How do Hilton treat you as an Elite?

[QF WP]

Just thought I'd create a thread for this - looking back over the last year, I thought I'd done a thread here as well as on Priority Club.

I'm a Gold member.

Friday, 22 May to Sunday, 31 May (yes, 9 nights)
Property: Hilton Cairns
Room booked: King Room
Rate: Travelzoo $135 package rate (included bottle of red wine)
Received: Upgrade to King Suite, card from GM and the wine, obligatory 2 free water bottles per day

Wednesday, 8 July
Property: Hilton Parmelia Perth
Room booked: King Room
Rate: Award room
Received: Upgrade to King Suite, card from GM and the obligatory 2 free water bottles

Thursday, 9 July
Property: Hilton Adelaide
Room booked: King Room
Rate: Award room
Received: Upgrade to Exec Floor, card from GM and the obligatory 2 free water bottles

Saturday, 11 July
Property: Hilton Brisbane
Room booked: King Room
Rate: Met Package (birthday present for Mrs LW, included 2 buffet breakfasts at Atrium Cafe & 2 tickets to Qld Art Gallery for Impressionists Showing from Metropolitan Museum New York - to get some culture)
Received: Upgrade to Exec Floor, card from GM and the obligatory 2 free water bottles

Got some more travel to do to Melbourne this Friday, so hoping to fly down Thursday night to sample the new Hilton.

 

[kyle]

Property: Doubletree Melbourne
Nights: 1
Status: Diamond
Room booked: Queen guest
Room received: King skyline/river
Rate: 217 AUD
Date: last night

The beginning of my mattress run.

Very warm welcome from the front desk and got the 2 trademark cookies and 2 bottles of water.

Surprised at the very good view of this room overlooking Flinders St station and the Yarra River. The bed was not bad, but the room itself was not really sound-proof as I could hear trams, trains, garbage trucks, sirens and random people shouting outside until around midnight. Carpet looked it had seen better days. Room was very basic, but had bathrobes. Tea bags were Dilmah, only earl grey, English breakfast and green/mint. Bathroom amenities were small bottles of Crabtree and Evelyn.

Breakfast downstairs at the restaurant was continental, with a surcharge for hot food. I just had continental, which had mini croissants, danish, smoked salmon, cold cuts, fruit cubes, yoghurt, coffee machine, juice, just the standard stuff.

Other than the outside noise, my other complaint is that I couldn't get the Chromecast on the TV to work, despite my app saying it's connected and playing, but nothing showing on the TV screen.

Have another stay coming up tomorrow night. Will try the Chromecast again. Then off to the Hilton Melbourne in a couple of days.

 

[Flashback]

And the last Hilton for my Europe trip:

Property: Hilton Munich
Nights: 1
Status: Diamond
Room booked: King guest room
Room received: King executive (quieter apparently as they face the garden)
Rate: 154 EUR
Date: early Aug

Very warm welcome from the front desk as we checked in. Explained all the usual Diamond benefits, though there weren't any special amenities in room.

The rooms are a bit dated, but comfortable.

Had buffet breakfast downstairs at the restaurant about 30 mins before closing time. The manager was welcoming, but inside was quite chaotic. People lining up at the egg station were blocking others from reaching the hot food. Breakfast was average, nothing special.

Hampton by Hilton Munich City Centre East is a decent option IMHO.

 

[QF WP]

Property: Doubletree Melbourne
Nights: 1
Status: Diamond
Room booked: Queen guest
Room received: King skyline/river
Rate: 217 AUD
Date: last night

The beginning of my mattress run.

Very warm welcome from the front desk and got the 2 trademark cookies and 2 bottles of water.

Surprised at the very good view of this room overlooking Flinders St station and the Yarra River. The bed was not bad, but the room itself was not really sound-proof as I could hear trams, trains, garbage trucks, sirens and random people shouting outside until around midnight. Carpet looked it had seen better days. Room was very basic, but had bathrobes. Tea bags were Dilmah, only earl grey, English breakfast and green/mint. Bathroom amenities were small bottles of Crabtree and Evelyn.

