How do Hilton treat you as an Elite?

[serfty]

..
Exactly, that lack of Melbourne Hilton has driven me elsewhere as I spend around 8-12 nights a month there.

With that frequency, I'd be looking at Hyatt. The Globist benefits and recognition leave Hilton for dead.

 

[wannabeinvestmentbanker]

At the risk of going OT, my colleagues who also cover Melbourne are Hyatt Globalists as MEL and HKG are our frequent destinations but I've decided to go Marriott for global coverage and the Platinum status challenge. I will miss having a lounge, as none in MEL do, but when travelling for work that's irrelevant and only useful on leisure trips in which case there should be a lounge.

To bring back on topic, I recall the check-in agent at DT seemed to mention there should be a Hilton in MEL in 2020 but who knows how reliable that is. I feel they are missing out on a lot of revenue as the Hyatts, Sofitel and Westin have a stranglehold on the business traveller spend.

 

[boomy]

To bring back on topic, I recall the check-in agent at DT seemed to mention there should be a Hilton in MEL in 2020 but who knows how reliable that is. I feel they are missing out on a lot of revenue as the Hyatts, Sofitel and Westin have a stranglehold on the business traveller spend.

They are definitely missing out. It’s amazing how the number of properties went down from three to zero without any forward planning to open new ones.

Now finally one is due in Bourke St hopefully not too long.

 

[Danger]

With that frequency, I'd be looking at Hyatt. The Globist benefits and recognition leave Hilton for dead.

Considering Hyatt has a fraction the number of properties around the world as Hilton, Marriott and IHG, coupled with what is essentially double the minimum requirement to qualify for top tier, the benefits need to be significantly superior.

 

[serfty]

the benefits need to be significantly superior.

And, as you know, they definitely are. For me with recent changes, I simply don't have enough room nights to maintain, so I'll enjoy 2019. @wannabeinvestmentbanker et all seem to have enough to go around.

 

[mini2]

Property: Waldorf Astoria Shanghai
Booked: Double Queen Deluxe
Received: Double Queen Deluxe City View
Diamond

Getting mixed signals from these folks - I'm not entitled to breakfast as I booked through Amex Travel but somehow got an upgrade? Going to have a few words with the front desk staff in the morning. I don't think I've ever been declined DM entitlements at any properties regardless how it was booked.

 

[hydrabyss]

Property: Waldorf Astoria Shanghai
Booked: Double Queen Deluxe
Received: Double Queen Deluxe City View
Diamond

Getting mixed signals from these folks - I'm not entitled to breakfast as I booked through Amex Travel but somehow got an upgrade? Going to have a few words with the front desk staff in the morning. I don't think I've ever been declined DM entitlements at any properties regardless how it was booked.

Too receive benefits you are meant to book via Hilton website but some properties may give them anyway. Same for points and stay credits.

 

[Deleted member 29185]

This is a belated post ... I nearly forgot about this little guy!

At my last H-POM stay, the gift was really a fabulous idea ... a handcrafted authentic Trobriand Island wooden and shell turtle.

Not only is he an attractive little fella, but a Trobs Islander gets a few kina in his pocket. But wait, there's more! The spiel that came with it states the profit from the sale goes toward supporting conservation programs in the Trobriands targeted at saving endangered turtle species and boosting their numbers in the wild! How can one argue with that! Congrats H-POM on a great idea.

 

[Disco]

Property: Parmelia Hilton Perth
Booked: King guest
Received: Deluxe King
Status: Diamond
We really like this hotel; has a good atmosphere and we are well treated. Staff very friendly and obliging and restaurant dining/wine well done. Interested to see a few posts back about the Executive Lounge to come? Hope so.

 

[ric_melb]

At the risk of going OT, my colleagues who also cover Melbourne are Hyatt Globalists as MEL and HKG are our frequent destinations but I've decided to go Marriott for global coverage and the Platinum status challenge. I will miss having a lounge, as none in MEL do, but when travelling for work that's irrelevant and only useful on leisure trips in which case there should be a lounge.

To bring back on topic, I recall the check-in agent at DT seemed to mention there should be a Hilton in MEL in 2020 but who knows how reliable that is. I feel they are missing out on a lot of revenue as the Hyatts, Sofitel and Westin have a stranglehold on the business traveller spend.

Melbourne Marriott has an Executive Lounge.

 

[straitman]

Property: Hilton at the Ageas Bowl
Date: 20 October 2018, 1 night
Status: Diamond
Booked: King room
Received: King Executive Suite overlooking the cricket ground.
Benefits: 2 x water
Cost was 107.10 pound

Great executive lounge. We arrived just after drinks and canapés finished but they reopened for a few minutes to get a few drinks and nibbles.



