Emma Gleason finds a thoughtful restaurant and expansive view at the InterContinental Wellington. Photo / Supplied
Emma Gleason finds a thoughtful restaurant and expansive view at the InterContinental Wellington. Photo / Supplied
A pillar of professional travellers, Emma Gleason checks into the impressive InterContinental Wellington.
Location: Large and handsome, InterContinental Wellington enjoys a prominent corner spot at 2 Grey St in Wellington Central. A picturesque city spot, down near the water and surrounded by well-maintained heritage buildings, it’s at the heart of everything - a stone’s throw from notable attractions like Wellington Museum, TSB Arena, Old Bank, City Gallery, the ferry and Lambton Quay - and easy walking distance from all the things you’ll want to do when visiting the city.
Style: Modern traditional. High quality, consistent and in many ways timeless, this is a hotel with a capital H.
Price: From $387 per night
Perfect for: An urban escape, corporate travel, or anyone wanting to stay in a big proper hotel in a big proper city - this is where the All Blacks stay, many diplomats, as well as tourists and solo travellers. Good if you’re a woman travelling alone.
First impressions: Walking into the welcoming lobby and being greeted by the friendly, smartly dressed concierge team who are right by the door, the InterContinental has more than a dash of that glamour you want from a big hotel in a metropolitan city. The front desk staff are warm and professional. The ground floor is easy to navigate, with the lobby lounge, restaurant and lifts all easy to find.
The staff are friendly and smartly dressed in the centre-city spot. Photo / Supplied
Rooms: My room is very smart, both in style and formation. The view is gorgeous - I have an expansive window - and it’s lovely to see the harbour and cityscape, all those rooftops and the houses on the hills, and the calm bustle of the street below. Wellington city vistas are something special. You can watch the traffic zipping by below, but you can’t hear it.
The layout is very good, and I particularly enjoyed the desk placement - after all, I’m here to work - with the desk facing the window, rather than a wall. The bed also enjoys a good vantage of the view, and of a large television.
There are classic interiors and a sweeping view to be found at the InterContinental. Photo / Supplied
The rooms are well designed - smart, stylish, classic - and though the hotel is in the process of refitting its floors (while also doing earthquake strengthening) all iterations can be described as such. It’s a savvy look to deploy, and they resist the allure of trying to look contemporary or “on trend”, which can make a place feel dated immediately. It’s not trying to be my home, or look like a flashy fashion boutique - why would you want that anyway, you’re staying at the InterContinental. It’s a classic. And with locations around the world, much of its guest cohort depends on the consistency and trust of the chain, regardless of where they are.
The room facilities are great. All of InterContinental’s guest rooms have adjustable air conditioning and heating, a safe, iron and ironing board.
And the bed, after a long day of walking and enjoying Wellington (or whatever you plan to do) you’ll want to know about this; it is one of the most comfortable hotel beds I’ve slept in - perfectly fluffy, with good sheets and natural light from the window facilitating an easy wake-up.
Bathroom: The bathroom is very nice, and the shower benefits from clever placement of the taps (no dodging a cold stream here). The products are from Byredo, lovely and luxurious - as is the robe, which is made from very fluffy, very classic cotton towelling, and takes me back to childhood. There’s also a full range of toiletries and any accoutrements you may need.
Food and drink: There’s 24-hour in-room dining, and you can make off-menu inquiries. But what you really want to do is head downstairs to the InterContinental’s chic new restaurant GPO, which opened in April.
Positioned as a “culinary window to the world” and bringing an elegant dash of continental European flavour to the hotel, executive chef Carl Maunder helms the kitchen, which had been working together for months ahead of the opening, finessing its offering and finding that all-important rhythm. The team comes from around the world and includes Italian sous chef Davide, and Nico from Argentina.
Executive chef Carl Maunder (left) and the kitchen team at GPO restaurant, InterContinental Wellington. Photo / Supplied
After years in top kitchens overseas, and though inspired by his experience abroad, Carl is clearly relishing the chance to dive into New Zealand’s best produce, particularly seafood. We share oysters from Marlborough and Te Matuku alongside Cloudy Bay Clams, discussing the best seafood spots around the country. For Wellington on a Plate this year (an excellent reason to visit the city) he hosted a multi-course crayfish lunch, with each dish informed by a different memory of cooking crayfish and lobster around the world.
Some of NZ's best seafood produce is served up at the GPO restaurant. Photo / Supplied
This thoughtfulness extends to other elements of the restaurant; the plates were all made by Temuka Pottery in Palmerston North, and feature a custom glaze, and the restaurant has its own blend of olive oil with Olea Estate.
Facilities: Wi-Fi is included, and is fast and easy to use - a must for business travellers and anyone wanting to stay connected.
The concierge can help facilitate your stay and time in Wellington, from train tickets to restaurant bookings and where to go shopping.
Speaking of style, to keep you looking smart and professional, in addition to an in-room iron, there are dry cleaning and laundry services available every day except Sunday, and you can also arrange a complimentary shoeshine through the hotel’s Instant Service team.
The Club InterContinental Lounge on level seven is available to guests staying in a Club InterContinental room with Club access. It serves afternoon tea, a daily twilight drink and breakfast, including barista coffee.
The Club InterContinental Lounge. Photo / Supplied
On level three you’ll find the Emerge Health Club, with a well-kitted-out gym and the largest heated pool in Wellington (it has a chic conservatory-style roof).
Another thing for corporates is the hotel’s business centres - with one on level one and a private Club International central in the Club Lounge mentioned above. The hotel has nine function rooms (including a ballroom) which are suitable for conferences, as well as events of the less serious kind.
InterContinental also operates a reward service, IHG One Rewards, for regular visitors, as well as an “ambassador” programme.
In the neighbourhood: It’s central Wellington so there’s literally everything - from Zambesi around the corner to Cuba St a short walk away, and the cafes of Te Aro not far either. Te Papa is close, as is the Beehive and numerous art galleries.
Sustainability: Like all IHG hotels, which are working towards a 46 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, eliminating single-use items and minimising food waste, InterContinental Wellington measures its environmental impact. The hotel also has an incentivisation programme for IHG One Rewards members to encourage “A Greener Stay”; opting out of housekeeping for a two-night stay or longer gives them 500 reward points per night in return. At a room level, benefiting the casual guest, the Byredo products in the bathrooms are refillable, while there are auto sensors on both the lights and the AC in the rooms (you can opt out of this if you wish) which minimises power usage.
Accessibility:Mobility-accessible rooms (found on levels two and four) include lowered closet rails, with bathrooms that have roll-in showers, grab bars for both shower and toilet and lowered sink. There are also visual alarms, which release a strong light in the event of an evacuation. The restaurants are Club Lounge are all accessible, with the former located on the ground floor. Guests may bring registered and documented service animals.