Breakfast downstairs at the restaurant was continental, with a surcharge for hot food. I just had continental, which had mini croissants, danish, smoked salmon, cold cuts, fruit cubes, yoghurt, coffee machine, juice, just the standard stuff.

Other than the outside noise, my other complaint is that I couldn't get the Chromecast on the TV to work, despite my app saying it's connected and playing, but nothing showing on the TV screen.

Have another stay coming up tomorrow night. Will try the Chromecast again. Then off to the Hilton Melbourne in a couple of days.

Given this is my local in Melbourne, that sounds stock standard normal to me. I've always had good service from the front desk and the breakfast crew. Went to visit other AFF Mods who were staying at the new Melbourne Hilton but won't spoil your MR.

 

[Flashback]

Given this is my local in Melbourne, that sounds stock standard normal to me. I've always had good service from the front desk and the breakfast crew. Went to visit other AFF Mods who were staying at the new Melbourne Hilton but won't spoil your MR.

Is that the old HI Flinders St Melbs or am I thinking of another property? I remember you used to like that one and had some decent stays there

 

[kyle]

Is that the old HI Flinders St Melbs or am I thinking of another property? I remember you used to like that one and had some decent stays there

Think it was the Citigate or something (now Doubletree)

Edited: added Doubletree

 

[QF WP]

No, this is the Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street - used to be lawyers chambers back in the day. HI Flinders Street is closed undergoing renovation IIRC from walking past it last month. Yep, those were the days - then Hilton South Wharf came along and I moved there.

 

[Flashback]

No, this is the Hilton Melbourne Little Queen Street - used to be lawyers chambers back in the day. HI Flinders Street is closed undergoing renovation IIRC from walking past it last month. Yep, those were the days - then Hilton South Wharf came along and I moved there.

How times flies ...... also makes me realise how long I've been here! Those were back in the days where the PC points bonanzas were bonzer! Stack, stack and stack!

 

[kyle]

Property: Hilton Little Queen Street Melbourne
Nights: 1
Status: Diamond
Room booked: King superior
Room received: King premium
Rate: 258 AUD
Date: late Aug

Found out about an upgrade a couple of days earlier and then on the day, picked a high floor corner room furtherest away from Bourke Street.

And yes that room was totally quiet compared to the DT at Flinders Street. Other than the water in room, there was no other special amenity. Bathroom amenities were bulk size Hunter Lab, a local brand that I use too. They could have designed the holder a little better. The soap and hand lotion come in the mini, but unlike the full size ones I buy, no country of manufacture is specified. So maybe they are like licensed ones and made in cheaper countries.

Room was modern and fine. Bed was comfortable but felt really hot at night probably due to the thick mattress top or topper. The bathrobes were probably the worst thing there. They have been pilling so much that there were bits of cotton on the carpet. Like other new hotels, USB connectors are next to each side of the bed. Water pressure from the overhead rain shower was OK but could do with a bit more. I think I really hate those water saving shower heads.

Service was friendly but didn't feel as polished and professional as DT.

Didn't have breakfast so couldn't comment.

Tip: pick a room far away from the elevator as the beep from each press of the floor button inside the lift was very loud.

 

[WLGFlyer]

Hotel: Curio Sydney
Booked: King Room
Received: King Deluxe (Or whatever they call it, showed up as an upgrade but if so it was marginal)
Status: Diamond
Comments: Last minute stay, Hilton was full so ended up here. Breakfast was pretty poor, some pastries were a day old and stale. Coffe tax charged with the bill arriving 10 mins before the coffee - not a great look. The ability to Airplay to the TV is nice and should really be standard everywhere. Was proactivly offered a late checkout to 2pm upon checkin, only to receive a call at 12.30 asking when I was planning on vacating the room. Not impressed.

Anyhow, sold stay, location is good for me and a nice change from the masses at the Hilton.

 

[kyle]

Here's the shocker. Long post ahead!

