InterContinental Hotels DALIAN by IHG

As an InterContinental member for over 10 years, I've gone from Ambassador to the lowest tier. I always choose the Dalian InterContinental when I'm on a business trip; the facilities are top-notch. In recent years, more branded hotels have popped up in Dalian, and fewer people seem to choose InterContinental – I'm not sure why. This is the first time I've encountered such arrogant and dismissive room service and guest services staff. The first day was fine, but on the second day, we were checking out, and my child wanted to go swimming. I requested a few items twice: a children's bathrobe, slippers, plastic bags, non-woven bags, and bath towels. The first time, the attendant opened the door very aggressively, speaking loudly, frowning, and looking displeased. I was lightly dressed, and the door was only slightly ajar, but she pushed it wide open. I could only reluctantly tell her to bring the items in. The second time, the person who answered the phone simply said, 'Let me write this down,' and then questioned me, 'Is there anything else?' I said no, and they just hung up. The same attendant came over, clearly even more impatient and still speaking loudly. I blocked the doorway and didn't let her in, just took the bag and asked her to put the bathrobe inside. Such impatience for a few consumables? On the first day, before extending our stay, I asked the front desk for a non-woven bag, and they said they didn't have any, only guest services did. In all my years with InterContinental, this is the first time I've experienced such unaccommodating guest services – it was quite unexpected. I still hope InterContinental continues to improve and that the brand isn't tarnished by staff who haven't been properly trained.

The hotel has free kids' play facilities and a swimming pool. We even won free drinks in a lucky draw, and they gave us a fridge magnet when we checked out. The service was excellent!

I booked a Deluxe Executive Room for two nights on Ctrip, which included two days of afternoon tea and executive dinner. I arrived at the InterContinental Dalian at 7:30 PM, and was told the executive dinner would close in 20 minutes. I had my 1.36-meter tall child with me and asked at check-in if there would be an extra charge for the child since it was so late. The staff member said no. So, we went up to the 46th floor to grab a bite. As soon as we entered, two servers told me that I would have to pay for the child. I pointed out that it was already 7:47 PM and charging 100 for a child wasn't reasonable, especially since there were mostly leftovers and not much for us to eat anyway. The servers insisted on charging. I then suggested that for tomorrow night, the two adults would just take one child's portion from tonight, but she said that wasn't possible. So, we ended up picking a tiny bit of food from a plate for my child, and the two adults didn't eat anything. I even showed them the plate of food to prove we only had one portion and that it was very little. I absolutely have to write about this experience to let everyone know how inflexible this hotel is. They weren't even willing to exchange the child's portion for a day of our executive package and afternoon tea later. One would think the executive package must be incredibly delicious, given their attitude. My mood was completely ruined right after arriving at the hotel! I had a great impression of Dalian from a previous visit years ago, but this hotel has left a terrible impression on me!

The room facilities are a bit old, but the hygiene and service are excellent, and the food is also decent. The swimming pool is very quiet, and the different-sized pools are perfect for families with kids, allowing children to swim freely. The executive lounge is also quite good, though I hope next time there will be more discounts for children.

The hotel has a good location. Unfortunately, the cleanliness was truly disappointing. I stayed here once at the beginning of the month. At that time, there were handprints on the walls in the room that hadn't been wiped off. After reporting it to the front desk, they changed my room. The day before this stay, the hotel called and said they would clean the room thoroughly beforehand. Who would have thought, after checking in, I still found handprints on the walls in the room. If such obvious spots aren't cleaned, you can only imagine the cleanliness of other areas.

The room is very spacious and the location is excellent, close to the subway station which makes getting around super convenient. The facilities are a bit old, the TV isn't high-definition, and the central air conditioning made the air very dry while sleeping. The service was great though; on the first night, I found the pillow too soft, but after mentioning it to the service center the next day, they promptly swapped it for a firmer one.