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.

 

[DC3]

Property: Hilton Maldives Amingiri Resort & Spa
Nights: 6
Status: Diamond
Room booked: One Bedroom Overwater Pool Villa
Room received: One Bedroom Overwater Suite with Pool
Rate: Hilton Free Night Certificates
Comments: Amazing, this hotel should be used as a case study for Hilton Corporate on how to treat elite members. They upgraded me to a suite for free, something that's unheard of in Maldives as resorts are exempt from giving free upgrades. Furthermore, my departing flight is in late evening, and the hotel gave me a free late check out of 7:30pm …

How good is that. Thank you for posting this.

 

[glasszon]

How did you wrangle 6 FNCs? Aspire Cards plus a lot of spend on the cards?

2 Aspire card with FNCs collected over 3 years, Hilton has been extending FNCs previously due to Covid.

Would love to see pictures of the room and resort. Maybe a TR

I will try to do a TR at another time. In summary it's a new resort that is really trying to build a reputation and they have hired people from other luxury resorts in Maldives.

On arrival you will be given a WhatsApp contact of a staff who will look after you during your stay. To get around the resort you can request a buggy or use the bikes provided in each room.

For Diamond members you get free breakfast + happy hour with unlimited drinks and snacks.

In terms of food I was there in August and they are still working on the menu, as of August the lunch option is somewhat limited and can get a bit repetitive if you stay for 5 days or more. The breakfast is amazing though and they assured me that they are working to expand their lunch menu, so it should be better by the time you go to the resort.

In terms of activities it's all outdoor if you exclude the gym and spa, so it's highly weather dependent but it's really good.

They also have a free photoshoot session with 5 complimentary photos, worth taking advantage of if you have time.

The service is amazing; they are willing to move mountains and always willing to go the extra mile to make the guests happy.

Some photos below:

 

[Berlin]

Need. A. Holiday. Now!

 

[levelnine]

2 Aspire card with FNCs collected over 3 years, Hilton has been extending FNCs previously due to Covid.

Excellent use of what is probably going to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get 6 FNCs without holding a lot of Aspire cards.

 

[justinbrett]

Date: Sunday 20 Nov
Property: Hilton Sydney
Room booked: Superior King
Rate: $289
Received: Executive King

I've stayed here quite a few times before covid, but my memory must be failing me. Considering the price point, the room itself is not great value - very compact and no solid walls to the bathroom (has that always been that way? Seriously don't remember that).

Fridge has been replaced with a sensor mini bar fridge, but thankfully was not in operation. That would be a serious downgrade without a personal fridge. Not sure if that was a failed good idea or it is yet to rollout.

Lounge is very good, even had fresh prawns on offer. Didn't go to breakfast (really prefer the US F&B system now, not a huge breakfast person).

Parking was ridiculous ($58) but I booked online in QVB for $30 which brings you up right outside the Hilton. Will definitely park there in future.

I think this Hotel owners thinks it's a Manhattan hotel, and whilst it is nice, there are much nicer and/or better located hotels.

One positive, they did a turndown service and left chocolates on the pillow. I don't remember that from previous stays. They even brough an extra 2 bottles of water when they did the turndown service.

 

[stm1sydney]

Yeah, if you are not a breakfast person then the value is questionable. Free full breakfast in Glass Brasserie for diamonds is a fantastic benefit (if you like b/f). Add the evening drinks/dinner in the EL before heading out to a show and, for me (and my wife), Hilton Sydney is great value.

 

[justinbrett]

Yeah, if you are not a breakfast person then the value is questionable. Free full breakfast in Glass Brasserie for diamonds is a fantastic benefit (if you like b/f). Add the evening drinks/dinner in the EL before heading out to a show and, for me (and my wife), Hilton Sydney is great value.

Yep, the frills are good. I have issue with the hard product (the room). I swear the standard rooms at Hilton Midtown NY are bigger than Sydney.

 

[Blackadder]

HH Gold
Sunday 20-Thurs 24
Darwin Hilton
Room Rate King Waterview with Breakfast ($240 avg room rate)
Room Recieved King Waterview

On arrival selected room not available, no offer of an upgrade despite paid upgrades being plentiful when doing online check in.
Standard 2 Bottles of Water and welcoming letter.
A couple of minor issues, for whatever reason Housekeeping didn’t restock the milk portions during the stay, but restocked other items.
Also on one visit to Pepper Berry for breakfast, staff said I need to pay $10 for a full breakfast, as I was only entitled to a continental. Despite paying for the full breakfast to be included.
Questioned it, and they said they would check up on it.
Come checkout no Breakfast charge.