Property: Canopy by Hilton London City
Nights: 3
Status: Diamond
Room booked: queen
Room received: king premium
Rate: GBP 692 total
Date: late July

So this is one of those times where nearly everything will go wrong. As I've booked a semi flexible rate, I kept updating the rate as it got cheaper and everywhere settled on the above rate. A couple of days before arrival, I saw that in the app, my room type has changed as well as the rate. It became 950 something. I thought something was up, and so I googled. Turns out it's an error caused by lack of staff training in processing upgrades.

On the day of arrival, I messaged the hotel asking what time did room service finish because we would be arriving late. They said no hot food after 10.30pm.

So we arrived at 10pm. At check in, there's diamond recognition, but that's the end of it. Didn't tell me where to have breakfast and the time. I confirmed with the agent about the room service time. On signing the registration form, I queried the 900 rate printed there and I said that's not correct. She then reviewed the booking history and saw the lower rate. Got her manager involved and in their conversation, she kind of admitted that she changed the rate when processing the upgrade. They typed away for a while and assured me that it's fixed. Immediately I saw a charge on my card for the lower amount.

Got to the room, saw a menu with a few items on a single sheet of paper. Made my selection and called to order. Call went to front desk which then transferred me to the bar or restaurant, at which time I was told that menu was for the restaurant and not room service. Told to look at the menu on the TV. Turned on the TV and didn't see any room service menus. Couldn't be that hard to find right?

Called front desk again, initially she tried to say that hot food was finished and then later said there's a technical issue and the menu wasn't available on the TV. The agent actually told my partner to go downstairs to get the menu. What the? At that time it's already 10.20pm. Got downstairs, the agent had to look for another couple of minutes before she could locate and print it. And then we had to walk over to the bar to order. If they knew the menu wasn't available on the TV, they should have given me the menu when I asked about it initially at check in. Talk about first impressions!

The redeeming features of this stay were the room and the hotel being close to the tube station. It's still quite new and comfortable. Room service was pretty average though. One day it's missing a glass, another day was having the bathroom amenities randomly dumped on the tray and not neatly arranged. One of the bathrobes was missing the tie and those robes kept pilling, so there were bits of cotton everywhere.

On checkout day, we had to leave very early to catch Eurostar. At the front desk, was told there's a balance remaining. Wtf??? I told this agent about the mistake that was made and that it should have been fixed. I even showed her the credit transaction that was actually processed and no longer pending. She printed out the transaction history and it turned out that at check in, they did process the right amount to my card but the higher room rate was still there on the debit side! I was getting anxious and eventually the manager was involved who could see the booking history of the lower rate and he said he would fix it and we could go. The email receipt showed the right amount.

And the evening prior to check out, we asked to get a taxi as we were putting some luggage to a friend's place. Apparently the computer to order the taxi is like 20 metres away from the main desk and the guy had to walk back and forth to check on the status, and without providing any updates to us. Ended up waiting for 20 to 30 mins for a taxi. This hotel doesn't have a driveway, so there's no easy place for cars to stop.

And to top it off, one evening when we came back to the hotel, ppl were standing around the lifts. Apparently the fire alarm had gone off and the lifts had gone into fireman mode and needed to be reset. The staff there basically just walked between the lifts and the front desk with some walkie-talkies trying to work out why the lifts weren't back to normal mode. Would have preferred if one member of staff remained there to reassure the guests that things were OK.

Breakfast was full buffet. Diamond members can order an omelette. No complaints here.

Overall, this place suffers from a lack of staff training and I would not recommend staying there until things improve dramatically.

As a postscript, one of the guest relations managers reached out to me and spoke with me on the phone which was nice. She acknowledged the issues I was having and asked if there's anything she could do to make up for it. I said I only wanted to provide the feedback and that I wouldn't be travelling to London any time soon.

 

[Flashback]

As a postscript, one of the guest relations managers reached out to me and spoke with me on the phone which was nice. She acknowledged the issues I was having and asked if there's anything she could do to make up for it. I said I only wanted to provide the feedback and that I wouldn't be travelling to London any time soon.

If they want to guest you another stay, I'll take one for the team

 

[kyle]

Property: Hilton Little Queen Street Melbourne
Nights: 1
Status: Diamond
Room booked: King superior
Room received: King premium
Rate: 258 AUD
Date: late Aug

Found out about an upgrade a couple of days earlier and then on the day, picked a high floor corner room furtherest away from Bourke Street.

