The Spa InterContinental

Had a Gilt City deal for an "express manicure and pedicure" for $39... that's a pretty standard price so I thought it would be nice to experience the spa atmosphere and the deal included access to the hotel rooftop pool and other spa areas. Unfortunately, on the day I scheduled my appointment, I had a sudden meeting 2 hours after so I had to split... bummer. I was really looking forward to a few hours drinking champagne by the pool.

You valet your car (they'll validate) and go up to the second floor where the spa is... hotel is lovely and everyone is very nice. Spa is pretty but could probably do with a few updates... it's the epitome of 2000 high end spa glamour - so it is still nice but not comparable to more modern high end spas.

They have two pedicure seats/sinks that are actually comfortable. My technician was fantastic... fast (top priority for me) and actually a good conversationalist. Generally I'm not a talker but she was lovely and I really enjoyed chatting with her. After the pedicure we moved to the manicure area. Also fast and a very good manicure. One issue -- they really need to give them some way to DRY your nails. She had one little fan that I couldn't feel was putting out any air whatsoever... If I had unlimited time I guess that would be no problem... but I needed to run so I felt like my nails weren't fully dry when I left. Not the technicians fault - the spa needs to come up with a better way to dry nails. I realize nails aren't their main business but still...

All around a pleasant experience. But here's the rub... if I didn't have the Gilt City, the service for the "express mani/pedi" would have been $80. That's outrageous. I guess if you're at a hotel and you can't go anywhere else because you're stuck in Century City this might be OK. But even though my experience was really good and my technician was exceptional - paying that kind of money for a really basic service you can get for far less elsewhere would be nuts.

This spa day was a pleasure from start to finish. I bought their Groupon for a tremendous value, grabbing up 2 services, a Swedish massage and a facial. The facial did not come with extractions nor were they even offered with a fee, however that's okay because obviously you don't want a swollen face when you're laying out at the pool later. The esthetician was super sweet and knowledgeable about my skin and how to care for it. The massage was amazing too, she doesn't talk a lot so you just keep telling her to apply the pressure and you'll get a very relaxing experience out of it.

The Groupon-priced services was an excellent value, and if they offered a book of 3 or 5 for the Groupon price I would definitely go back!! Think about it InterContinental, and hit me up when this goes into effect. ;-)

Downsides- the building's position blocks out the best morning sun until about noon. I would get back to back services at 10 and 11 am then go to the pool, that's the time the sun is finally making an appearance.

I've been to a few upscale spas and this one is probably the worst so far. I was really excited for the couples spa retreat but when I entered the place, I was REALLY disappointed.

We sat down at the front entrance area and filled out our paperwork before going into our designated locker rooms. The women's locker rooms seemed relatively nice and clean (as it should be).

We had some time to kill before our massage so my boyfriend and I headed to the pool. We didn't realize the pool was shared by both spa and hotel guests...eh. No one even came by to offer us water or drinks.

They finally called us about 15 minutes AFTER our massage time was supposed to be. We met with our masseuses and headed to our room area.

The massage was just alright but for the most part it felt like she was just rubbing me with lotion and oil...I told her my shoulders were pretty knotted and she barely worked on them.

I liked how secluded the rooms were, but our tub wasn't working so we were forced to move to a different one after our massage. Totally ruined the mood of the whole thing. I definitely will not be returning back here.

First time here at Spa Intercontinental. One thing I like about this quaint spa is that it's a bite more secluded and feels intimate.

I truly enjoyed the privacy of huge eucalyptus steam room. Not utilized at all, so I mostly had it all to myself!

Fabulous amenities including eucalyptus steam room, rain shower, infinity pool, poolside cabana, spacious treatment rooms, comfy massage beds, with SPA toiletries. The digital lockers are wonderful so you don't have to wear annoying locker key holder bracelet around your wrist. Everyone raved about the ToTo washlet toilet. I do luv luv ToTo!!

Kiona, Faith, Cheryl were all very friendly & helpful.. Our massage therapists, Jessica & Eva, were very professional & fabulous with their technique.

