“You've got O2 tickets, the show ends at 11pm, and you don't want to fight 20,000 people for a Jubilee line train home.”

Here's the thing about going to a gig at the O2: the show is great, but the getting-home part is a special kind of misery. You're sweaty, your ears are ringing, and you're sardined into the Tube with thousands of people who are also sweaty and ear-ringed. The InterContinental London — The O2 solves that problem so completely it almost feels like cheating. There's a direct walkway from the hotel into the arena. Not a short walk. Not a quick cab. A door. You walk through it, and you're inside. After the encore, you walk back through it, and you're in your hotel lobby. That's the entire pitch, and honestly, it's enough.

But the InterContinental isn't coasting on geography alone. This is a properly good hotel that happens to be attached to London's biggest arena, which makes it dangerous — because once you've stayed here for a concert, you'll never do it any other way again. It's the kind of place that turns a Tuesday night Usher show into a full mini-break, and that's exactly how you should use it.

The room situation

Standard rooms are fine — clean, modern, big enough for two people and a weekend bag without anyone having to perch their suitcase on the bathroom floor. But the move here is to book a river-view room or, if the hotel gods are smiling, get yourself an upgrade. The higher floors face out over the Thames and across to Canary Wharf, and at night the view does that thing where London actually looks like the cinematic version of itself. Floor-to-ceiling windows mean you get the full panorama from bed, which is exactly where you want to be at midnight after three hours on your feet.

The beds are the IHG standard king — firm, generous with the pillows, perfectly acceptable for a post-concert collapse. Bathrooms are sleek without being fussy. You'll find proper toiletries, not the sad sachets. Charging points are within arm's reach of the bed, which sounds minor until you've stayed in a hotel where the nearest outlet is behind the desk across the room.

What's worth your time (and what isn't)

The sky bar on the 18th floor is the real star here. It's called Eighteen Sky Bar, because hotels are not creative with names, but the drinks are genuinely good and the views are the best you'll get on the Greenwich Peninsula without climbing on a roof. Go before the show, not after — it gets busy post-concert and you'll want a window seat. Order something with gin, look out at the Thames, and feel briefly like a person who has their life together.

“There's a direct walkway from the hotel into the arena. After the encore, you walk back through it and you're in your lobby. That's the entire pitch, and honestly, it's enough.”

The on-site dining is solid — not destination-worthy on its own, but more than adequate for a pre-show dinner when you don't want to wander far. There's a spa, too, which would make this a proper day-to-night situation if you arrived early enough. Think: spa in the afternoon, dinner downstairs, cocktails on 18, show at nine, bed by midnight. That's a genuinely perfect day.

The staff deserve a specific mention. This isn't the robotic politeness of a big chain going through the motions — people here actually pay attention. One couple recently had a birthday cake waiting in their room, unprompted, because someone on the team noticed the occasion during booking. That's the kind of detail that separates a hotel you tolerate from one you recommend to friends.

The honest caveat: the Greenwich Peninsula is not central London. If you're planning to spend your days in Soho or South Bank, you'll be relying on the Jubilee line or the Emirates cable car (fun once, a novelty twice, tedious three times). This hotel makes the most sense as a one- or two-night stay built around an O2 event. Trying to use it as a base for a full London holiday will leave you spending more time on the Tube than you'd like. Also — the lobby has that specific 'we hired a design firm in 2019' energy, which isn't a complaint — it just means you know exactly what you're getting.

The plan

Book as soon as you buy your O2 tickets — room rates spike once a big show is announced, so early is cheaper. Request a high-floor river-view room; even if you don't get upgraded, the view is worth the premium. Arrive by 3pm to make the most of it. Hit the sky bar at 6pm for a pre-show drink with a view, eat at the hotel restaurant by 7:30, then stroll through the walkway to the arena like you own the place. After the show, you're in bed within ten minutes. Skip trying to explore wider Greenwich at night — there's not much happening after 9pm. Breakfast at the hotel is convenient but pricey, so manage expectations.

Rooms start around 244 $US on quieter nights but expect to pay 380 $US to 475 $US when a major act is playing. For one night wrapped around a concert, that's the price of never standing on a packed Jubilee line platform at 11:30pm — and that, frankly, is priceless.

The bottom line: Book a river-view room on a high floor, get to the sky bar before the crowd does, walk through that tunnel like it's your private entrance, and never fight for a post-show train again.