Introduction

As we heard that the Euronight Jan Kiepura From Dortmund to Warsaw would stop running at the end of 2016, along with all other Deutsche Bahn night services, we decided to make one last trip and decided to go for a weekend to Warsaw there we decided to try out the InterContinental hotel as I heard a lot about it and wanted to experience it myself.

Sleeping our way there

As the night train would only leave after 23:00 from Cologne Main Station (Koln HBF) we took the last Thalys of the day from Brussels to Cologne. While we had a light dinner on board the Thalys we still enjoyed a small piece of cake in the station while waiting for our Euronight to arrive. Luckily it arrived bang on time after we could make ourselves comfortable in our two berth cabin in the PKP (Polish Railways) Sleeping coach (WLAB¹⁰mnouz). Toilets and a shower where to be found in the corridor but kept clean throughout the journey, probably helped by the low number of occupants in the coach. The beds where a bit hard and the heating was a bit too warm for our liking but we still managed to get a reasonable amount of sleep only waking up after we crossed the border into Poland. As we would only be arriving around noon in Warsaw we decided to head up to the restaurant coach, which was added to our train in Berlin, for a hearty Polish breakfast.

The hotel

The InterContinental Warsaw was one of the first high-rise buildings erected in Warsaw, not long after the fall of the wall. Its peculiar shape with the ‘hole’ in the building was conceived so that the people inhabiting the apartments behind the hotel would still get to see some sunlight. The hotel is located right next to one Warsaw’s most iconic buildings, the Palace of Culture and Science and just a short walk from the main station, Warszawa Centralna.

The room

The room was located about halfway up the building, it was a modern 2 person’s room as you would expect it from an Intercontinental property. It was spacious, with a comfortable bed and a wonderful view. The bathroom was equipped with both a bathtub and a walk-in shower, which I like very much.

The club lounge

We booked our stay in a club room, which gave us access to the club lounge, located on one of the top floors of the hotel with a magnificent panoramic view over the city. Here we could enjoy a full breakfast in the morning, with eggs made to order. During the day we could enjoy non-alcoholic drinks and some crisps, nuts and cookies. In the evening there was a full evening buffet with small appetizers, some soups, some hot main dishes a selection of cheeses and of course a dessert. To top this off there was an open-bar with a variety of alcoholic drinks, so we could enjoy some wines and cocktails. In the lounge you can also make use of the computers provided to do some work, relax in the sofas with a drink and of course browse through their selection of books.

Health and wellness facilities

The hotel boasts the highest pool in Europe on the top floor of the hotel, from where you can look down on the city while swimming or sitting in the hot tub. For the more sportive people amongst us there are also a number of gym machines available to work off all those extra kilos you just consumed in the lounge.

All in all I had a very pleasant stay here and wouldn’t hesitate to go back, although most likely not by train.