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.

 

[I love to travel]

Property: Hilton Surfers Paradise
Status: Diamond
Room booked: King Hilton Guest Room
Rate: HH Discount Advance Purchase $353/night
Received: King Hilton Deluxe

Personal welcome from hotel duty manager and 2 bottles of water delivered to the room. Breakfast in lounge was very poor, pro tip take it at the restaurant. Afternoon tea very nice but nothing savoury. Nice coughtail at canape hour.

 

[Flashback]

I'm constantly having issues with making new bookings on the Hilton website over the past few days.... sometimes adding a new card and trying that works, sometimes it doesn't. Is anyone else experiencing the same?

I just keep getting this error message:
Sorry, that didn't work.
Please try again. If the problem continues, call us for help with your reservation.

US & Canada: +1 888-446-6677

Everywhere else: Contact Global Support

 

[JessicaTam]

I'm constantly having issues with making new bookings on the Hilton website over the past few days.... sometimes adding a new card and trying that works, sometimes it doesn't. Is anyone else experiencing the same?

I just keep getting this error message:
Sorry, that didn't work.
Please try again. If the problem continues, call us for help with your reservation.

US & Canada: +1 888-446-6677

Everywhere else: Contact Global Support

It was ok booking a week ago.

 

[Flashback]

I could only get 1 card to work a few days ago, that same one isn't working today.

I've just called (SAYNOTO0870.COM is a great website to avoid the expensive toll number):

Company Name​	087x​	084x​	01 / 02 / 03​	Freephone​	Other Information​
Hilton Hotels​	0870 590 9090​	​	​	0800 833775​	Worldwide Reservations Also: 0800 8562851 Also for: 0870 8504197​

And they're saying the HH system is down for maintenance until 6am (US time I guess) so will try again later today......

 

[Princess Fiona]

I'm constantly having issues with making new bookings on the Hilton website over the past few days.... sometimes adding a new card and trying that works, sometimes it doesn't. Is anyone else experiencing the same?

I just keep getting this error message:
Sorry, that didn't work.
Please try again. If the problem continues, call us for help with your reservation.

US & Canada: +1 888-446-6677

Everywhere else: Contact Global Support

I had some issues a while back with specifically UK properties on the App and Amex authorization
But nothing recently and I have made 4 bookings in the last 48 hours.

 

[Flashback]

I had some issues a while back with specifically UK properties on the App and Amex authorization
But nothing recently and I have made 4 bookings in the last 48 hours.

Likewise, using Visa worked for me when AMEX kept failing a few days ago. Trying to book in Jordan currently, but Visa/MC/AMEX all failing - but based on the message I got calling reservations they said changes to HH accounts including using points etc. is down for maintenance so might try later in the day.

Good to know re: UK then, seems to align with what I saw given the Visa then worked fine.

 

[Comoman]

Booking UK properties is an absolute pain in the backside - all to do with the new credit card online purchasing rules which changed last year. At least with Amex you can white list Hilton - using my work Mastercard is a right pain.

it’s not unique to Hilton though TBH.

 

[Flashback]

Booking UK properties is an absolute pain in the backside - all to do with the new credit card online purchasing rules which changed last year. At least with Amex you can white list Hilton - using my work Mastercard is a right pain.

it’s not unique to Hilton though TBH.

Already whitelisted on mine, still doesn't work.

 

[Flashback]

Finally working for HH redemptions. Cash bookings were working OK during the outage.

 

[kyle]

Is this the most stingy NOR1 upgrade discount?

 

[kyle]

Is this the most stingy NOR1 upgrade discount? View attachment 318314

Should also add that if I pick the Junior Suite upgrade, the total cost per room would have been $378 + $178 = $556. Had I booked the suite straight up on advance purchase rate, it would be $502.

 

[eric2011]

Lol... I will still be walking 20 mins to the Star

Price seems fair. Don't walk, catch the light rail

 

[Daver6]

Is this the most stingy NOR1 upgrade discount? View attachment 318314

That exec suite is the extra-large suite. Which is the same size as the junior suite. So much fail.

 

[Andrew Curran]

Property: Hilton Cairns
Status: Diamond
Room booked: King Hilton Guest Room
Rate:: $179 p.n
Received: Executive King City View

First time back since early 2020. Nice to see rooms have had a refresh. All perfectly fine. $6.50 G&Ts at the pool. Free bottle of house wine offered but unfortunately my stay coincided with one of the three nights each year when I am all wined out, so gave it a pass. Lounge was okay, only okay, empty mini bar fridge, nespresso machine in room, nice armchair but no poof to rest my tired middle aged feet on. Still prefer the big front facing rooms at the Doubletree down the road.

 

[Happy Dude]

Property: Hilton Surfers Paradise
Status: Diamond
Room booked: King Hilton Guest Room
Rate: HH Discount Advance Purchase $251/night (avg)
Received: King Hilton Deluxe (on Level 12)

Noting @I love to travel's comments, I didn't mind the brekky in the lounge but selection is very limited compared to the restaurant which was quite crowded. It's a decent brekky spread in the restaurant and no coffee tax applied. The lounge could do with a revamp to make seating more comfy but the food/drinks for afternoon tea and evening canapes was quite nice IMO.

