Easily accessible by local metro and a convenient short walk from Jincheng Plaza station, the InterContinental Global Center creates a Mediterranean style resort within a massive building that has a drawcard appeal for families. The 975 thematic design rooms, showcasing the panoramic water view of the Mediterranean-inspired indoor Paradise Island Water Park and an indoor beach with numerous borderless hot water pools features a gigantic 150-meter indoor LED screen where the main action takes place, so this is certainly an InterContinental hotel with a difference! Moreover, the New Century Global Center has its own leisure and lifestyle shopping mall beside the largest convention and conference facilities as well as commercial offices and extensive apartment living within and directly adjacent to this massive edifice. Connectivity is all a key factor, so you will not be short of things to do right on their doorstep.
The hotel is also directly across from Chengdu’s newest and largest village style “sunken” SKP shopping precinct that houses multiple global international luxury brands (the locals like to call it underground shopping) with the metro access directly below and this proves to be very fortuitous as this is the easiest way to get around this sprawling city.
We started our InterContinental Chengdu journey at the Chengdu East Railway Station with a limousine pick-up in a luxury Buick people mover, which made for an easy arrival at the hotel in the Hi-Tech Zone which looks akin to a relatively new financial district. The designated chauffeur didn’t make himself obvious at the meeting point in the chaotic train station, as the signage was not visible. After 5-8 minutes we sighted him but didn’t speak English and we managed to get by with sign language. Unfortunately he also had a wrist sprain, so we needed to assist him in putting our luggage into the vehicle instead. Moreover, his driving was not as smooth as we expected either and drove more like an erratic rally driver, but we arrived at the hotel without any issue and were met on arrival by a number of the hotel team and it was smooth sailing from that moment forward which was a relief.
The InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG) are renown for creating superb luxury destinations, but not every hotel has to be a serious ode to the business traveller and the main arrival entrance, befitting such a colossal centre such as the New Century Global Center is, has the port cochere which is rather grand with a fountain feature on one side.
As you enter the main doors you are quite taken away by the grand scale of the cavernous space which has been appropriately adorned with a huge hanging glass modern chandelier resembling a flowing river shape. The ceiling is composed of steel and glass panels, so light floods the space and picks up striations in the eye-catching marble flooring.
The actual check-in is located in another inner lobby off to the right side of this foyer. With 975 luxury guest rooms and suites the main check-in lobby is also rather in a large scale. The full-on marble experience with two massive marble columns centre left and right, another gigantic cascading chandelier and lots of gold on black decorative elements with the back of the front desk anchored by a multi-panel art work, showcasing the luminescent ambience with elegant furniture on each side of the reception area. Simply eye-catching and no doubt instagrammable!
The hotel is positioned within the centre of this huge complex and all guest rooms have an internally facing view, which may sound odd, but as the hotel and water park complex are under a huge atrium roof, there is natural daylight flooding in through the clear roof structure. With such a large count of guest rooms, the hotel spreads out into four different sections – each section has 9 floors – and luckily our 2nd floor room was adjacent to the lobby, pool deck, gym and Club Lounge, with all the important amenities front and centre and the pool deck is the location of the all day dining, The Paradise Island Cafe.
We were escorted to the Club Lounge for the formalities and our room keys were promptly presented. Our Premier Twin Room was incredibly spacious at 52sqm and as soon as you walked in you have a small walk-in closet immediately on the left, after which is a huge marble bathroom with a separate toilet and large walk-in shower with a large single vanity counter and looking out to the bed/living area a large sunken bathtub.
Bathroom amenities are the luxurious Bryredo Blanche brand, adding a touch of luxury to the bathroom experience. The bathroom can be screened off with blinds at the touch of a button for privacy, or left open to make the room look even larger. The bed/living area has more space than you could possibly need with the large minibar sideboard amoire and separate working desk on the right and two large twin beds on your left. The seating area was beyond and a large balcony with even more lounge furniture which overlooks the pool deck and all day dining through the balcony.
