Review: InterContinental Yokohama Pier 8 [Japan]

After spending 4 nights in Taipei, I headed to Yokohama to check out the InterContinental Yokohama Pier 8. What’s interesting about the hotels in Yokohama are the points and cash pricing are substantially lower than the ones in Tokyo across all of the major hotel loyalty programs. Yet, Yokohama is just around an hour away from Tokyo with trains, making day trips to Tokyo quite easy. After all, many locals live in Yokohama to commute to work in Tokyo daily.

Still, I felt Yokohama was underrated in many ways, and the city itself has more Western influences that reminded me of Hakodate and Nagasaki. It was definitely not a “Tokyo-lite” as I would assumed before staying. Plus, there are some cool day trips where basing yourself in Yokohama provide time-saving advantages like Kamakura and Enoshima.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Booking

I booked the hotel for 4 nights with 147,000 IHG points, and that is with the 4th night free benefit from the Chase IHG Premier Business Card.

This is also one of the hotels where you can book an upgraded room for the same price as the lowest category room. Some dates provide an option to book the Yokohama Harbor View and some will have Minatomirai View.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Location

The hotel’s located in Minatomirai district of Yokohama within the Yokohama Hammerhead building. There’s a direct shuttle from Haneda too, which makes going to the hotel very easy coming from Yokohama’s nearest airport. But, it doesn’t always stop at Pier 8 all the time, but you could potentially get off at the Cup Noodles Museum and take a short walk to the hotel instead.

Yokohama Hammerhead is a shopping mall with cafes & restaurants inside. There’s also an interesting 7-11 with craft beers from Yokohama, each with unique can designs. The Hammerhead has a walkway that eventually lead to the skybridge (Circle Walk) that leads a straight path to Bashamichi Station, the closest metro station that also serves as the starting point towards Tokyo if you wish to go there.

Other attractions nearby are the Cup Noodles Museum where you could make your own Cup Noodles and Yokohama Cosmo World with its notable giant ferris wheel.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Check-in

I arrived some time after 1pm from the direct shuttle to Yokohama from Haneda Airport. After entering the hotel, I was met with a gorgeous spiral stairs that lead to the lobby. The design reminded me of EDITION hotels.

During check-in, I was able to get early check-in thanks to the help of my Ambassador status. I also received 2000 Yen property credit that can be used towards minibar and restaurants. In-room dining appears to be excluded, however.

It is standard for Japanese InterContinental hotels to convert the usual 20 USD property credit (from Ambassador status) into 2000 Yen instead. Because of the weaker yen, the value in turn was lesser.

Because I didn’t get a room upgrade, I made a complaint about a recovery benefit since Ambassadors should get a guaranteed 1 Category upgrade.** I was given the option to choose a 5000 Yen dining credit, or 10,000 IHG points. I took the points.

Honestly, I was glad that I wasn’t upgraded since the next level would just probably be the same room type, but at a slightly higher floor. The highest floor for guest room is at the 5th floor. All of the junior suites appear to only be facing a garden, which doesn’t sound as appealing as the Yokohama Harbor or Minatomirai view.

Note**: I later found out that the guaranteed upgrade benefit from Ambassador only applies to paid stays. Since I stayed on points, I shouldn’t have received the recovery benefit, but I received the 10k points anyway. Maybe it’s worth inquiring about anyway since we both (me & front desk) apparently don’t know the terms to the T on top of our heads at the time. The worst they can do is say no ;).

Next to the front desk is the shared space of both the lobby and Larboard restaurant.

You can find an exchange machine at the end of the lobby, but the rates are not good. Use the Charles Schwab debit instead to withdraw cash in Japan.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Classic Room, Minatomirai View

I was assigned to Room 326 on the 3rd floor, which is the lowest floor for guest rooms, with 5th being the highest.

After entering, the room’s laid out where you can cut through the bathroom to the bedroom. Both ends of the bathroom have sliding doors that you can lock for privacy.

To the left of the entrance is the storage space where you can also find pajamas and slippers.

Right to the entrance is where the separate toilet room is, and following the path after that leads to the main bedroom area.

Only 3-prong outlet is available by the table next to the TV.

The cruise ship-inspired room design gives a cozy feeling without the seasickness. The bed is on the harder side, but is still comfortable.

Light controls are very intuitive by the bed and comes with USB-A and 2-prong outlets on each side.

The sofa faces more of the Yokohama Bay rather than the iconic structures of Minatomirai, but the view is still very pleasant overall.

