Points Scrounger
Jan 15, 06, 12:29 pm
This was my very first time using Hilton points for a stay (12K/night for a King bedroom). Odd layout - split level style: "main" entrance by the parking garage, with a spiral staircase up to the lobby itself. Clerk needed neither photo I.D. nor the actual printed confirm sheet; I had the credit card for incidentals ready. Before I could get my key, however, I had to confirm my elite option choice, which the fellow duly noted on a form. He heavily circled "breakfast" and told me "No more coupons. We deduct it from the bill later." I don't know what prompted me to pursue this, but I asked: "Each day?" He replied: "No, once. One breakfast. One time." He made it very clear that this "benefit" is per stay not per day. This is just about the first Hilton stay I can recall with no water bottle(s) provided.
The room turned out to be specially designed for Priceline/Points Stretcher guests: a 45-degree L shape with the bed sticking out from said angle at an angle itself, and TV-on-dresser directly opposite foot of bed. As sitting on the bed itself, there was a large easy chair to the left (between bed and bathroom) and a desk/work area on the right. I'm sensitive to light at night, and there was plenty of it streaming through the doorway from the hall, not just underneath. As for noise, I was nicely positioned right by the elevator and ice/vending area. (My profile online is set to "high floor - away from elevator".)
Around 10PM I called down to report that my sink would not open; the drain was stuck shut. Giving credit where credit is due, it was fixed within 15 minutes or so. Speaking of drains, this was my first encounter with the bath-drain-closed-as-default. That turned out not to matter much as the drain was slow-moving even when open. I could not locate a "Please Do Not Disturb" sign; there was an indication that shifting a switch by the door handle to Privacy from the inside triggers an indicator.
The next afternoon when I returned around 3:00 or so, I was surprised to see housekeeping staff still around on the floor. My bed had been made (same sheets), and my used bath towel and bathmat replaced by two (new) clean towels and no bathmat. I had slept late, and foregone breakfast (after all I was only entitled to one), so I brewed up the in-room coffee and ate yesterday's Doubletree cookie instead. Coffee was not replaced the next day. One per stay on that? Passive-aggressive housekeeper exacting revenge for lack of a tip? Or just an oversight? I dunno. The housekeepers called out to each other down the hallway in [what the British comedienne Victoria Wood would call] "loud jolly voices" for the next hour or so.
Being an award stay, and looking to kill a little time before dinner, I decided to have a drink at the bar (for incidental points). The guest lit in my room indicated that the lounge opens at 3:00. I arrived around 4:30 to find roughly a half-dozen people and no bartender in sight. I took a seat at the bar, and waited. A couple of minutes later, a woman appeared pushing a cart of ice into the bar area; she explained that she was the bartender. After stowing the ice, she pointed to a padlocked (with chains, not just a simple lock)cabinet under the displayed bottles: "The bar was locked up and I just now got these keys from the chef himself. They still cannot locate the 'regular' ones." By the time she actually did get up-and-running for drinks, more folks were arriving. I was rather shocked by my bill - not so much the amount (although that was pricey) but the breakdown: $6.44 plus $1.56 "tax" for a Sapphire-and-tonic. Almost 25%!? I left a $1 bill along with the signed tab for $8 exactly. At the restaurant where I had dinner, (which included a drink, a beer and food) the bill had a regular (9%) sales tax on the entire tab. Did the Doubletree include a 15% "service charge" as "tax" by implication? It was this episode that clinched its "ferkakteh" status for me.
The breakfast buffet was actually pretty good. We'll see if whether I have to follow up on getting it deducted. :rolleyes:
Edited to add: Folio came through with breakfast charged to my cc. I called hotel accounting dept, and they agreed to put through a credit for it.
The room turned out to be specially designed for Priceline/Points Stretcher guests: a 45-degree L shape with the bed sticking out from said angle at an angle itself, and TV-on-dresser directly opposite foot of bed. As sitting on the bed itself, there was a large easy chair to the left (between bed and bathroom) and a desk/work area on the right. I'm sensitive to light at night, and there was plenty of it streaming through the doorway from the hall, not just underneath. As for noise, I was nicely positioned right by the elevator and ice/vending area. (My profile online is set to "high floor - away from elevator".)
Around 10PM I called down to report that my sink would not open; the drain was stuck shut. Giving credit where credit is due, it was fixed within 15 minutes or so. Speaking of drains, this was my first encounter with the bath-drain-closed-as-default. That turned out not to matter much as the drain was slow-moving even when open. I could not locate a "Please Do Not Disturb" sign; there was an indication that shifting a switch by the door handle to Privacy from the inside triggers an indicator.
The next afternoon when I returned around 3:00 or so, I was surprised to see housekeeping staff still around on the floor. My bed had been made (same sheets), and my used bath towel and bathmat replaced by two (new) clean towels and no bathmat. I had slept late, and foregone breakfast (after all I was only entitled to one), so I brewed up the in-room coffee and ate yesterday's Doubletree cookie instead. Coffee was not replaced the next day. One per stay on that? Passive-aggressive housekeeper exacting revenge for lack of a tip? Or just an oversight? I dunno. The housekeepers called out to each other down the hallway in [what the British comedienne Victoria Wood would call] "loud jolly voices" for the next hour or so.
Being an award stay, and looking to kill a little time before dinner, I decided to have a drink at the bar (for incidental points). The guest lit in my room indicated that the lounge opens at 3:00. I arrived around 4:30 to find roughly a half-dozen people and no bartender in sight. I took a seat at the bar, and waited. A couple of minutes later, a woman appeared pushing a cart of ice into the bar area; she explained that she was the bartender. After stowing the ice, she pointed to a padlocked (with chains, not just a simple lock)cabinet under the displayed bottles: "The bar was locked up and I just now got these keys from the chef himself. They still cannot locate the 'regular' ones." By the time she actually did get up-and-running for drinks, more folks were arriving. I was rather shocked by my bill - not so much the amount (although that was pricey) but the breakdown: $6.44 plus $1.56 "tax" for a Sapphire-and-tonic. Almost 25%!? I left a $1 bill along with the signed tab for $8 exactly. At the restaurant where I had dinner, (which included a drink, a beer and food) the bill had a regular (9%) sales tax on the entire tab. Did the Doubletree include a 15% "service charge" as "tax" by implication? It was this episode that clinched its "ferkakteh" status for me.
The breakfast buffet was actually pretty good. We'll see if whether I have to follow up on getting it deducted. :rolleyes:
Edited to add: Folio came through with breakfast charged to my cc. I called hotel accounting dept, and they agreed to put through a credit for it.