The room interior mood and theme is certainly clashing with confidence. Beige is banned here as it has an exotic design reference with canopied beds and an upholstered sofa in an animal print like pattern resembling an European Chateau style, bold yet delicate with a touch of luxury. Yes, certain elements of the room date back to the opening of the hotel in 2013 but still look good. This is a very regal old European design ethos with black and gold cabinetry in a quasi art deco Chinoiserie look that exudes elegance as well as the striking gold and black bedside lamps.
The painterly prints are integral to a warm, inviting and characterful interior which was a nice surprise and worked well to create something unique. More is definitely more here to create that palazzo ambience. With more than just a bit of consideration and experimentation, the clashing ideas and concept work together wonderfully. It does tell a story and immerse your senses.
For wellness they have an ‘indoor’ outdoor gym located on top of the Club Lounge which is well kitted out and a great location to exercise, as you feel you are outdoors, but actually under the enormous atrium roof.
The large 25 metre swimming pool and adjacent children’s pool have plenty of pool deck space and cater for leisure swimmers or guests that need to do their swimming laps.
Our room included Club Lounge access and we always find this elevates the stay. The elegant Club Lounge was located on one side of the pool deck atrium and it felt like an oasis amid all the outside buzz of the Paradise Island Cafe and the busy architecture.
As you enter the reception desk is to the left and the buffet set up is on the right. The interior is styled in a European elegance design, with draped tasselled curtains at the far end, which is the lounge section, featuring an array of wing-back style armchairs and some low sofas separated by a wooden shelving unit. It is quite spacious and elegantly carpeted.
Afternoon Tea
While afternoon tea is a fine repast of beautiful cakes and pastries, happy hour is a proper buffet of hot and cold delights featuring some flavourful Thai dishes and local delicacies included noodle dishes as part of the highlight as well as a generous selection of alcoholic beverages.
Breakfast is served at The Paradise Island Cafe located on the atrium pool deck – outside but inside – and it is a very airy space where you can relax while starting your day. The expansive full buffet breakfast set up is enormous that will have you salivating before you start eating. The variety was incredible and you will not be disappointed.
Highlights were the make your own congee station, wagyu beef noodles, fried dough stick , fresh tropical fruits including guava and passionfruit, salad station which had fresh frosty ice leaf (a unique local vegetable in China), fried rice, crispy bacon, steamed buns and the pancake station. There were too many individual items to mention but a very consistent food quality standard that did not fail to please anyone’s appetite. Despite the service was a little disoriented as we placed an order for tea and coffee, but the coffee never arrived. Table clearance was excellent and while very little English, still very polite and they found a way to communicate.
Given the spread out nature of this resort style hotel, guests staying further away from the lobby are taken to their rooms by a buggy, so help is at hand. We were fortunate to be so near all the amenities we required. The stay was short but memorable and while the scale of the whole complex may seem daunting, the hotel is in its own space and you are not disturbed by activity taking place elsewhere in the Century Global Center complex.
The water park was still closed during our visit, so we were not able to see what effect this had on the hotel staycation experience, if any. We thoroughly enjoyed the food and beverage offerings with the overall experience meeting our expectations and this was most certainly a stay with a difference!
Tried & Tested:
Location: 4.5/5
Design & Decor: 4/5Housekeeping: 4/5
Food & Beverage: 4/5Service: 4/5
Value For Money: 4/5
Experience: 4/5
InterContinental Chengdu Global Center
1736, Tianfu Avenue North,Wuhou District,Chengdu, ChinaTel: +86 28 6275 8888
Tried & Tested:
Location: 4.5/5
Design & Decor: 4/5
Location: 4.5/5
Design & Decor: 4/5
Housekeeping: 4/5
Food & Beverage: 4/5
Food & Beverage: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Value For Money: 4/5
Experience: 4/5
Value For Money: 4/5
Experience: 4/5
InterContinental Chengdu Global Center
1736, Tianfu Avenue North,
Wuhou District,
Chengdu, China
Tel: +86 28 6275 8888
Reviews are based on actual day of visit and experience. mylifestylenews reserves the right of final decision in case of any disputes. All images are photographed by mylifestylenews team without any photoshop enhancement and are the property owned by mylifestylenews unless otherwise stated.