For QF WP and other cricket tragics, the stand on the right is 'The Shane Warne Stand'

 

[Aeolus]

Conrad Singapore
Booked: King Guestroom
Received: Executive King
Checked in past midnight, corner exec room and late checkout to 5pm offered which was appreciated as my connecting flight was at 7:40pm. No mention of the lower floor temporary executive lounge, just level 31. Had a pre-arrival request which wasn’t fulfilled but I was too tired on arrival to bother calling them.

Hilton Kuala Lumpur
Booked: King Guestroom
Received: King Executive Plus
Checked in at the executive lounge after evening canapes. I was asked if I would like to have a non-alcoholic drink or take a drink to the room. I mentioned that I usually drink sparkling water and the staff came back with 2 large bottles of French sparkling water for me to take to the room which I later noticed were RM$35 (about $12) a bottle in room. Again, 5pm late checkout was offered but due to an admin error, the room was not blocked and I had to move to another room at noon. Staff was most apologetic and mentioned that notes have been made on my profile for a suite upgrade as a service comp for the next stay due to the inconvenience.

Doubletree Kuala Lumpur
Booked: King Guestroom
Received: King Executive
Didn’t receive the usual suite upgrade as the hotel was completely full that day but offered the suite the next day which I declined as I was checking out early the day after. Breakfast was mayhem in the morning but had a lot of choices for a DT.

 

[Aeolus]

Doubletree Resort Penang
Booked: King Guestroom (10K points)
Received: King Deluxe Room High floor and Balcony
Thought I'll list this separately as the hotel has not been reviewed before on AFF. Cheap redemption considering going room rate was over AUD200. Decided to test out the hotel for a possible longer stay in 2019. In summary, room is pleasant enough but the housekeeping and careline services could be improved. The resort is not on a beachfront and the beach across the road is not suitable for swimming. Besides a crummy little beach hut across the road, there wasn't any other options other than eating at the hotel. Nevertheless, Grab (equiv of Uber) could take you further up the beach resort area for MYR7 or to the city for about MYR18 each way), also MYR3 first ride for new users with prepaid credit. I was surprised that there were already signs of wear and tear in the resort considering it was opened less than a year ago. Unlike DT KUL, there's no exec lounge but evening drinks and canapes were offered to diamond guests between 6-7pm. I had 2 pax on my bookings and received 2 serves of everything. Breakfast options and area was airy and nice. Overall, an acceptable stay for 10K points but for AUD200+ (peak season rates), I would be expecting a higher level of service for an asian hotel or stay at the main beach resort area.

Some photos:



view from the balcony


Evening canapes

 

[mini2]

Hilton Xi’an
Booked: King Guestroom
Received: some kind of suite*
Status: Diamond

Booked through Amex Travel, got escorted to Exec Lounge to check in, greeted by the GM, couldn’t give us the suite straight away but housed us in the exec level till tomorrow morning, welcome letter personally signed by th GM and gift provided. Everything’s great about the property (maybe we got freaked out by Hyatt on the Bund - that was on par with ibis) except the toilet was blocked twice in an hour. EL was empty most of the time.

 

[mini2]

Conrad Hong Kong
Booked: King Guestroom
Received: King Exec
Diamond
Paid: Used an one night weekend certificate

Received breakfast, exec lounge access and confirmed 4pm checkout. Faultless service as usual but the hardware is definitely showing its age.

 

[esquire]

Hilton Mandalay, Myanmar
Booked: King Deluxe Guestroom (Base)
Received: King Executive Hill View with Balcony (also offered suite overlooking pool but the view is what you come for!)
Status: Diamond
Paid: Points (3 nights)

Received breakfast in restaurant (excellent), exec lounge access (basic), welcome fruit and tour of the hotel by manager. Given reserved booth table in restaurants. Refurbished parts of hotel are outstanding. Older parts (rooms) work in progress and be prepared for mozzies, but due to start renovations this year. Certainly an oasis when you take a walk around the outside of the hotel!

 

[Finale]

Hilton Millennium Bangkok, Thailand
Date: Oct 18
Booked: Twin Family Room
Received: Twin Exec
Status: Diamond

This was more like a downgrade as the exec room was smaller but the only family room left was on the 6th floor, too low for me. Exec lounge with nice views and outdoor area got very busy. I wasn't happy with the wine so I went to the bar upstairs which was really nice with live Jazz music and great view of BKK. It was quite pricey though, $100 for 4 drinks. Will not return to this property due to the location.


Hilton Osaka, Japan (2 stays)
Date: Oct 18 and Nov 18
Booked: King room (Base)
Received: King Executive both times (app checkin)
Status: Diamond

Lounge on 3rd floor was small but not packed. Not much view so I didn't enjoy staying there. Checked in 3 hours early but was given the room only 1 hour before checkin time. A male receptionist wasn't happy when I asked for a late checkout. Came back and a nice female one had no problem and gave me even later time than asked. View from the room on north west side was better than south east. In case anyone was curious like me, below are the view from both sides. Floor 28 north west and almost top floor (32 or 33) south east.




