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.

 

[desafinado74]

WA Sydney will be the one to watch I think. Actually, the Waldorf Astorias I’ve been staying recently (Beverly Hills, Berlin and RAK) have been the sole highlights in the Hilton portfolio. Just not enough of them out there really.

Compared to Hyatt and even Marriott, Hilton just doesn’t have that many shiny properties or even brands besides WA. A lot of Conrads are old and tired, not unlike older Westins or Park Hyatts. But there’s no W or Andaz, not even anything en par with Hyatt Centric (my current favourite sub-brands). Doubletree or even Hampton are just not cutting it in my experience (maybe the Doubletree in Wellington excepted- that’s a real gem!).

Hilton's LXR and Canopy brands look promising. I hope they will be expanded into more countries.
By the way, did you use Hilton points to book your Waldorf Beverley Hills stay ?
And how did you find the neighbourhood ? I assume it is one of the safer parts of LA ? (The hotel is on my wish list)

 

[boomy]

Not at all, but each to their own.

I meant the immediate area around the hotel, unless I’ve been there in the wrong nights during my 20+ stays last year. Doesn’t bother me because I used to live in Melbourne and very familiar with the CBD but the fact is this property is not central as Hilton Sydney, Brisbane, Adelide or even DT MEL.

 

[Princess Fiona]

Hilton's LXR and Canopy brands look promising. I hope they will be expanded into more countries.
By the way, did you use Hilton points to book your Waldorf Beverley Hills stay ?
And how did you find the neighbourhood ? I assume it is one of the safer parts of LA ? (The hotel is on my wish list)

The WA Bev Hills is in a good area for LA.
Some interesting characters at the Starbucks around the corner on Santa Monica Boulevard.

It’s a great use of points. I have stayed there several times.

The other property in LA that’s also great is the Oceana Santa Monica. It’s an LXR.
I have another stay there in a few weeks.

 

[Berlin]

Hilton's LXR and Canopy brands look promising. I hope they will be expanded into more countries.
By the way, did you use Hilton points to book your Waldorf Beverley Hills stay ?
And how did you find the neighbourhood ? I assume it is one of the safer parts of LA ? (The hotel is on my wish list)

Oh, I forgot about LXR but there are also way too few of them around outside the US.

The Waldorf- I’ve posted a detailed review a bit further up thread, it was our engagement and it all went fabulously well. The property is stunning, right next to the old Beverley Hilton (the one where Whitney overdosed herself). Splendid rooms, lovely views, great roof top pool and restaurant.

The area isn’t actually that posh and fancy- lots of major roads but only about 10 minutes walk to Rodeo Drive. I personally like the Andaz in West Hollywood better for the location and if one wants to be close to the Hollywood strip, that’s at the complete opposite end. Depends on what you’re after- if you look to shop at luxury brands (or seek to get a facelift) on Rodeo, then the WA is perfect. I’m not into either but enjoyed the property itself as a quiet respite (and you can see “The Sign” from the roof top which was great for a wedding proposal) and then took easy and cheap Uber rides up Santa Monica Blvd towards WeHo to meet friends of ours. If you’re specifically after sight seeing, the usual Hollywood stuff, then I’d personally rather stay further East on Hollywood Blvd or thereabouts.

 

[http_x92]

Would be interesting to see the WA Beverly Hills or Oceana for 2 nights using FNC + points. When I pay with cash, the beachside Hiltons and Beverly Hills hotels in LA are quite expensive so might have to be inner city with good public transport. Anyone have good things to say about the Downtown LA Hiltons like the Wayfarer or Doubletree?

 

[Berlin]

Would be interesting to see the WA Beverly Hills or Oceana for 2 nights using FNC + points. When I pay with cash, the beachside Hiltons and Beverly Hills hotels in LA are quite expensive so might have to be inner city with good public transport. Anyone have good things to say about the Downtown LA Hiltons like the Wayfarer or Doubletree?

Good public transport? You know we’re talking LA here, right???

The WA Beverly Hills is my points destination going forward. Whenever I get to 190,000 Hilton points, it’s time to head over to LA

 

[Princess Fiona]

Good public transport? You know we’re talking LA here, right???

The WA Beverly Hills is my points destination going forward. Whenever I get to 190,000 Hilton points, it’s time to head over to LA

You need a bit more now. It’s 120K a night.
The Oceana is 110K.
I managed to get a 5 night Award stay there for end of this month, 5th night free.

 

[Berlin]

You need a bit more now. It’s 120K a night.
The Oceana is 110K.

Oh wow! I had paid 95k just earlier this year- that’s a way to devalue those points (and HHonours points are already a bit like Argentinian pesos as it is…)!

