Hotel Review: Intercontinental Tokyo Bay | Deluxe Room
Location | INtercontinental TOkyo Bay
While the location isn’t as ideal as other counterparts, Tokyo’s fantastic subway and bus system makes for convenience with several lines available within a 5-10 minute walk. You have three different modes of transportation nearby, with the Takeshiba Station, Hamamatsucho Station and the Daimon Station. All can bring you around Tokyo very quickly and we had no trouble finding our way from the stations to the hotel. I highly recommend getting an IC card ahead of time so you can easily transit back and forth across the complex Tokyo transportation system.
From Haneda International Airport, it took us about 16 minutes to get from Terminal 3 to the hotel. From Narita International Airport, I would assume 1 to 1.5 hours (depending on traffic) by taxi to the hotel. There’s also the alternative of Uber or the subway system, though we were running short on time as we arrived later in the day.
Check-In | INtercontinental TOkyo Bay
We arrived around 7:45pm having come from Haneda International Airport and was greeted immediately by a friendly bellman. The lobby of this IC Tokyo Bay was luxurious and beautiful - from gold cladded chandeliers to expensive marble flooring to the decor, you feel like you’re transported to a palace.
As mentioned in the travel report (found here), we utilized 4 IHG free night certificates to book our two rooms, one for my parents and one for me and my wife. At time of review, the cash prices had gone up considerably due to the incoming cherry blossoms, and thus was averaging around $400-450 a night. We were given a Deluxe Room due to our Diamond IHG status along with free breakfast (complimentary). In addition, we were also greeted with a small gift (not shown, totally forgot about it at night) and found ourselves quickly beelining for the closest Family Mart.
Breakfast | INtercontinental TOkyo Bay
I can definitely vouch right away that any Japanese hotel breakfast will always be far superior than the American counterparts. There were multiple styles of breakfast (American & Japanese) but the selections are incredible. We were pleased to daily changes to certain fish and vegetables dishes, which made breakfast super entertaining in the morning. Everything in the breakfast was easily labeled and we found ourselves eating multiple plates per day.
Upon sitting down, a server would inquire about your selection of tea or coffee or juice, and then off you go to the buffet line. Hot buffet line includes various cooked fishes and meats, various vegetables (both pickled and cooked), along with various fruits and salad bar items.
Deluxe Room | INtercontinental TOkyo Bay
We were given a River View Deluxe Room and was welcomed to a lovely designed, albeit small room. Great scent, lovely bed and pillows made for an easy night sleep. One can easily check out the views of Tokyo Bay at night and a serene view of Tokyo skyline in the morning. The beds were incredibly comfortable and we had no problems knocking out within minutes. There’s a day bed next to the window for one’s viewing of the bay - it was great watching the sunrise during the early mornings.
The room has various speakers across the bedroom and living room that allows you listen to the TV while putting on makeup. In addition, the room is well appointed and has all the various toiletries and amenities that one needs.
The bathroom is slightly showing its age, though it was still great to use. Interestingly enough, there wasn’t a standard toiletry brand but a mixture of Byredo and Mikimoto - both were great, but definitely was confusing at first. Shower pressure was decent and you get both a shower head and handle.
Conclusion | INtercontinental TOkyo Bay
Overall, we found ourselves loving the Intercontinental Tokyo Bay. It’s a classic luxury hotel with fantastic lobby and restaurants, and the location proximity of several train stations made for an easy choice for our vacation around Tokyo. While the bathroom is showing its age, the breakfast far outweighed any negatives across our stay at this hotel.
If you’re a Tokyo expert or have visited Japan enough, this hotel might be a great alternative compared to the The Strings or ANA Intercontinental, all which are inflated due to their proximity to various train stations and their city vicinity. I would place this and the Strings as my #1 and #2, with the ANA being last. If you have any free night certificates from IHG, this is a great use.
