InterContinental San Diego, an IHG Hotel ★★★★

Nineteen Floors of Glass Above San Diego Bay

Downtown San Diego turns its back on the water in places, and then there is Bayfront Court, where the city finally faces the harbour. The InterContinental occupies nineteen storeys of it, a contemporary tower whose main architectural argument is glass: floor-to-ceiling windows in every category, angled so that the bay, the bridge and the skyline arrive the moment the curtains open. The interiors keep to a coastal palette and stay out of the way. This is not a hotel that asks to be admired from the pavement. It is a hotel built around the view from inside, which on this stretch of waterfront is the right instinct.

Why It Works

Three things decided it. The view is not a marketing claim but a structural fact: the tower stands on the harbour edge and the glazing runs the full height of the rooms. The rooftop pool is heated and open all year, with a bar beside it and the working harbour underneath, a genuinely different proposition from a courtyard pool downtown. And the Club InterContinental floor does what a club floor should, with its own lounge, private check-in, breakfast and an evening cocktail hour, which on a business trip or a first visit saves more time than it costs.

Why This Location

Bayfront Court sits at the northern end of the Embarcadero, between the cruise terminal and Little Italy, and that geography is the point. Little Italy, which holds the densest run of restaurants downtown and a Saturday market, is roughly half a mile on foot. The cruise terminal is closer still, making this a natural night before or after a sailing. The USS Midway and Seaport Village are about a mile along the waterfront promenade, Petco Park and the Gaslamp roughly two. The trade-off is that the beaches are not here: La Jolla and Coronado need a car or the ferry, so ocean swimming is an outing rather than a stroll.

Fast Facts

• Price: Luxury

• Vibe: Contemporary, coastal, harbour-facing, city-paced

• Rooms: 400 in total, from classic and premium rooms up to one-bedroom, grand and presidential suites, all with floor-to-ceiling glass

• Best For: First visits to San Diego, cruise departures, business trips, travellers with a dog

• Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: The rooftop pool, heated year round, with harbour traffic moving below the loungers

• Dining: Vistal Bar and Restaurant for coastal cooking with a terrace, Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse, three lounges including a rooftop bar, room service

• Amenities: Rooftop heated pool with pool bar, Club InterContinental lounge with private check-in, valet parking, concierge, express check-out, pets accepted, children’s meals

• Attractions: Little Italy, about half a mile on foot; the cruise terminal, a few minutes away; USS Midway and Seaport Village, roughly a mile along the promenade; Petco Park and the Gaslamp Quarter, about two miles

Which Floor, and the Club Question

Categories run from classic and premium rooms through one-bedroom suites, which span a wide range of floor areas, to the grand and presidential suites at the top. Height matters more than aspect here. The glass is the same all the way up, but the higher floors clear the neighbouring buildings and open the view north across the bay. The Club InterContinental decision is worth making before booking rather than after: if the trip involves early starts, the private check-in and lounge breakfast earn their keep, while on a two-night holiday a higher floor probably matters more.

Two Kitchens, Three Lounges

Vistal is the hotel’s own room, coastal in intent, with an outdoor terrace that catches the afternoon and cocktails to go with it. Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse sits on the site as the heavyweight option, which covers the evening when someone wants a steak and a wine list rather than fish. Add the rooftop bar and the remaining lounges and it is perfectly possible to eat and drink well without crossing the road, though Little Italy is close enough that most guests do anyway.

What to Know Before You Book

The pool is heated and runs all year, so the shoulder months hold up. Dogs are accepted and the hotel is set up for families, with children’s meals on the menu. Valet parking is the practical choice in a district this dense, and express check-out is useful when a ship is sailing. One planning note: there is no spa on site, so a treatment means going out.