Opened in March 2025, the InterContinental Presidente Monterrey seemed like a new luxury hotel I’d enjoy, with sleek rooms, polished spaces, and an upscale location in northern Mexico. Much of my stay was great, but the service was inconsistent. Unfortunately, it was good from the people who affected my stay the least and bad from the people who affected it the most.
Here’s what I found during my 1-night April 2026 visit to the InterContinental Presidente Monterrey in northern Mexico.
Booking InterContinental Presidente Monterrey
I booked the InterContinental Presidente Monterrey with a combination of IHG One Rewards points and an IHG free night award from my IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card. The award was about to expire, and I figured this was a great opportunity to use it.
For my late-April stay, the hotel was charging 53,000 IHG One Rewards points per night, but the free night awards from the IHG Premier card and IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card are only worth up to 40,000 points. However, it’s possible to add extra points on top, which is what I did, using the free night plus 13,000 points.
When using my free night, the hotel showed 3 room choices: a 1 King Classic Room, a 2 Queen Classic Room, or a Classic Room. The last option was vague, as it didn’t specify the room type.
The hotel was charging $288 for this stay, so redeeming 53,000 points provided 0.54 cents per point in value — a little better than our average valuation of IHG One Rewards points at 0.5 cents each.
InterContinental Presidente Monterrey Location
The InterContinental Presidente Monterrey is located on the south side of Monterrey, the capital of Mexico’s Nuevo León state. Reaching the hotel from Monterrey International Airport (MTY) typically takes an hour by taxi, due to traffic.
The hotel’s entrance is not on the main street but at the back of the building, in a courtyard between the hotel and the Plaza Fiesta San Agustín shopping mall. An underground parking entrance was between the hotel and the mall.
What It’s Like Staying at InterContinental Presidente Monterrey
Here’s how my 1-night visit unfolded.
My Room Was Spacious
I stayed in room 1708 and liked the minimalist look of the entry area, including digital controls and a foyer with a large mirror and bench before an L-turn into the room.
The corridor between the entry area and the bedroom had a ton of closet space, including shelves, hangers, an iron, and an ironing board.
There was a minibar next to the closet, offering complimentary coffee and tea. There were also drinks and snacks for sale.
The bedroom had plenty of space around the king bed, and the slats on the window provided a sense of privacy even when the curtains were open.
Each side of the bed had a wooden nightstand, outlets, light switches, and a lamp. The side closer to the window also had controls for the curtains. The side further from the window had a clock radio with a wireless charging pad.
The wooden wall opposite the bed had a large TV, a bench, and a desk. Along with a chair, the desk had a lamp, phone, and some information about the hotel. There was also a reusable bag with a throw blanket on the bench next to the desk.
Bottom Line:
I received an email 1 day before check-in saying I’d been upgraded, but my room appeared to match the standard room photos online. I can only assume the upgrade was just moving to a higher floor or that the check-in employee moved me to a different room for some reason.
Bathroom
The bathroom entrance was in the corridor, opposite the closet. I liked the gray stone look, and there was a ton of counter space next to the sink. There was also a backlit mirror.
To the left, frosted glass doors led to the shower (with a small step up) and the toilet. I had a bathrobe, extra towels, amenities, and bottled water — all the things I needed.
I Could Hear My Neighbor
While working at the desk, I could hear every word from the person in the next room who was using his desk at the same time. The wall didn’t fully close to the window because of the slats. This was a strange element. Luckily, I couldn’t hear other guests from other rooms of my room, but this felt like a design flaw.
I Loved the Simple Look
Most parts of the hotel had a minimalist look, with no clutter from tons of paintings or extra furniture. Instead, spaces felt open, and my room had a very clean vibe from the simplicity.
Spaces in the hallway and elevating waiting area also felt very sophisticated in their simplicity.
The lobby felt more dramatic, with a giant sculpture of block shapes between the seating area (close to the door) and the reception desk at the rear.