My treatment room was huge and spacious. The massage bed was very comfy and I really liked the hot pack my therapist put on my back while massaging my legs.

Our 50 minute Swedish massages felt heavenly with the perfect pressure & technique applied by Jessica. I honestly didn't want it to end.. I was completely rejuvenated afterwards. I also enjoyed the poolside cabana since I do not ever lay out in the sun. I'm a shady lady, hahaha...

Their special touch with my birthday champagne was very much appreciated. We felt so pampered on our spa day that we even pre-booked another massage session for my man's upcoming birthday!

Looking forward to our next spa day visit.. Another plus, they also validate your valet parking at the hotel during your spa visit.

Love the large outdoor pool, but it can get quite windy and cold outside. The jacuzzi is located outside too, but there's no jacuzzi inside the locker room so you have to wear your swim suit and go outside. Once outside, you have to go around the other entrance by the gym to get back to the spa since the gate by the spa automatically locks. Not very convenient.

The locker room is small, but there's steam room and dry sauna. The room that we got the massage in was very bright, and initially the masseuses left the blinds open so anyone can see inside until we asked them to close the shades. It wasn't very private or relaxing. We got the hot stone massage, but it was just average. In fact, I was quite dizzy after the massage since they didn't have a pillow for the head.

Overall, a so-so experience. The locker room is a bit worn and small. I prefer a bigger spa instead such as the Fontainebleau in Miami or Qua at Caesars or even Burke Williams. The massage also was disappointing. Needless to say, we will not be back. The receptionists were quite friendly though with good customer service.

Hmm...

Our first time here was wonderful! We had the couples retreat which includes a couples massage + a nice soak. I was bummed that the male facilities were out of order but our visit went wonderfully otherwise and we loved it so much, that we bought another gift certificate on the spot.

This time we came back hoping to get the same wonderful experience, but were really really let down. First off this visit was almost 6 months later...and the male facilities are *still* being renovated, as are the female. So we had to be rushed in/out of a treatment room to change in to robes and lug our clothes around until our treatment time. OK, not very relaxing but no big deal.

Then as we were having our massages children were shrieking like banshees from the pool next door. Not relaxing x2! All the rest of our visit was roughly the same- loved the warm soak at the end as always. You also get champagne and iced towels in case you get hot and its a great way to finish off your massage.

Here's the part I'm honestly fuming about: After we left I received a phone call asking me if i'd like to leave gratuity...after having tipped BOTH masseuses on the full price of the service. Really really lame, embarrassing and shows a clear lack of communication with staff. I called back to let them know I had in fact, tipped. And the response was a quick "oops". I'm happy
they help their service providers get their tip because TBH, this probably is pretty effective at collecting it. However shouldn't you be a 100000% sure they haven't tipped already? No facilities + shrieking kids + lame calls about the tip you already left. Not happy at all.

Really, really lame I Spa.

Good things to know:
- Valet is free, just get validation on your stub
- Jessica is literally the BEST masseuse in the entire freaking world, and my BF agrees. Try her now and thank me later. If I ever come back it will be because of her magical hands :)

They were decently friendly overall but I wouldn't say this was a great experience, by any means. I prefer a deeper pressure massage and they somehow thought I wanted a Swedish one. When she "confirmed" my Swedish massage in the room, I mentioned that I'd prefer more pressure because strangers rubbing oil on me lightly really creeps me out. She acknowledged my request and then proceeded to rub me down like a total creeper. I know it's not intended to be, but I said that I strongly prefer that it's not a Swedish. If the pressure couldn't be modified, she should have just told me and I would have given the appointment to one of my friends.

Since I really didn't have a positive experience, I had no interest in tipping. However, the chick out front seemed to insist that we did -- I don't really care what she thinks. Perhaps I have to make it more clear next time by leaving a one cent tip just to see if they'd actually process the charge. There likely won't be a next time though so whatevs.

The steam room/sauna/locker room area is somewhat outdated but they mentioned remodeling soon. They only have two showers but there was really nobody else there except for us so it wasn't a big deal.

