I stayed at the InterContinental Minneapolis on Memorial Day 2023. We were a party of two, mother and teen son returning home after a weekend at camp in Northern MN. (Is there a rule that you must be returning from Bemidji to stay here?)

We arrived before dropping off a rental car. DS wanted to be left at the hotel to relax, so I pulled up, checked with the valet that it was okay to leave the rental car in the driveway for a few minutes, and stepped up to the desk. I'd checked in when an email prompted me to do so using the app. That was an error because I had intended to pay with a different card when a Merchant Offer for hotels popped up on my Citi card. The gentleman at the front desk took the alternate card to use for incidentals, but I didn't push to see if my check in could be rescinded. It's worth noting the my original card was ALSO charged for incidentals, so adding the Citi card was actually a failure.

The man at the front desk was courteous, polite, and I thought he was doing a great job when I checked in. I'm only Silver Elite (post-pandemic), and not an Ambassador, but he offered me two bottles of water for myself and my teen which I declined as I dislike wasting disposables. I asked about a shuttle pickup after I returned the rental car, and he explained what to do (i.e., call from the hotel pick up area after completing car return.)

My teen went up to the room with our luggage using their lobby luggage cart, and I returned the car to Budget at Terminal 2. I felt like I was on private service roads driving between the IC MSP and Terminal 2 car rental return, but I think I was allowed to drive there. There was a route that didn't include any highway time anyway, and I hardly saw another vehicle navigating it. Returning the rental was trivial and easy, and the shuttle van came to get me within a few minutes of my calling to request the pick up.

Shuttle drivers at this hotel are particularly great, in my opinion. Two different men were friendly, helpful, assisted with bags, answered questions, and proactively tried to assist a traveler at an unfamiliar airport. All the staff at the IC MSP seemed very good, especially by 2023 standards, but the shuttle guys were the best I encountered.

I was really tired after the long drive in a strange car on a holiday weekend, so my son and I ate dinner on site at the La Voya Brasserie. (My teen enjoyed calling it "the brassière" sotto voce to annoy his mother.) The dinner menu differed somewhat from what is shown today on the hotel website. My son had the burger, minus a few of the fancier accompaniments from the La Voya menu (he ordered a Bradstreet Burger as prepared in the adjacent Bradstreet Crafthous and that was no problem for the kitchen.) I had the duck entree served with lentils. My son ordered an almond cake accompanied by mushroom(!) ice cream and plums, and he gave me a taste. The unusual ice cream flavor was actually magnificent.

Overall, the food quality was very high. Service was also excellent. I believe our server was named Rebecca, and she was knowledgeable (could recommend a wine and comment generally on the wine list), friendly, and great at her job. There were only a few people dining, and I believe she was the only server working, but there always seemed to be an additional person on duty at the bar who would seat people if Rebecca was in the kitchen or otherwise occupied.

We did not visit the Bradstreet Crafthouse or the Coffee Shop in the lobby. It's possible that the espresso I ordered in La Voya came from the Coffee Shop machine, but I wasn't watching to see from which direction my server came to deliver it to the table. (The espresso was fine.)

At breakfast the next morning, I returned to dine in La Voya while my son slept late. I enjoyed my omelet (the one from the menu, no changes), but I wouldn't order the biscuits again. They tasted good, but were more crumbly like a savory scone than the flaky Southern style of biscuit I'd hoped for. A different woman was server at breakfast, but I didn't catch her name. Again, I think two people were working the very quiet restaurant. It was no problem when I asked for a breakfast sandwich to go for my son. Again, he didn't want the fairly elaborate La Voya breakfast sandwich, but it was not a problem to get a simple egg and cheese on sourdough for him. The takeaway included utensil packet, ketchup packets, etc., without my having to ask for those things.

Aside from dining in the hotel and using the shuttle, we found the elevators to be adequate and to arrive quickly. The lobby was spacious and a reasonable place to wait a few minutes for a shuttle. Our room was pleasant, attractive, and had a wonderful view of the airport and planes taking off from Terminal 1. My son grumbled because we had to share a King bed, but that was me not feeling any need to pay extra for a suite or two queens, not any fault of the hotel's.

Favorite aspects of the guest room itself were the separate tub (deep, no jets to accumulate crud) and shower stall, the many lighting options including a blue bathroom nightlight and illuminated make up mirror for very soft bathroom light, and the comfortable bed. I personally didn't like the closet position adjacent to the bed instead of across from it, but we hardly needed the closet on a single night stay. My son wished for a sofa instead of just one desk chair in the room. I asked if a tea kettle could be had instead of the Nespresso machine, but they did not have one. (Black tea is ideally brewed at 205 F, not coffee machine temps.)

My biggest gripe was the presence of paper and plastic disposable cups in the room. At this price point, and with a full kitchen downstairs, I expect real ceramic (or glass or porcelain) drinkware. I was able to bring a nightcap upstairs from the restaurant, so could have asked for a coffee mug, too, I guess, but I despise a default disposable where anything else is easily possible. Fortunately, I travel with my own reusable hot cup, so I used that with the Nespresso machine.

I would use this hotel again, depending upon cost, but would only prioritize it if I were arriving late, carry on only (no checked bag) and into Terminal 1. Otherwise, our stay at a nearby Hyatt with its own shuttle was just as convenient for a JetBlue flight from Terminal 2, and I think I might find another full service hotel where I could get a tea kettle and proper coffee cup in my room as I prefer.