And yes that room was totally quiet compared to the DT at Flinders Street. Other than the water in room, there was no other special amenity. Bathroom amenities were bulk size Hunter Lab, a local brand that I use too. They could have designed the holder a little better. The soap and hand lotion come in the mini, but unlike the full size ones I buy, no country of manufacture is specified. So maybe they are like licensed ones and made in cheaper countries.

Room was modern and fine. Bed was comfortable but felt really hot at night probably due to the thick mattress top or topper. The bathrobes were probably the worst thing there. They have been pilling so much that there were bits of cotton on the carpet. Like other new hotels, USB connectors are next to each side of the bed. Water pressure from the overhead rain shower was OK but could do with a bit more. I think I really hate those water saving shower heads.

Service was friendly but didn't feel as polished and professional as DT.

Didn't have breakfast so couldn't comment.

Tip: pick a room far away from the elevator as the beep from each press of the floor button inside the lift was very loud.

Slight update. Looked at the mini soap and lotion on this second stay tonight. They are made in China, so not the same stuff as in the shops.

 

[kyle]

Last night was my 4th stay at DT MEL. Don't ever choose Level 2 Flinders Street Station view room (202). Gym was on Level 1 and you could hear and feel the vibrations of guests dropping weights!

 

[Happy Dude]

Last night was my 4th stay at DT MEL. Don't ever choose Level 2 Flinders Street Station view room (202). Gym was on Level 1 and you could hear and feel the vibrations of guests dropping weights!

Solving such problems is part of my job. I've seen the same response from occupants on higher levels too, although less of the "hear" and more of the "feel" the higher up you go. Out of professional curiosity, I'd be interested to hear if others have a similar experience in this hotel too please.

 

[kyle]

Solving such problems is part of my job. I've seen the same response from occupants on higher levels too, although less of the "hear" and more of the "feel" the higher up you go. Out of professional curiosity, I'd be interested to hear if others have a similar experience in this hotel too please.

I couldn't hear or feel anything from the gym when I was on Level 9, only the outside noise from trams/trains/cars/random drunks.

 

[QF WP]

I'll be there again in 2 weeks (DT MEL), but I generally choose Level 9 or above from the App when able to check-in. Never on the Flinders Street side.

 

[kyle]

Previous stays I had the river/station view as an upgrade. I only had 2 options this time, but both station view: the slightly smaller one on Level 6, or the bigger room on Level 2.

 

[QF WP]

That seems unusual that, as a Diamond, you would only be offered low floors (unless that is in your profile or you were late to check-in and full house has meant many others have checked-in ahead of you).

The only other difference between us is that it was your 4th stay. I've been staying there since South Wharf closed (28th July 2017). Must find out how many times I've stayed at DT - certainly into double figures.

 

[kyle]

That seems unusual that, as a Diamond, you would only be offered low floors (unless that is in your profile or you were late to check-in and full house has meant many others have checked-in ahead of you).

The only other difference between us is that it was your 4th stay. I've been staying there since South Wharf closed (28th July 2017). Must find out how many times I've stayed at DT - certainly into double figures.

I've checked in last night for tonight's stay. Back to the skyline river view room. Glad it's not the second floor.

My profile has high floor and away from lifts.

After this stay, there's one final stay for my mattress run at DT in two weeks. I'm tempted to request a paid upgrade to the balcony room if the weather is good.

Wow SW closed for five years already. I remember back when it hadn't opened for long, there was a 50% off sale and we booked a suite with a huge walk in shower and had an impressive breakfast the next morning. That was when I first joined HH. I miss those 50% off sales.

 

[jakeseven7]

Slight update. Looked at the mini soap and lotion on this second stay tonight. They are made in China, so not the same stuff as in the shops.

Yea the formulations brands licence for use are often the cheaper ones in most hotels unfortunately.

Which baffles me a little because I try the brand in a hotel, think they are cough, then see them in a store and would never buy them.