 

[sudoer]

Property: Conrad Resort Bali
Status: Diamond
Room booked: Deluxe King Pool View
Rate: 2X Points (3.2m IDR / $300 AUD / $205 USD inc taxes)
Received: King Ocean Front Suite

Overnight transit on the way to Singapore as I couldn't find a direct award but SYD-DPS / DPS-SIN was available. I also had a US$250 Aspire Amex credit to use before Feb, and with no travel to Hilton resort locations planned in the next few months, this was a good opportunity to use it. Other than having a bed to sleep in I guess the aim was to maximise the credit and minimise out-of-pocket expenses - I was looking to squeeze the best possible room, a 2X points rate, and airport transfers into US$250.

The hotel emailed a week prior to the stay to confirm transfers which were 400k IDR each way, compared with about 200k if using Grab. I was also contacted by chat the day prior asking what they could do to make it amazing - I responded with the usual pleasantries and suggested a suite or villa upgrade. Initially they said the policy was a one category upgrade which I politely questioned with reference to the Honors benefits page "If we have a better room available it's yours - up to a X". They immediately came back and said yep, sorry, if we have a villa available at check-in, the front desk will upgrade you!

After exiting DPS customs and immigration (~40 minutes with an eVOA pre-purchased) the guy holding the Conrad sign advised a driver would be there "soon", which turned into an awkward 15 minute wait standing among the sea of drivers in the usual Bali humidity. Not the best start given the premium charged for the transfer.

The front desk put me in a King Ocean Front Suite - not quite the villa mentioned over chat but I was still very happy with it. Room rate is approx 6m IDR / $600 AUD. Nothing out of the ordinary at check in, although I did pay for the room and transfers at this point. I also mentioned the transfer experience and asked for the GM's email address to provide feedback.

The suite was huge with a foyer, large living/dining area, two toilets, and three separate patios directly facing the beach and grounds. The layout was functional and furniture comfortable, although the room was a little rough around the edges with some small issues - dodgy shower head, enamel chips in the bottom of the bath, and the bottle opener looking like it'd been through a war or two. The welcome gift was a bowl of fruit.



Not long after reaching the room I got a call from the duty manager to apologise for the transfer delays and say they'd waive one of the transfers. I mentioned having already paid, he said I could offset any other consumption charges or they'd refund at checkout.

Breakfast in the morning exceeded my expectations with many made-to-order stations including omelettes/eggs, bakso, pancakes/waffles, and a couple of others. There were also about 20 hot dishes of various asian cuisines, plus the usual cereals, western options, cold cuts, fruit, etc. Barista coffee was proactively offered and very good.



I didn't end up charging anything else to the room so at check out they suggested 10k HH points in lieu of the 400k IDR refund. Given the stay was being paid with the credit I didn't really want the refund anyway and gladly accepted the points.

Overall an excellent stay - a comfortable bed in a great room, transfers, breakfast, ~25k HH points from the room rate 2X, Diamond 2X, Aspire 14ppd, compensation, etc for..


..$3.79 out of pocket!

 

[pangwen]

HH Gold
Sunday 20-Thurs 24
Darwin Hilton
Room Rate King Waterview with Breakfast ($240 avg room rate)
Room Recieved King Waterview

On arrival selected room not available, no offer of an upgrade despite paid upgrades being plentiful when doing online check in.
Standard 2 Bottles of Water and welcoming letter.
A couple of minor issues, for whatever reason Housekeeping didn’t restock the milk portions during the stay, but restocked other items.
Also on one visit to Pepper Berry for breakfast, staff said I need to pay $10 for a full breakfast, as I was only entitled to a continental. Despite paying for the full breakfast to be included.
Questioned it, and they said they would check up on it.
Come checkout no Breakfast charge.

That’s disappointing. Was considering the Hilton Darwin for a stay next month but this sounds like it might not be worth the extra $30 per night over the Doubletree(s).

 

[justinbrett]

That’s disappointing. Was considering the Hilton Darwin for a stay next month but this sounds like it might not be worth the extra $30 per night over the Doubletree(s).

HD is still by far the better hotel and has a much better location.

I have stayed in all three.

Breakfast was an innocent mistake - you don't need to get a breakfast rate if you are Gold or Diamond, so they probably weren't expecting you to have booked a room rate with breakfast, I doubt it happens often. The $10 upgrade would be cheaper than the additional room rate (unless work is paying).

From the rate you booked, I think the only room they could have upgraded you to as Gold is the King Executive Room, which is the exact room you had but on the executive floor. You need to be diamond to be offered a free upgrade to a suite (though you can take it as a paid upgrade). I wouldn't be losing any sleep over it.

 

[Blackadder]

That’s disappointing. Was considering the Hilton Darwin for a stay next month but this sounds like it might not be worth the extra $30 per night over the Doubletree(s).

One thing the Hilton has over the Doubletrees is the location, about 400m to Crocosaurus Cove, short walk to the Mitchell Centre for Coles, Chemist Warehouse etc. And a few mins walk from the Waterfront precinct.
Also a great pub, more or less opposite the Hotel.

 

[pangwen]

HD is still by far the better hotel and has a much better location.

I have stayed in all three.