Across the sofa is a cabinet where the pantry and minibar is.

One of the best things about this room is the free soft drinks in the minibar! Just the soft drinks though, you’d have to pay for the alcohol and snacks. I initially planned to just use the 2,000 Yen property credit for the soft drinks, but I ended up taking some of the snacks from the minibar instead.

The kettle is for the custom Cup Noodles you’d probably make in the Cup Noodles Museum where you can enjoy a glorious breakfast with a gorgeous view!

I was glad that I was put in a room at the lowest floor as I think it gives the most intimate view, a similar sentiment I had from Izmir Marriott.

Bathroom

Backtracking to the bathroom, you won’t have to worry about bringing your own toothbrush and/or shaver. Bath salt is provided too.

Bathtub and showers are in the same wet room with see-through smart glass where you can enjoy a bath or shower with a view.

But, if you want privacy, there’s a button to make the smart glass opaque.

And of course, Byredo Bal D’Afrique bath amenities, an InterContinental standard.

Overall, I really enjoyed the room. It’s very spacious and everything felt seamless while still offering option for privacy. The waterfront view is excellent as well, and I recommend aiming for the Minatomirai view if you can.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Breakfast

Breakfast is located either at Larboard or Club InterContinental (executive lounge). During my stay, it all happened in the lounge.

IHG Diamond free breakfast benefit allows you to choose one of the following breakfast sets:

• Rise & Shine
• American
• Continental
• Japanese

The lounge itself is quite spacious, and I’m curious what the experience would’ve been like if I had actual access to the Club InterContinental.

Naturally, I picked the Japanese breakfast set first. It consists of fish as main entree with rice and various side dishes that were all very delicious. All sets come with a fruit juice of your choosing plus coffee or tea.

I also got to try out the grilled pork from the Rise & Shine menu. It also comes with a daily special soup. It was quite tasty, but I still preferred the Japanese breakfast set overall.

There’s no additional buffet section, except if you have Club lounge access (which I didn’t). From what I see from other guests mingling around the “buffet” section, it appear to just be additional of assorted pastries which isn’t anything noteworthy. Even with Club access, I feel that the breakfast feels somewhat limited, but the set menu do a good job filling, and they taste great.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Japanese Garden

The middle of the property consists of a small garden where you can cut through different sections of the hotel. There’s also umbrellas shaped in traditional Japanese style for photo shoots, possibly. These umbrellas are not for use outside of the hotel, but you can borrow umbrellas at the hotel’s valet if you need them.

The entrance for the hotel’s sushi restaurant (Katabami) is within the garden, but I didn’t get to try it.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Rooftop 1859

You can take the elevator up to the rooftop where there’s a terrace with a beautiful view of Yokohama Bay and Minatomirai with lounge chairs and sofas. I feel there’s a missed opportunity on not adding a bar here though, which can make the place a lot more lively.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Fitness Center

The hotel’s gym is located on the 2nd floor. It’s very small equipped with only cardio machines.

There’s a spa facility next to the gym where you can book massage appointments.

IC Yokohama Pier 8- Free Cruise Ship Experience (Le Grand Bleu)

The IC Yokohama Pier 8 apparently offers free cruise ship experience for hotel guests. Unfortunately, the ship was temporarily suspended during the whole duration of my stay so I couldn’t experience it. It would’ve been a cool thing to try out. It’s simply a short excursion around the waters by Yokohama Minatomirai that would appear to be fantastic during the evening and at night.

The cruise ship, Le Grand Bleu, is typically moored in Pukari Pier that’s located by the InterContinental Yokohama Grand with its iconic sail-shaped building seen on the view of my hotel room.

Conclusion

I really enjoyed my stay at the InterContinental Yokohama Pier 8. InterContinental brand appear to be very mixed, ranging from extremes of bad and outdated to very nice and modern, and this one definitely falls to the latter. I didn’t note on the service much since they felt quite normal without the over-the-top service seen in upscale hotels. But, maybe some people would prefer that.

While the hotel lack facilities, I really didn’t mind that due to the more reasonable pricing reflected, and that I didn’t plan to spend most of my time in the hotel. Nonetheless, it’s THE points hotel in Yokohama if you’re just looking for a very nice, clean, and modern sanctuary with gorgeous view, especially at night, after long days out exploring. I would be happy to return and possibly make it my go-to choice the next time I’m in Yokohama, and hopefully try out that free cruise.