INTERCONTINENTAL MADRID

The modest charm of luxury!

As Coco Chanel once said: "Le luxe, ce n'est pas le contraire de la pauvreté mais celui de la vulgarité." During my recent visit to the InterContinental Madrid Hotel, I finally understood what Coco meant by this quote. Everything at the hotel was aesthetically pleasing, from the doors leading to the huge lobby to the rooftop terrace. There was a perfect balance between the interior, service, quality of food and drinks, which left me feeling completely satisfied. Despite the high prices, it was impossible to be disappointed as I understood exactly what I was paying for from the first minute of my stay. Without going further into praising this hotel, I would like to add some observations as an employee of the luxury industry. Almost all the staff were between the ages of 45 and 75, which was great for two reasons. Firstly, I didn't feel like an old wreck as I was surrounded by people of a similar age. Secondly, these staff members had a lot of life experience, which made them wise and able to understand many things with half a word or without words at all. For example, they knew what I wanted to order in a restaurant or that I didn't need additional service in the lobby. They were helpful, but unobtrusive. All staff had nametags indicating the languages they spoke, which helped me avoid embarrassment or find someone who spoke my native language. The hotel's designer also deserves special praise as the classic style was impeccable. Sometimes, I felt like Jack Nicholson was sitting in the lobby having a cup of coffee, and Tim Roth was standing at the reception desk. Overall, I am still impressed by my trip, and I will definitely come back to this hotel again.

Excellent hotel. A bit old but very well maintained. The staff is absolutely amazing, and as an IC Ambassador member I was offered a bottle of cava in my room which is a very nice touch!

Excelente servicio y la atención del chef Max fue increíble

Very helpful when luggage lost

A lovely and reasonably priced if slightly dated (there are plans for a big modernisation programme soon, apparently) hotel located just a little way away from the main tourist sites (very handy for Museo Sorolla, Museo Lazaro Galdiano and Museo de Ciencias Naturales, however). Spacious rooms - probably better to be overlooking Paseo de Castellana than the inner courtyard, even if the traffic is busy - and very extensive common parts. Carlos at the bar (Bar 49) mixes a mean cocktail and breakfasts are good. Next time we’ll also try the Sunday brunch.

Staff are uniformly lovely, cheerful, friendly and committed. Especial praise for Daniel at the concierge desk, Ana at reception and Ignacio at the bar among many others.