This place might be more worthwhile if you're planning on coming w some friends and using their pool and lounge areas to hang out but I wouldn't go out of my way for the services since you can get better quality elsewhere and for cheaper -- free valet though -- just make sure you have them validate.

What to do when you work through the long weekend then randomly get 2 days off midweek? A treat yo'self staycation, of course! And my spa day at the intercontinental fit the bill quite well. I purchased a travelzoo certificate that included free valet parking, full gym and pool access, and a 50 minutes Swedish massage. I showed up at noon, had lunch at the pool, read and lounged for hours then had my massage at 4. Quite the perfect day. Here's why:

Service- top notch. While I was distracted by the warm welcome of the valet, I left my phone in the car. By the time I noticed I was in the spa, and was immediately offered to have a bellhop bring it to me. Everyone was polished and polite, from the pool servers to the towel peeps, to, of course the massage therapist, who deserves her on paragraph-

The massage therapist- exceptional. The therapist had a wonderfully easy going personality and applied the perfect amount of pressure throughout. I was very much at ease and perfectly relaxed I could rely on her professionalism and expertise.

Facilities- so the pool is just a rectangle, but it had good towels and was pretty empty throughout my stay, so I could easily swim knowing there wouldn't be anyone in the way. I took a cabana because I could. I napped for 40 minutes undisturbed because it was that quiet. And yes, the locker rooms were under renovation, but since it was a quiet day I got full access to a "villa"- where the massage takes place but also where there is a shower, restroom and private patio. I wasn't expected to hang out there all day, but I didn't feel rushed as I used it to shower, change, and get myself ready for the evening.

If I had to critique something, I'd say the poolside food offerings were just "ok". They weren't expensive but still overpriced for what it was. However, I'd return in a heartbeat!

TL: DR Buy the TravelZoo voucher and get a decent massage for a reasonable price. Don't expect to spend the day being pampered.

This review is just for the spa and massage services. A friend and I bought a $79 voucher on TravelZoo for an 80-minute massage and entry to the day spa and hotel pool. Please, don't go expecting a beautiful resort pool. The loungers are cheap and thin, there's no pool service, and (at least in the am), the pool area is full shade.

There was some kind of issue with one of the massage rooms so they asked us if we could wait an additional 30 minutes - no problem. We were planning on spending the day so an extra 30 mins wasn't a big deal at all. However, there wasn't much to do. The changing rooms only had a steam room (was expecting at least a dry sauna), there were few magazines, no real waiting area with comfy chairs, tea, etc. It basically just wasn't a spa.

The massage itself was pretty good; I didn't feel like the therapist applied enough pressure even though I did ask her to up the intensity at one point. But she gave a wonderful neck and shoulder massage and that's basically all I really needed anyway.

I was pretty surprised at the "real" cost of an 80-minute massage though - $179. This was an $80 massage *quality) not $180 - especially since there was no reason to spend the day at the spa after we were done.

If anyone wants a discount on a Swedish massage, contact me. I will sell you my $59 credit towards one for $25. So you will save $34.

I received a Travelzoo gift card for a Swedish massage. I called the hotel and they said I could book a massage but everything wasn't available for use because they were under renovation. So I said I prefer to wait to use it. The promotional gift card then expired, leaving only a $59 value which is what was paid for it.

I call and ask if I can use that value and pay for a $120 massage gift card for my friend (and I had planned to buy another $59 massage for myself since the deal was still available on Groupon). I called today to see if that was ok (Sat. June 25th, 2016) and they said yes. I go over there and once I get to the spa they say I can't use the value for a gift card, only towards another massage. I said it is for another massage! (That I am paying the full $120 price for). It clearly states on my certificate that the value is $59 after expiration. The girl at the spa desk messaged her manager and said they also said no.

I don't feel it's right when they are the ones who underwent renovation which caused me to delay using my gift card in the first place. It also doesn't have any restrictions printed on the gift card, it just states the value after expiration. I walked out pissed off and told the girl at the front desk she will not get my service nor any of my friends service. Also their loss on $ they could have made on the massages I was purchasing (when I could have just bought 2 Groupons right now in which they would have made less money). Who is running that place?!!!