Breakfast was an innocent mistake - you don't need to get a breakfast rate if you are Gold or Diamond, so they probably weren't expecting you to have booked a room rate with breakfast, I doubt it happens often. The $10 upgrade would be cheaper than the additional room rate (unless work is paying).

From the rate you booked, I think the only room they could have upgraded you to as Gold is the King Executive Room, which is the exact room you had but on the executive floor. You need to be diamond to be offered a free upgrade to a suite (though you can take it as a paid upgrade). I wouldn't be losing any sleep over it.

Haha ok, back on the list then

*insert picking up pieces of paper after throwing them on ground meme*

 

[http_x92]

Was there in Darwin earlier in the year in the high season and yes the Hilton Darwin is closer to the shops and the offices but the Doubletrees would have free parking if you are renting a car. Good if you want to go to places like Cullen Bay, Casuarina, Nightcliff to explore more things.

Overall everything in the city is in walking distance. Was considering the Hilton Darwin if the prices weren't insane in August as there is an executive lounge.

 

[liamsal]

Hilton Surfers Paradise
HH Diamond
1 night (December ‘22)
Govt rate $155
Booked King Guest Room
Received 2 bedroom apartment high floor
Welcome amenity received - someone knocked on the door shortly after check in with a bottle of wine and welcome letter.
Didn’t use the EL or need an early check in/late check out

I must say pretty impressed with the upgrade and service.

 

[dairyfloss]

Hilton Surfers Paradise
HH Diamond
1 night (December ‘22)
Govt rate $155
Booked King Guest Room
Received 2 bedroom apartment high floor
Welcome amenity received - someone knocked on the door shortly after check in with a bottle of wine and welcome letter.
Didn’t use the EL or need an early check in/late check out

I must say pretty impressed with the upgrade and service.

Even more incredible on that rate!

 

[jase05]

Property: Hilton Ras Al Khaimah Beach Resort
Status: Diamond
Room booked: Deluxe Sea front Villa
Rate: Advance Purchase $553/night
Received: Deluxe Suite Villa Beach Access with half board

Absolutely stunning stay and a genuine surprise packet. First of all I will say this resort is massive and has about 2km of its own private beachfront consisting of the cleanest sand and warmest water I’ve ever felt. The property consists of the main hotel which has several wings and then a group of beachfront villas that fan out from it. For memory I think there was 8 or 9 pools including one with a swim up bar, an adults only pool and others of varying sizes. There are also numerous bars and restaurants situated on the property.
We initially had booked a Seafront Villa but a couple of days out received the email saying we would be upgraded to a Deluxe Suite front Villa with direct beach access and half board would be included. On check in we were asked if we would like to upgrade to the all inclusive for about $120/pp per day. Knowing the price of alcohol in the UAE we jumped at the chance.
We were then transported to our Villa by golf cart as it’s a decent walk from the main hotel part. The room was just stunning and by beachfront access I mean 10ft outside your front door was the soft sand and your own sun lounge and umbrella. The water was warm, clear and absolutely amazing. We went for a wander down to the main area and sampled a few coughtails whilst watching the sun set and had the most wonderful time. Lunch and Dinner are at the main property and a buffet setup with a reserved seating area for Diamonds. Large buffet selection but we only ate there one night as it was just too busy and for the next two nights we headed into town for some local grub. Breakfast was at one of the 2 main cafes or you could order whatever you wanted from room service. We chose that and set on our private deck just metres from the sand and it was absolutely peaceful at that time of day. For the all inclusive package as I said you receive breakfast, lunch and dinner plus unlimited beer, wine, spirits, soft drink all day until the bars shut which was about midnight. You could order drinks from your own sun lounge or room or head to one of the many bars, pools etc. you also receive a $25pp food credit per day if you want snacks from the bar. coughtail prices are about $15 so very much worth it. Added bonus is that the package lasts until 5pm the day you check out so after you check out they will hold your bags and let you use the bar facilities. Free parking, wonderful staff and just a all round exceptional stay. What a gem of a resort. When we head back to Europe next year we will look to do a detour on the way home

 

[kyle]

Hilton Surfers Paradise
HH Diamond
1 night (December ‘22)
Govt rate $155
Booked King Guest Room
Received 2 bedroom apartment high floor
Welcome amenity received - someone knocked on the door shortly after check in with a bottle of wine and welcome letter.
Didn’t use the EL or need an early check in/late check out

I must say pretty impressed with the upgrade and service.

Wow… never had any meaningful upgrade at this property pre Covid, let alone a welcome amenity.

 

[liamsal]

I’ve received a bottle of wine on my last 3 stays there. Figured it was something all Diamonds received.

 

[Ryan Bingham]

Wow… never had any meaningful upgrade at this property pre Covid, let alone a welcome amenity.

We didn't get an upgrade on our honeymoon. The Future Ex-Wife was less than impressed. We did get a bottle of wine while we were there when I expressed my surprise as a Diamond.