 

[http_x92]

Good public transport? You know we’re talking LA here, right???

Last time I was in LA was in 2009 as a teenager and I remembered the only good way around was by car but I did see some trams back then. Relatives took me around.

480k for 5 nights at the WA Beverly Hills with plenty of standard rooms available... hmm. It has increased but Hilton has been giving out points like candy recently...

 

[Moopere]

General vibe on this thread now is quite muted on Hilton compared to before…

I’ve stopped using them this year mostly because their offerings are a bit stale now in AU in particular with the exception of Hilton Melbourne which I love.

Yep. For mine the halcyon days where when the new Hilton South Wharf opened in MEL. When was that 11-12 years ago? Was it longer?

Not only exciting times because of that specific hotel though, all the Hlitons across Aus seemed to be really putting in an effort. Though many were old properties (even back then) they were great and the staff were generally great too. Decent pricing, upgraded rooms abounded, no coffee tax, almost always got a hot breakfast if you wanted it (with status) - it was really worthwhile chasing and gaining status.

Now, goodness me, I'm diamond and have been for years, but haven't stayed in a HH Aus property since just before COVID. The old properties are even older, the staff morale seems shot to pieces, perceivable upgrades seemed to have stopped, coffee tax arrived, pricing seems to have doubled, doubletree's arrived charging more than the old hiltons used to and although its never happened to me there is tons of chatter of status holders being turned away from breakfast in the restaurant and back to the meagre offering the lounge - which have become a lot more meagre.

So its off to Marriott for me. Probably a 20% price premium in so doing but the properties made me feel like HH used to 'back in the day' so its worth it.

 

[Princess Fiona]

Yep. For mine the halcyon days where when the new Hilton South Wharf opened in MEL. When was that 11-12 years ago? Was it longer?

Not only exciting times because of that specific hotel though, all the Hlitons across Aus seemed to be really putting in an effort. Though many were old properties (even back then) they were great and the staff were generally great too. Decent pricing, upgraded rooms abounded, no coffee tax, almost always got a hot breakfast if you wanted it (with status) - it was really worthwhile chasing and gaining status.

Now, goodness me, I'm diamond and have been for years, but haven't stayed in a HH Aus property since just before COVID. The old properties are even older, the staff morale seems shot to pieces, perceivable upgrades seemed to have stopped, coffee tax arrived, pricing seems to have doubled, doubletree's arrived charging more than the old hiltons used to and although its never happened to me there is tons of chatter of status holders being turned away from breakfast in the restaurant and back to the meagre offering the lounge - which have become a lot more meagre.

So its off to Marriott for me. Probably a 20% price premium in so doing but the properties made me feel like HH used to 'back in the day' so its worth it.

So you haven’t stayed at an Aussie Hilton since early 2020? And despite this seem to have a strong opinion on the decline of the brand here.

I think you should maybe do a few stays at some of the new properties. You might find yourself pleasantly surprised.

 

[Moopere]

So you haven’t stayed at an Aussie Hilton since early 2020? And despite this seem to have a strong opinion on the decline of the brand here.

I think you should maybe do a few stays at some of the new properties. You might find yourself pleasantly surprised.

Perhaps. I did miss one stay at the Parmelia in my comment above during the COVID period. The refurbishment effort there somehow made this hotel 'less' than it was previously ... sigh. After HSW in MEL this used to be my second favourite HH in Aus.

Perhaps I just reached the natural end of my time with the chain. The other thing that comes to mind is that during the period which memory is telling me was the best time to be part of HH perhaps the chain in Aus wasn't making money? I could never know of course - but it strikes me that the strong decline in status benefits along with a steep incline in price and the widespread introduction of the Doubletree brand into Australia might be telling? In other words, I might have reached an unsustainably high opinion or expectation.

I'm off to SE Asia in a little bit, always had a fantastic experience in central and SE Asia as a diamond, lets see if I come away disappointed. If so, that would be a telling sign that its me, not the chain itself which is changing

 

[desafinado74]

Oh, I forgot about LXR but there are also way too few of them around outside the US.

The Waldorf- I’ve posted a detailed review a bit further up thread, it was our engagement and it all went fabulously well. The property is stunning, right next to the old Beverley Hilton (the one where Whitney overdosed herself). Splendid rooms, lovely views, great roof top pool and restaurant.

The area isn’t actually that posh and fancy- lots of major roads but only about 10 minutes walk to Rodeo Drive. I personally like the Andaz in West Hollywood better for the location and if one wants to be close to the Hollywood strip, that’s at the complete opposite end. Depends on what you’re after- if you look to shop at luxury brands (or seek to get a facelift) on Rodeo, then the WA is perfect. I’m not into either but enjoyed the property itself as a quiet respite (and you can see “The Sign” from the roof top which was great for a wedding proposal) and then took easy and cheap Uber rides up Santa Monica Blvd towards WeHo to meet friends of ours. If you’re specifically after sight seeing, the usual Hollywood stuff, then I’d personally rather stay further East on Hollywood Blvd or thereabouts.

