Hilton HHonors - Mini-Review for Improvements at Hilton Hasbrouck Heights/Meadowlands

I've stayed at the Hilton Hasbrouck Heights/Meadowlands a number of times while in the Newark area, as well as the Hilton Parsippany. Recently the Hilton Hasbrouck Heights/Meadowlands has been undergoing a much needed facelift. I had the opportunity to stay there last week.

First off, they are still working on the place. They started at the top and are working down (around 5th floor now). As such, the lobby, bar, and restaurant are still in fairly sad shape. I think they are saying it should all be done around the first of the year.

On the plus side, the new rooms though are refreshingly updated. Nice linen, nice pillows (too many actually), a REAL blanket on the bed warm and heavy enough to feel like you're not just sleeping under the comforter. The hotel has free WiFi (B) and it has decent strength every time I've been there. It also handles long transfers fairly well (transfering shows from my TiVo to my laptop). Finally, the Heater/AC system works well and is actually reasonably quiet. Overall the bed was a big winner.

On the downside, they eliminated the curtains and replaced it with a blind. while it looks ok, it's a bit of a pain for privacy. I'd prefer sheer curtains which allow light in the morning, but give some privacy. The blinds would be good for day sleeping though. Remember that this hotel is in a busy area (intersection of 80 and 17) so noise can be an issue. And if on the front of the hotel, you're facing a big high rise looking right into your room. As such I'd prefer the rear "view".

The lounge is still a bit of a disappointment compared to Parsippany. It's about the size of two regular rooms with the dividing wall removed so it's not big. They used to have a computer there but it was gone during my stay. The selection of drinks and food is "ok", but not great. Space seems to be the big barrier and the staff is no where near as friendly (not rude, but more like waitstaff). It's just not a "cozy" space.

Will I stay there again? Likely as it's convenient and I'm thinking of doing more 1-night bouncing to get to diamond. But I'll likely bounce between there and the Parsippany with the first stay starting in Parsippany.

I have stayed there before, but not in the last year though. It's a little out of my way. I know they get a lot of those fractional ownership/time-share pilots from nearby Peterboro Airport.

A few years ago, wines and beers were free in the conceirge room, but not any more. As I remember, there is not much to write home about regarding Hilton Hasbrouck Heights.

You can also bounce to the Embassy Suites in Parsippany, or the Hampton Inn in Fairfield or Dennville. Depending on how far you're willing to go, maybe even the Hilton Newark Gateway Centre (at the Newark Penn Station), or Hilton Newark Airport. :)

Yup, I've done all of them...

The only other Hilton property I've stayed at in the area is the Nanuet HGI. Nice, but sadly the internet service was down that night (all night and the next morning). That's a killer when you're expecting to use it.

But, it was a reasonable property. The weird thing about the whole area is the hotels are all in the same price range, $150-$180. I think the HGI rate was a few bucks more than Parsippany.

How's the Embassy (for a Gold)? The lounge at Parsippany keeps me there as it's a place to kill time in the evenings. I'm not a bar person, and Denise stock Diet Pepsi in the closet so I've got something to drink (no expensing EtOH :( ). Plus the food in the lounge can sometime sub for dinner/desert when you're too lazy to go out (or order up from room service).

The only other place in the area I've stayed is the Amerisuites (Paramus is I recall correctly, we do work in FairLawn). It's close, but being RIGHT ON 4, I hate it (pulling out of the driveway onto a 60MPH freeway is crazy, but that's NJ roads :confused: ). My name for the place is the SuicideSuites. :eek:

There is not much to write home about the Embassy Suites in Parsippany, in my opinion. Except that it is a bed hop destination. I didn't get any welcome gifts during my last few stays. I've only stayed there as a diamond, and I don't recall getting anythng special, or really any room upgrades. If there is a room upgrade, it is of no value to me, for one person travelling on business anyway.

It's a typical Embassy Suites, so you get your made-to-order breakfast. The internet is about $10.00 per day. The breakfast is slightly better than the continental breakfast in the Hilton Parsippany. They have a night-time reception, from 5:30 to 7:30. It is of no use to me, because I can never get out of work that early. There is some god awful chips and salsa, along with one drink only. I think the one drink only is a NJ law though, or at least that's what I was told.

I get one pack of cookies and one bottle of water at Hampton Inn, without fail though...