Hilton Pattaya, Thailand
Date: Dec 18
Booked: King Executive Plus (now called King Executive Oceanfront)
Received: The room I booked
Status: Diamond

I asked them to not upgrade me to King Deluxe Ocean Suite (only $20 more) and if they wanted to upgrade, I only would take their grand suite . Deluxe suite was bigger but located on the side of the hotel while Exec Oceanfront was in front and offered a full water view. There were hardly any gold/diamond benefits at this property especially when booked in one of their higher category rooms. The only thing I got was a plate of sticky rice mango exclusive to gold and diamond members during breakfast.

I love this property though. The room was really nice. We enjoyed drinking in the evening on the balcony watching the sunset.

Exec lounge was good (small but never got too crowded during xmas). There were both outdoor and indoor areas. No sunset as it was on the side.

The rooftop bar was great for sunset. Happened to be during a happy hour as well. Ended up spending only only $30 for 4 coughtails which was very good value for money for a rooftop bar with nice view & sunset. Only went there once as our room offered pretty much the same view.

Gym was small but suffice. Pool area was nice but not much sun in the afternoon.

Will definitely return. The only bad thing about this hotel is it's in Pattaya.

 

[Finale]

Hilton Sydney

Date: Checked in today
Booked: Deluxe Room about $217 a night semi flex. (which will be split using 2 amex cards for $160 statement credits)
Received: Relaxation Room
Status: Diamond

The app didn't give me any upgrade today so I called the hotel and was told no upgrade available but possible to upgrade me tomorrow or Sunday to one of the suites. Arrived at the hotel and was told if I waited a bit, I could get a Relaxation room for a whole stay which I accepted. She sounded like if Relaxation/Junior suite was available, she would be able to give me. The only suite available was that expensive suite (same as online availability) which I had to pay $500+ a night more.

I didn't enjoy the lounge as it was too busy for me and I was told this was pretty quiet already after the festive season. Plenty of food and drinks in the evening which I didn't quite enjoy either. I don't think I will go back to the lounge. Some broken stuff in in room ie TV, phone and very difficult to get rain shower to work. Staff were cold except those friendly ones in the lounge. While the rate was great for what I got, I'm not sure if I will return.

 

[foggy]

Hilton Nagoya, Japan
Date: January 9-10
Booked: Twin Hilton Guestroom (base room)
Price paid: AUD $218 per night ($178 per night after AMEX cashback)
Received: Japanese Suite after paying another $162 per night
Status: Diamond

At check-in, was given 3 kids packs which included small slippers, small toothbrush + toothpaste

ROOM
Was offered Twin Premium Executive room at check-in, I instead asked what the rate was for a Japanese suite and was offered a price I was willing to pay given that we are 2 adults and 3 children, I wanted the extra space.
Things I like about the room;
- dining table
- TV mounted and can swivel
- wet room for bath/shower so it is not cold
- closet space and "balcony" where we could put our suitcases
Dislikes;
- Hairdryer felt as though it ran on batteries.. no power at all
- No place to hang a towel at all, although the solution was just to ask for more towels.

BREAKFAST
We had breakfast downstairs in the main restaurant. Only fresh fruits offered at breakfast was banana, green kiwi, grapefruit, apple, orange, pineapple(felt like canned).I normally load our kids up with fruits from hotel breakfast because fruits in Japan is $$ imo and was quite disappointed with the range. Staying at Conrad Osaka now and the fruit situation is still not as good as what we had at Conrad Tokyo last year.
The green juice and carrot was good but tasted as though it wasn't fresh. Booking through system was 1 adult 2 kids, was not charged extra for breakfast.

LOCATION
Right across the road is a starbucks and Family Mart. The closest train station is around a 5 minute walk. I think the Marriott is a better location.

I wish I had found out where to hire bicycles for Nagoya, The location where we stayed, we went to the planetarium (was great for kids) and also Nagoya castle which we had walked, as they were both in walking distance (I needed to burn off calories from eating too much). I noticed the amount of bicycles parked and the amount of people riding. Also the roads had a lot of cycling lanes and the days we were there, had very little cars in general. I think biking around the area would have been perfect.

 

[kyle]

Only fresh fruits offered at breakfast was banana, green kiwi, grapefruit, apple, orange, pineapple(felt like canned).I normally load our kids up with fruits from hotel breakfast because fruits in Japan is $$ imo and was quite disappointed with the range. Staying at Conrad Osaka now and the fruit situation is still not as good as what we had at Conrad Tokyo last year.

Eating Japanese fruits is one of the reasons I go there. Strawberries, persimmons, grapes, white peaches... So sweet...