TripAdvisor: Vietnam

Meyer has been reviewing restaurants and hotels on TripAdvisor since 2010. Here is his latest share of our trip to Vietnam. In my opinion, I will return for Park Hyatt Saigon (HCM) and Sofitel Metropole (Hanoi) the next time. My personal favourites. 

InterContinental Asiana Saigon
Reviewed March 21, 2013

One of the Top Hotels in Ho Chi Minh

Had a great stay in the Club rooms at Intercon HCM. The hotel, being relatively young, is modern and up-to-date, with strong WIFI connectivity throughout. We booked the club room as the prices were similar to the standard room rate with breakfast. 

Having access to the Intercontinental Club lounge was great and provided extra convenience for my wife and 9month old baby. The helpful staff, easy availability of snacks and drinks, plus a quiet space to bring the baby proved invaluable. All the hotel staff were friendly and the service response was very quick (a pleasant surprise). Special mention to the ever smiling elderly gentleman in traditional costume at the lift lobby, welcoming guests back to the hotel.

The deluxe room was nice and comfortable, though a slightly bigger space would be better. Bathroom has a rain shower and a bathtub, with a sliding door opening up the space to the bedroom. Internet access through WIFI was simple to connect to and hassle free.

Buffet breakfast provided a good spread of choices. The quality was up to standard but nothing exceptional. You will find more restaurants right beside the hotel including, Hard Rock Cafe, Japanese and Korean. So finding something to eat will not be a problem.

The hotel is in a good location which allows walking distances to the main shops in the city centre. And with the great improvement in traffic conditions it doesn't take too long from the airport either.

A great hotel for the traveller on a higher budget, comfortably beating the competition like Caravelle and Sheraton.

InterContinental Hanoi Westlake
Reviewed March 21, 2013

Disappointing but Good Service Support

Coming into Hanoi from Ho Chi Minh, where we stayed at the excellent Intercontinental Asiana Saigon, we were expecting good things from Intercontinental Hanoi. Things started well with a hotel representative locating us right inside the arrival terminal and bringing us to the hotel car. It was a nice and comfy 45min ride to the hotel, which impressed with its exterior facade. However things started to go downhill from there.

Unexpectedly having booked a club room, we were not checked-in at the Club Lounge. The large crowd in the lobby (due to a conference) didn't help. Being told we were upgraded to a better room sounded great, but the actual room was pretty ordinary. The room design was resort-ish and was showing it's age. Although everything was clean and well cared for, it was certainly a step down from Intercontinental Saigon. 

The first night we had a mosquito problem in the room. Before bed we had killed four and placed a mosquito patch on our son. But we awoke at 1am to find our infant son had about 10 bites around his face! We went to reception to ask for anything to help with the mosquitoes and was surprised when they could not offer anything. No coils or sprays or bug lights... We appreciate the Duty Manager that night for swiftly arranging another room for us to spend the night. The next morning we were nicely upgraded in to a Junior Suite. Good service recovery. Although the Junior Suite wasn't any more luxurious, just bigger to accommodate a sitting area. Oh, the baby cot was disappointingly quite old and flimsy. Maybe we were spoiled from Intercontinental Saigon which provided a nice solid wood cot.

The staff at the Club Lounge must be commended for being very helpful. Their constant smiles and personable service really lifted our stay. Generally the service was good all around.

The pool looked great but it was too cold to try out. The hotel surrounding was also pleasant for walking around. 

Overall Intercontinental Hanoi still has some catching up to bring itself to the expected Intercontinental standards.

Room Tip: Get a room in the main building for convenient access to the Club Lounge and restaurants.

MAY: I'd like to share pictures of the cot provided at InterContinental Hanoi. It is totally unacceptable with metal rods around the lower part of the cot which Ewan knocked his head on several times. It's not only dirty, they didn't even provide a mattress. A comforter was used as base instead. My poor boy.