Many thanks for the detailed reply.
Did you make use of the free Rolls Royce rides from Waldorf Beverley Hills ?

Post automatically merged: Jan 4, 2023

The WA Bev Hills is in a good area for LA.
Some interesting characters at the Starbucks around the corner on Santa Monica Boulevard.

It’s a great use of points. I have stayed there several times.

The other property in LA that’s also great is the Oceana Santa Monica. It’s an LXR.
I have another stay there in a few weeks.

Thank you for the recommendations : )
I do have the Hilton Aspire card, so i will definitely use the free night cert on Waldorf Beverley Hills.

 

[chrisbris]

Interesting to see the new posts in this thread
I am a Hilton diamond but looking a hard at switching to Marriott - if only that had a status match!

 

[dairyfloss]

Interesting to see the new posts in this thread
I am a Hilton diamond but looking a hard at switching to Marriott - if only that had a status match!

If you’re serious about it, you could probably arrange to apply for their 90 day status challenge (requires discussion with customer support; nothing online), however I don’t believe you get any status benefits along the way, so the room and inclusions you book, are what you get. Lots of info on the usual blogger sites…

Cheers,
Matt.

 

[liamsal]

Hilton Brisbane
Diamond
1 night (Jan 2023)
Rate: $220 govt
Booked Guest Room
Received Executive Room
Offered early check in of 9am surprisingly, although didn’t check in until 4ish. Didn’t need a late checkout
Bottle of wine provided after check in

Hilton Sydney
Diamond
1 night (Jan 2023)
Rate: $255 govt
Booked Guest Room
Received Executive Room
Room not ready until 2:30pm, however late check out of 2pm offered

Have a few stays coming up in MEL so looking forward to trying out the new Hilton down there

 

[ChrisFlyer]

Hilton Melbourne LQS
Gold
4 nights (M-F, Dec)
Rate: average about $245/n
Booked King Superior
Received King Premier, corner location

Didn't need early check-in but no problems with a delayed checkout (think it was 12pm instead of 11am which is all I'd asked for). Stay otherwise quite standard - basic breakfast covered but $10 upgrade fee for the full buffet, plus $5 for barista coffee. Random as the $10 upgrade at Hilton Sydney included the barista coffee on my most recent stay, but nonetheless.

 

[jbmemories]

I've also noticed with the Exec Lounge breakfast (continental) that in some places, it is not worth the upgrade to the full one with the number of hot dishes that might be available.

Albeit coffee is something I cannot go without, so having a taste for their machine, I decide whether to go for the barista-made coffee for my next one.

 

[WLGFlyer]

Property: Hilton Adelaide
Room booked: King Room
King Received: Kind Executive
Status: Diamond

First stay here since Covid and not sure if it's really showing it's age now or if I just didn't notice before. No Diamond recognition other than the "non"-upgrade to an Executive Room.

Exec Lounge is open from 1-8PM and has OK canapes from 5-7pm. Breakfast is standard fare, on the plus side they don't try to upsell to a full breakfast and instead give full access. Was never asked for my coffee order so stuck with the machine.

Overall very uninspired stay, given that the Hilton is usually $80-$100 above similar properties in Adelaide it's hard to justify staying here, even as a Diamond. Can't put my finger on it but just generally feels run down.

 

[Moopere]

Property: Hilton Adelaide
Room booked: King Room
King Received: Kind Executive
Status: Diamond

First stay here since Covid and not sure if it's really showing it's age now or if I just didn't notice before. No Diamond recognition other than the "non"-upgrade to an Executive Room.

Exec Lounge is open from 1-8PM and has OK canapes from 5-7pm. Breakfast is standard fare, on the plus side they don't try to upsell to a full breakfast and instead give full access. Was never asked for my coffee order so stuck with the machine.

Overall very uninspired stay, given that the Hilton is usually $80-$100 above similar properties in Adelaide it's hard to justify staying here, even as a Diamond. Can't put my finger on it but just generally feels run down.

Its been years since I stayed at HH ADL but it always annoyed me that the exec lounge spends most of its time closed. I mean ... open at 1pm? What now? And closed by 8pm ... Its intrinsically not a great lounge anyway but goodness me.

My impression after many stays, though years ago now as I say, is that this HH does the bare minimum. When the price is right I've been happy enough to stay, but its never an exceptional stay nor worth paying a premium for. Good location though (imho).