Food and Beverage Options Skewed Upscale
Unfortunately, the IHG Platinum Elite benefits I receive with the IHG Premier card don’t include daily breakfast — something available only to top-tier Diamond Elite members. Thus, breakfast wasn’t included with my stay.
The hotel had 2 on-site restaurants and a lobby bar. While the mall next door offered food for a range of budgets, the hotel’s outlets were on the pricier side for the area.
Bar Epicentro was the lobby bar, serving a full range of drinks from 1 to 10 p.m. most days but closed at 6 p.m. on Sundays. It was to the left side of the lobby when entering the main doors.
To the right side, Chapulín served upscale Mexican fare and had an outdoor patio with TVs. The restaurant opened daily at 1 p.m. but closed at different times throughout the week. Monday through Wednesday, Chapulín was open until 11 p.m., but it stayed open until midnight on Thursday through Saturday; Sunday had a 9 p.m. closing time.
Lilōu was a French-inspired cafe on the ground floor, accessible near the elevators or from an outdoor entrance near the valet stand. Operating hours were 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, and its bakery case was tempting.
Amenities Were High Quality
This hotel didn’t have every imaginable amenity; the ones it did, though, were fantastic.
The fitness center and spa were on the third floor. The spa offered a range of services, including hair and nail treatments and massages. The gym was spacious and had all the equipment you’d expect: free weights, weight machines, towels, and cardio equipment. It also had a system for guided workouts on the wall. The gym was open 24 hours a day.
Club InterContinental, the hotel’s lounge, was also on the third floor. It was available for guests booked in club rooms.
On the fourth floor, the hotel had a coworking space for those who wanted a workspace beyond their rooms. There were also numerous meeting and event rooms spread across the hotel’s lower levels.
A unique benefit was the ability to choose a preferred pillow type. This wasn’t mentioned at check-in, but I found it on the hotel’s website, called housekeeping, and got a memory foam pillow delivered to my room a few minutes later — an upgrade from the soft down pillows my room came with.
Other benefits included a no-single-use-plastic policy, EV charging availability, and allowing pets in guest rooms (for a fee).
Service Was Just OK
On arrival, I received a friendly greeting and a big smile from the bellhop, who asked if I needed help with my luggage and welcomed me to the hotel. He pointed me toward reception, and another employee quickly offered me a cold towel to freshen up.
That was a great first impression. It didn’t last long, though.
The reception agent had a lot of difficulty finding my reservation. She only found it when I showed her the IHG booking email with the confirmation number and the reservation date.
Beyond that, check-in felt decidedly nonelite.
Platinum Elite members should receive a welcome gift at check-in, but she never mentioned it. After checkout, I did get an email from IHG with bonus points as my welcome gift, but it felt weird that it wasn’t brought up at check-in. Additionally, I didn’t get an upgraded room, despite receiving an email the day before saying I was upgraded. I’d been in my room for a few hours before I started poking around the IHG website and realized I was in a standard room. At that point, I felt like asking for my upgrade would be awkward.
I liked the bellhops most of all, who were always friendly when I arrived and left by Uber, and the staff at Lilōu were friendly when I went down to get a latte in the morning.
However, the front desk team seemed undertrained or unsure of procedures at check-in and checkout.
The hotel’s Wi-Fi also went out during my stay. When I called the front desk, I was transferred twice. Each person told me to use the password I was given at check-in, unaware that the network was offline. Eventually, someone had to reset the Wi-Fi for the whole hotel, but they kept telling me to use my password and ended the call, rather than listening to understand.
Final Thoughts
I liked the facilities at the InterContinental Presidente Monterrey, and I loved the look and feel of my room. Yes, hearing the person in the next room was weird, but luckily, it only happened when we were both at our desks at the same time.
The staff at Lilōu and at the front door were very friendly and always offered assistance; I liked them a lot. Employees at reception and those handling the internet outage seemed disorganized whenever I spoke with them, which affected my stay. I didn’t get a room upgrade, despite an email saying it was confirmed, and check-in wasn’t great.
I wanted to love this hotel. I liked a lot of it, but the service needs improvement before I would return.