Overall: Iconic hotel and a great way to use IHG elite benefits.
Pros: Spectacular building, amazing pool and spa
Cons: Location somewhat away from the action of Amsterdam
We paid: $0; 60,000 IHG points for one night.
Value: $690 including taxes and fees for one night.
How to stay here without paying full price:
- Get the IHG Premier Card and link it to your IHG account.
- Hit the minimum spend required: $3K (at time of this writing) in 3 months
- Wait for your bonus points/nights to come into your IHG account.
- Search the IHG app or website for award availability. Standard Nights at the InterContinental Amstel Amsterdam cost 60,000 IHG points per night. If you book 3 nights with points (180,000 total), you get the 4th night free.
- UPDATE: As of June 2020, IHG introduced dynamic pricing. Standard Nights used to cost 60,000 points, but are now costing only 45,000 points. It remains to be seen whether IHG’s overall pricing will increase after the coronavirus crisis passes.
- Book online through the IHG website or app. Stack 3 award nights together and get the 4th free.
- For full instructions, see my guide to booking IHG hotels for free.
Review – Hotel:
The InterContinental Amstel Amsterdam is a spectacle of a building, and I’m so glad we stayed here for a night.
Images courtesy of the hotel 
My partner and I flew economy class overnight from Chicago, so when we touched down in Amsterdam about 8 a.m. local time, we were eager to go to sleep. Thanks to the IHG Premier Card, I had IHG Platinum status, which is one reason I booked this hotel for our very first day/night in Amsterdam.
Having elite status helps you get an early check-in at no charge, at virtually every hotel chain. This was no exception. We came to the front desk right away after our flight, and we wondered if we could check in. It was only about 9 a.m. by the time we arrived, so we weren’t expecting anything. The hotel said that even though our room wasn’t immediately ready, we were welcome to go down to the lovely pool and spa area and relax there while we waited. This turned out to be a great decision.
I lost the phone I used to take pictures while I was in Amsterdam, so I’m relying on the hotel’s own pics here. However, I can confirm that these pictures are completely accurate – the hotel really is that beautiful!
The health club included this gorgeous pool, with a hot tub at the end. There was also a sauna, steam room, and cold plunge bath, all of which were European-style (read: naked).
My partner and I relaxed here for only about 2 hours before someone fetched us and brought us to our room. We got to go nap in our room a full 4 hours before official check-in time!
Our room was larger than we expected and provided a nice view of the river. In my guide to booking IHG hotels for free, I mentioned that you won’t get upgraded at IHG hotels when you’re paying with points or Free Night Certificates. However, it appeared we did get a nice upgrade for this room, even though we didn’t pay cash for it! Which brings me to another secret:
Upgrade secret: You’re more likely to get an upgraded room if you’re staying for a short time.
We only stayed for a night, which makes it easier for a hotel to upgrade a guest with elite status. There’s less competition for upgraded rooms, and fewer people who’ve booked higher-status rooms, if you’re only staying for a night or two. I’m not saying it makes sense to inconvenience yourself just for a higher chance of a room upgrade! But, if you’re going to be hopping around a bit anyway, this is a helpful little secret.
We took a much-needed nap before exploring the rest of Amsterdam.
This hotel is superb, but it’s not particularly close to Amsterdam’s many impressive museums, or the shopping. Amsterdam itself is a very walkable city, and the InterContinental Amstel is in a perfectly lovely neighborhood – there just wasn’t much nearby.
That said, Amsterdam is very Uber-friendly and has lots of transit options, plus bikes are very popular. But if I had to state a downside to this hotel, it’d be location.
Value per IHG point
60,000 points per night is a great value at a hotel that would’ve cost $690 in taxes and fees. Additionally, we got a room upgrade and a 4-hour early check-in. I value those perks at around $100, bringing my total to $790 for 60,000 points. The Points Guy values IHG points at only 0.5 cents apiece, so 1.32 cents per IHG point is a great redemption.
Make sure you take advantage of the “4th night free” benefit of the IHG Premier card. I didn’t stay here for 4 nights, but if I had, it would’ve cost me 180,000 points (=60,000*3) instead of 240,000 points. But 180,000 points is fairly easy to amass right now with the 125,000-point bonus from the IHG Premier card.
Bottom line
I would absolutely stay here again, especially to chill out after a redeye economy flight across the Atlantic.
