Intercontinental Sydney Double Bay

Check in was helpful, breakfast is a great spread, location is on point. However, service standards, quality of amenities/ finishing and hygiene of room are absolutely appalling. Pool is not worth the time. In rooms: Thick layers of dust, hand prints on balcony doors, terrible room makeup, malfunctioning lamp and air con, unresponsive Concierge. Complaining about specific issues also yield no improvement. Not a five star experience at all in my 4 nights here.

We booked a last minute staycation and was thrilled to be able to use one of my free weekend nights. Booked a one bedroom suite with a view. On arrival I thought the porters were maintenance staff as they were so casually dressed. No crisp shirts or jackets as you find at most five star hotels. I get that it is summer in Australia but the polo shirts looked too casual. Check in was a poor experience. For some reason my booking could not be found. I of course then worried that I had booked the wrong dates. Then when a booking was located it was was for a different person. Ultimately it was found using the booking reference. My loyalty level was recognised but none of the benefits offered. When asking about an upgrade (which is guaranteed) I was told no. Again, I had to ask. Then there was a halfhearted offer of 10,000 points to compensate (which have not been credit but all other points have). We were merely handed a piece of paper with information on the hotel. I noted another check in agent running through this with the guest. I had to ask about information on the Club Lounge. It was very underwhelming and I may as well have been at a Holiday Inn. Headed up to the suite which was a very decent size. Lots of grey and black hues giving it a monotone and slightly soulless feel. Bedroom was large with a very comfortable king bed. Appreciated that it had its own air con controls. We did note the construction next door but thankfully there was no work over the long weekend. The lounge are has modern furnishings that are oddly laid out - the space just seems to be poorly used. One of the couches had a large brown stain on one of the cushions - reported it but nothing done about it. Lovely view through the trees to the water. Air con worked well. Decent sized TV with the ability to cast which is great. Decided to hit the Lounge for afternoon tea. It is a cosy space and was unexpectedly empty. We were greeted by Allegra and she is a delight. Coffee/tea orders taken and then enjoyed the freshly made afternoon tea. As a side night, the lounge never had more than six people in it and the hotel was at very high occupancy. As a traveller who loves a lounge I was surprised at how underutilised it was. I realised then that there had been no welcome letter in the room (I know it is a bit cheesy but it is always a nice touch). I asked at reception (same person who checked us in) and she quickly investigated and said that it had been overlooked but would be rectified (it was). A simple thing that retracted from the stay. Went up to have a look at the pool which was over flowing with people. One thing that was odd was that there was no restriction on accessing the pool. Actually you could access any floor without needing your key card. Not sure if they were all hotel guests at the pool - I wonder. This should be fixed for safety and to ensure only guests have access to the pool. Didn't stay long as was too crowded but it afforded an amazing view and the bar looked nice. Not sure it needed the DJ though. Visited the lounge each evening for canapes and drinks. Love the fact that there is a real champagne on offer and the other options were decent quality. The food that was on display looked all a bit sad and wilted. The warm canapes were also a bit lacklustre. Thankfully the amazing staff made up for it. Breakfast has a list of a la carte items which were pretty decent. We did try the breakfast buffet one morning which was OK. Delivery of coffee and ordered items was slow. Would also have been nice to have been told about the ability to order items - was there a menu? One small note to housekeepping is that if you are servicing the room is that you should also put back cushions in place not just left lying on the couch. We had a nice mini break but it is unlikely that we will be back. I get what it is trying to be but it is just not there. It just lacked a bit of finesse and pizzazz that I was hoping for.

My husband and I stayed at the Intercontinental in Double Bay for 2.5 weeks from late December 2025-mid January 2026. We had a marvelous time and we highly recommend the hotel, especially to people who like village life over the gritty busy city. We loved the high end village location, a five minute stroll to top restaurants such as Margaret, the ferry to the CBD (on this ferry take a 15 minute joyful and quiet ferry ride to the Sydney warf, downtown city or a ferry to the beaches), and also a 3 minute stroll to the supermarket and liquor store (Woolworths). Bondi beach is a 10 minute uber ride away. We know of the hotel well as my husband grew up in Sydney. The hotel is high end yet charming, and includes a small but big enough rooftop pool and bar, a lounge (decorated in pink velvet to match London vibes), and the rooms are modern in style. We had a top floor bayside room which truly was amazing to see everyday. It felt like we were in Italy with hillsides and the bay and boats right in front of us. I'd choose this hotel over the City or any Carribbean island any day. The service was very good, and the concierge was excellent (Thanks Vanessa and Peter). A special thank you to Anita in housekeeping. This was my 9th trip to Sydney, have stayed in many areas and hotels, and we will be returning to the Intercontinental on our next visit to Sydney.

Fantastic hotel in an amazing location with a wonderful staff. Double bay is a tranquil and authentic affluent Australian suburb. The restaurants are absolutely fantastic in the local area and there are some lively bars. The hotel itself needs a bit of a refurbishment. The rooms are slightly dated and the dining room is possibly the ugliest interior I’ve seen ever in a restaurant. Don’t desperately like the staff uniforms either The rooftop bar is a gem

The family chose the International @ Double Bay for our Christmas Lunch. Very good indeed. The selection of cuisine was terrific with plenty of seafood to satisfy anyone. The hot cavern was delicious and along with the truffle mash a real treat. So a real good choice was made and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.