InterContinental Bordeaux - Le Grand Hotel, an IHG Hotel

Over rated and over priced. Rooms badly laid out and dark. Bathroom impractical. You gad to stand in bath to turn on the taps. Charged 40 euro for 8 teabags for the room! No notification of closure of rooftop bar. Staff indifferent .

Place: This hotel radiates with the classic & chic style of yesteryears, with its warm & refined interior design and atmosphere. From the moment you walk in, staff greet you with welcoming smiles and make the check-in process seamless. There’s a small but adequate lobby for patrons immediately outside the reception area and multiple restaurants on premise. The breakfast restaurant offers an extensive list of food options that should satisfy even the most delicate of palates: think made-to-order omelettes, baked goods (including an assortment of breads), fruits, vegetables, juices, coffee, etc. The gym was a plus, but requires a bit of attention to address some deficiencies (i.e., old equipment and lack of maintenance). There’s a rooftop lounge and bar with plenty of space and a nice view of the city. Room: The room came with a queen bed, which was very comfortable. There was enough room for luggage and to organize our clothing and items, including a desk for office equipment (laptop). There is also a small area inside and outside the room (i.e., balcony) to stretch your legs. All in all, a well-appointed room with the essential necessities. The only complaint: the shower room, which is a combo shower and bathtub and can be a bit challenging (and slippery) to get in and out of because of the design and restricted space. By the way, the room was located on the 4th floor, which was very quiet. Service: Almost flawless and very accommodating. The only minor hiccup came during dinner service, where a white wine was served knowingly warm, despite efforts to correct it. Overall, however, the staff was courteous and professional.

Perfect location, great breakfast, welcoming, helpful staff. Book a suite if you need/want walk in shower otherwise typical shower tub combo which was too deep for us to manage safely. We brought our problem to front desk staff who addressed it promptly & with great courtesy. While all the staff we encountered (from dining rm to housekeeping to front desk to valets) were helpful & pleasant (even with our abysmal French), Josephine at front desk was particularly outstanding & seemed to inspire those around her. Merci Beacoup

Our “suite” was old, ridiculously small, dark and out-of-date in every way. There were virtually no outlets for devices (or for my husband’s breathing machine for which he had to crawl around on the floor to find a place for a plug-in.) The cost of the “suite” - almost $1K a night - was indefensible. (Breakfast was extra). The entire hotel needs to be gutted and modernized. It is depressing, confining and not at the level of IHG hotels.

Expectations vs. Reality: I specifically chose the Intercontinental Bordeaux over smaller boutique properties, anticipating that a major brand would offer superior concierge connections and seamless booking for local winery tours. Unfortunately, the property failed to deliver the five-star luxury experience my wife and I were expecting, falling short on almost every front. Arrival & Accessibility: First impressions were incredibly poor. We arrived with several bags, and not a single staff member came out to assist us with the stairs leading up to the hotel entrance. After check-in, we still weren't offered a bellman or a luggage cart. This became a major headache when we reached the third floor, which—due to the building's historic layout—requires navigating multiple sets of internal stairs just to reach the room. Room Condition & Maintenance: The room was extremely disappointing. It was visibly dirty, with unswept floors and prominent stains all over the draperies. The bedding and overall decor felt very dated and tired. Furthermore, our shower would not drain. When I called down to have it unclogged, maintenance entered the room while we were out, removed the drain cover, and simply left it off with the issue unresolved. There was absolutely no follow-up from management or housekeeping for the remainder of our stay to ensure the shower was actually functioning. Concierge & Tour Mishaps: The concierge service, which was my primary reason for booking, was a disaster. They sent us on an unconfirmed winery tour, resulting in an incredibly awkward situation upon arrival. The owner and on-site guide had no record of our booking, leading to an uncomfortable argument between our driver, the on-site staff, and the owner on the phone. It demonstrated a complete lack of professionalism from the hotel's end. To make matters worse, the concierge and management team never once followed up to apologize for the confusion or the mistake they made with our booking. Checkout & Departure To add insult to injury, at checkout I realized I had been overcharged by €40 compared to the originally quoted price for the botched winery tour, forcing me to dispute the bill. When it was finally time to leave, the staff once again failed to offer any assistance with bringing our bags to the curb or calling a cab. Bottom Line From the lack of basic porter service to dirty rooms, unprofessional concierge missteps, and zero accountability, this stay was wholly unacceptable for an IHG property of this supposed caliber. I would not recommend it.