Since there is no existing thread and I stayed here recently, I'm opening a new one.
Last week I had the pleasure of staying at the InterContinental Lyon - Hotel Dieu. This was a last minute booking, and what made it especially exciting was that we had no idea this is a new hotel! I'd been to Lyon a few times in the past, and wow, I'd never seen the front of Hotel Dieu. Funnily enough we drove past Sofitel (where I'd stayed in the past) and I was surprised how sorry the exteriors. A few hundred metres later I saw Hotel Dieu and "mon dieu, is this really our IC" was uttered in the car!
Porter service is often our first impression of a hotel and Dan did not disappoint! The former Hotel Dieu entrance is grand and leads to a courtyard or two different corridors or wings. IC has set this up differently - in the entrance on your left you'll find reception and in the right side concierge desk and breakfast restaurant. Above it all rises the stunning Le Dome bar. (possibly a picture).
Hotel
While the building is huge, the IC only has 144 rooms on three floors. Floors are accessible through lifts in both wings and interconnect at the bar.
Price
Room prices seem to have been fixed to 233€ and up both last week on those days and even tonight.
Check-in
The reception is as said in its own corridor / wing and associates sit behind desks. The greeting is very professional and you immediately feel welcome, eventhough this is a very new hotel. Even a lowly plat ambassador was treated very nicely. Benefits are listed on a printed note and an associate escorted us to the room.
Room 1
The upgrade from the entry level room King Superior was to King Deluxe, but for some reason to an ADA version (didn't notice initially). I'm unsure what the difference is between these two categories, however the Deluxe room was very spacious, had a comfortable king bed and a nice bathroom. The view was of one of the courtyards but cute nonetheless.
deluxe king
Facing the opposite side of the aisle, I saw something interesting. The opposite room was....
Room 2
On the last night, we managed to snag a
Duplex Suite which are basically all the rooms with the huge windows on the front of the building. I suppose they are all located on the second floor, as the entrance to the duplex is actually on the upper floor of the room - thus you go stairs down from the small living room area down to the bedroom / bathroom area. The suite isn't very spacious, but the views from that massive window of the Rhône is ever so impressive.
"bedroom" from the stairs
duplex suite window
Bar (Le Dome)
As mentioned the bar is located in the main dome and is appropriately called. It is of tasteful décor and has plenty of seating. It opens at 11am and closes at 1am if I recall correctly.
the dome roof
Concierge
I had a few interactions with the concierge team and had mostly good experiences. The two French on staff managed to snag the last table from a highly regarded restaurant. ^
Lounge
While I didn't partake in the lounge through upgrade or buyup, I was invited to see the lounge one morning and spent an hour there chatting to the lounge attendant and having coffee. The lounge is located above the bar in one of the corners of the dome's upper floors. The highlight of the lounge was definitely Badoit Rouge
. I did not partake in the breakfast as I wasn't feeling hungry. There were no other patrons during said hour.
lounge
Other parts of Hotel Dieu
This stunning building deserves its own mention. Les Halles de Hotel Dieu offers fruit, cheese etc, the courtyard has a Buddha Bar, some sort of shopping centre and several restaurants. The facility does feel a bit empty, though, with not that many patrons in sight. There are plenty of tourists or locals that wander around the outside "lobby" area daily, though.
Small service issues
While one of the ambassador benefits advertised is guaranteed 4pm check-out, this kept failing. On each morning my key stopped working at noon and housekeeping wasn't kept up-to-date on the late check-out. As this is a new hotel, this is completely understandable.
All in all
Definitely recommended. Prices will likely go up (compare with Bordeaux) so book now
