soap/shower gel etc

Our room was dated but a cursory attempt had been made to upgrade it- but this did not add to the attraction.
I could cope with this but what I can't cope with is a dirty bathroom.I know the staff aren't given enough time to properly service a room but surely there has to be a spray bottle somewhere in this establishment containing grout cleaner & mould remover...it's not that difficult.The non-slip surface on the bath was so grubby you would never have a bath in it- standing on it was a challenge!
I filled in the feedback form but suspect room 327 will remain the same..this dirt was not an overnight wonder - it had taken weeks to develop - so it's obvious that their in- house quality control has failed.
As part of this review I am being asked to tick the hotel's amenities- yes it had most of them - but at a cost - and the use of them plus breakfast made me wonder why we hadn't stayed in a B&B !