The room "upgrade" came through two days before arrival just after an email spruiking paid upgrades, none of which would've been good value.

We were very warmly welcomed by check-in staff and all staff interactions were equally enthusiastic. A roll-away bed was delivered very promptly upon request. Check-in staff tried in vain for a better room upgrade, unprompted, but as the hotel was very busy we were told, we were given our deluxe. They genuinely seemed bummed at that. In lieu of a further upgrade, our parking was comped, which I thought was terrifically generous.

No welcome gift to be seen, no biggie AFAIC. Our room had ocean views but that also means nightclub roof views and direct exposure to the street shenanigans too.

Only thing I don't like about this hotel is the pools seem to be the coldest in QLD, even the indoor pool.

 

[liamsal]

Both stays as Diamond

Hilton Sydney
1 night, March ‘23
Rate: $270~ Govt.
Booked: Corner Room
Received: Corner Room
Couldn’t select a room during check in on the app and got the message ‘we don’t have any rooms to show you but check in now and we’ll do our best to upgrade you’. I forgot when I got to the hotel and when I got up to the room I realised it was the room type I booked. Spoke to reception and they offered a deluxe which I declined, then they offered an executive room but I had already messed the bed up so didn’t want them to have to clean the room so I also declined that. Lounge was great, $10 pp for buffet upgrade at breakfast (first time at Syd, staff said it started being charged on 01/03/23).

West Hotel Curio
1 night, March ‘23
Rate: $330 Govt
Booked: King Banksia Deluxe Plus
Received: King Banksia Deluxe Plus
Asked about an upgrade upon check in but was told only paid options available (could also see these on then app). Left prior to breakfast starting so can’t comment on that. Didn’t really use any of the facilities/bar etc, however the rooms are modern and nice. Love the in built speaker that you can Bluetooth music to.

Upgrades have been non-existent lately. Such a shame

 

[Daver6]

West Hotel Curio
1 night, March ‘23
Rate: $330 Govt
Booked: King Banksia Deluxe Plus
Received: King Banksia Deluxe Plus
Asked about an upgrade upon check in but was told only paid options available (could also see these on then app). Left prior to breakfast starting so can’t comment on that. Didn’t really use any of the facilities/bar etc, however the rooms are modern and nice. Love the in built speaker that you can Bluetooth music to.

Upgrades have been non-existent lately. Such a shame

Hold on. I'm scratching my head on this one. Isn't the deal as a diamond you get a space available upgrade? So if there is a room available as paid option, surely you should get that for free as a diamond. What am I missing here?

 

[Berlin]

Hold on. I'm scratching my head on this one. Isn't the deal as a diamond you get a space available upgrade? So if there is a room available as paid option, surely you should get that for free as a diamond. What am I missing here?

This is precisely what Hilton has started sneaking in for the past few months- trying to “offer” rather overpriced paid upgrades (even on the app, as a so-called “Diamond”) and then not offering said upgrades for free anymore.

Which is further eroding the value of Hilton status which already hasn’t been the best given the floods of free Diamonds due to credit card memberships (more of that than in Australia in other geographies even!) and endless Covid extensions. That’s why myself have made the conscious decision not to pursue it any longer. Gold status through my Amex charge card will do in the few instances where Hilton is the only feasible option. Every other hotel night now goes to Hyatt (and I know of many who do similar things with Marriott instead).

 

[Happy Dude]

Hold on. I'm scratching my head on this one. Isn't the deal as a diamond you get a space available upgrade? So if there is a room available as paid option, surely you should get that for free as a diamond. What am I missing here?

Yes that is the published benefit. What you are missing is whether the hotels give a toss. I recall some recent chatter on this thread that some hotels are claiming there's no space available, despite the app suggesting otherwise, and even more galling for a Diamond, is that there is space available to upgrade but only if you pay.

 

[jase05]

This is precisely what Hilton has started sneaking in for the past few months- trying to “offer” rather overpriced paid upgrades (even on the app, as a so-called “Diamond”) and then not offering said upgrades for free anymore.

Which is further eroding the value of Hilton status which already hasn’t been the best given the floods of free Diamonds due to credit card memberships (more of that than in Australia in other geographies even!) and endless Covid extensions. That’s why myself have made the conscious decision not to pursue it any longer. Gold status through my Amex charge card will do in the few instances where Hilton is the only feasible option. Every other hotel night now goes to Hyatt (and I know of many who do similar things with Marriott instead).

It’s a bit of a scam IMO.
Last couple of properties I’ve stayed at have emailed me a couple of times prior to the stay offering paid upgrades and I’ve rejected them all. When I get to the hotel I’ve found that they have already upgraded me for free to the rooms they were trying to extract money out of me for.
The funny thing was that at our last stay in Hilton Lake Taupo recently the day before we arrived we got another email to pay for an upgrade yet when we got there I politely asked the manager about it and she told me that on her system we had been upgraded for free days earlier
I wonder how many actually get sucked in and pay for it.